Elena Bosgana Leads Stanford Women's Basketball to 2-0 Start

Jason Burke | Nov 8, 2024

Mar 29, 2024; Portland, OR, USA; NC State Wolfpack guard Saniya Rivers (22) drives to the basket during the first half against Stanford Cardinal guard Elena Bosgana (20) in the semifinals of the Portland Regional of the 2024 NCAA Tournament at the Moda Center at the Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images / Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

For the first time in 25 seasons, the Stanford Cardinal women's basketball team entered the season unranked. A new conference with a new coach and the team's three leading scorers from last season no longer with the program will do that. Yet, the Cardinal have started showing what they are made of early on this season, and it involves spreading around the production.

One of the key standouts from Thursday night's win over visiting Washington State was senior guard Elena Bosgana, who finished the game with a team-high 19 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the floor, including 2-of-3 from behind the arc and 9-of-10 from the free throw line. She also added five rebounds and three steals in her 26 minutes on the court.

While the stat line is certainly impressive, what was really eye-popping about her performance was her plus-minus, which stood at +41, ten more than the next-best on the team. The Cardinal ended up winning the contest 94-65, a spread of 29, and Bosgana bested that by another 12 points. Basketball is a game of runs, and Bosgana was on the floor when the Cardinal started their stampede.

She also performed well in a couple of analytical data points, Floor%, which is "the percentage of a player's possessions on which at least one point is scored," and EFF, or efficiency, which is calculated with the formula "PTS + REB + AST + STL + BLK - Missed Shots - TO."

In the first game against Le Moyne, the senior put up a solid Floor% of 65.4%, which was second to just Jzaniya Harriel's 77.1% after she went 6-of-7 from three . Last night, Bosgana put up a season high 80.6% which figures to be tough to beat as the opposition gets stiffer over the course of the year. In both games, she has put up the same EFF of 25, which is not only efficient, but also extremely consistent.

Obviously it's early in the season, but if the Cardinal can get reliable performances like this out of Bosgana, that should serve as a stabilizing force for the season. The players around her, like Nunu Agara, who had another solid game last night, putting up 18 points with eight boards, or Chloe Clardy, who seems to provide a spark whenever she's on the court, may vary throughout the year. But if Stanford can find some consistent players, then the rest of the team will grow around them.

The Cardinal will be tested a bit more over the next week, with a big game against Gonzaga on Sunday at Maples. They will then face UC Davis at home on Wednesday, and then head out on the road for the first time this season to take on No. 25 Indiana.