Cavaliers rally to defeat Stanford on the road

Virginia Cavaliers women's basketball rallied from an early deficit and leaned on a dominant closing stretch from Kymora Johnson to defeat Stanford Cardinal women's basketball 75-69 on Sunday afternoon at Maples Pavilion.

Virginia (18-8, 10-5 ACC) overcame an eight-point first-quarter deficit and matched its highest ACC win total since the 2017-18 season, the last time the program earned an NCAA tournament berth.

Johnson led all scorers with 25 points while adding five rebounds and four assists. She delivered in the final minutes, scoring 13 points in the fourth quarter and converting eight straight free throws to secure the win.

The Cavaliers received significant production from their bench. Caitlin Weimar contributed 12 points and eight rebounds, while Gabby White added 11 points and nine boards. Virginia’s reserves outscored Stanford’s bench 36-6, including a 19-4 edge in the first half.

After falling behind 10-2 in the opening minutes, Virginia closed the first quarter on a 9-3 run to trim the deficit to 13-11. The Cavaliers seized control in the second quarter, opening on a 12-4 run and outscoring Stanford 25-15 in the period. Johnson beat the halftime buzzer to give Virginia a 36-28 lead at the break.

Stanford (16-11, 5-9 ACC) responded in the third quarter, cutting the margin to one and eventually tying the game at 45-45 midway through the period. Virginia answered with an 11-4 run, fueled entirely by free throws, to take a 59-51 advantage into the final quarter.

The Cardinal surged again in the fourth, using a 13-1 run to claim a 64-62 lead with just over four minutes remaining. Johnson quickly responded, hitting two free throws to tie the game before grabbing an offensive rebound and knocking down a 3-pointer to put Virginia ahead for good.

The Cavaliers dominated at the foul line, converting 28 of 32 attempts, while holding Stanford to 15 of 20. Virginia also controlled the glass with a 46-36 rebounding edge.

The late execution capped a resilient road victory as the Cavaliers continued to strengthen their postseason résumé.