STANFORD, Calif. - The first "Battle of the Bay" of the 2008-09 season is set for Sunday, Jan. 18 as No. 9/7 Stanford (13-3, 4-0) travels to Berkeley to battle the No. 11/9 California Golden Bears (13-2, 4-0) 2 p.m. Sunday's game offers the first chance for one of the two rivals to gain the inside track in the quest for the Pac-10 regular-season title. The contest will be broadcast on FSN and Comcast Sports Net Bay Area, with Jim Watson on the play-by-play and Mary Murphy on color commentary, and can be heard live on 90.1 KZSU and on the Internet at kzsulive.stanford.edu, with Jake Kelman handling play-by-play duties and Andrew Shen on color.

Last Time Out
The Cardinal had a record-setting outing in notching a pair of wins over Washington and Washington State this past weekend. Stanford opened the weekend with a school and Pac-10 record 77-point victory on Thursday, routing the Huskies 112-35, then followed up with a 102-53 victory over the Cougars. Jeanette Pohlen averaged 17.0 points and 6.0 assists over the weekend, and shot 53.8 percent (7-for-13) from behind the arc over the two games. Jayne Appel averaged 18.5 points a game and shot 85.7 percent (18-for-21) over the weekend, and the Cardinal as a team had six players score in double figures in Saturday's victory over Washington State.

Scouting California
The California Golden Bears (13-2, 4-0) head into Sunday afternoon's game on a five-game winning streak and an unbeaten mark in Pac-10 play. The Golden Bears lead the Pac-10 in allowing just 51.9 points per game and allow just 30.9 rebounds a game, second-best in the conference. With head coach Joanne Boyle at the helm in her fourth year at California, the team is buoyed by the play of Pac-10 leading scorer Ashley Walker (21.6 ppg, 8.2 rpg) and senior point guard Alexis Gray-Lawson (11.3 ppg, 4.13 apg).

All-Time Against California
Stanford leads the all-time series against California by a 50-16 margin and has come out on top in 32 of the past 34 meetings dating back to Jan. 21, 1994. The last time Stanford lost to the Golden Bears in Berkeley was Dec. 12, 1993 (64-59). The Cardinal swept all three meetings last season, including a 56-35 rout in the Pac-10 Tournament title game.

In The National Polls
Following the weekend sweep, Stanford rose to No. 9 in this week's Associated Press Poll and remained at No. 7 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll.

A Look At The National Stat Leaders
Stanford was ranked in the national top 50 in 11 statistical categories through Jan. 11. The Cardinal figures that sat in the top 50 are: assists per game (19.0 - second), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.32 - second), scoring margin (+23.3 - fifth), rebound margin (+12.0 - fifth), points per game (79.6 - eighth), field-goal percentage (46.1 - 12th), fewest turnovers per game (14.4 - 12th), blocked shots per game (5.3 - 24th), three-pointers per game (7.3 - 18th), field-goal percentage defense (35.1 - 26th) and scoring defense (56.3 - 44th). Individually, Jayne Appel is in the top 50 of three categories: field-goal percentage (60.9 - seventh), rebounds per game (9.6 - 37th) and blocked shots per game (2.0 - 48th). Jeanette Pohlen is 20th in the nation with 2.7 three-pointers per game, 29th with a 1.88 assist-to-turnover ratio and 43rd with a 40.2 percent three-point shooting mark.

Stanford Rankings In The Pac-10
Stanford leads the Pac-10 in eight statistical categories through Jan. 11. The Cardinal is tops in scoring (79.6 ppg), scoring margin (+23.2), field-goal percentage (46.1 percent), field-goal percentage defense (35.1 percent), blocked shots (5.3 per game), assists per game (19.0), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.3) and three-pointers per game (7.3). Individually, Jayne Appel (60.9 percent) and Nnemkadi Ogwumike (60.0) are one-two in field-goal percentage. Appel also ranks second in rebounding (9.6 rpg), sixth in scoring (14.4 ppg) and first in blocked shots (2.0 bpg). Jeanette Pohlen leads the Pac-10 with 2.7 three-pointers per game, and is second with a 1.88 assist-to-turnover ratio.

The Battle Of The Bay Is Renewed
Sunday's contest in Berkeley will be the first edition of the "Battle of the Bay" in 2008-09, and Stanford will look to continue its dominance in the series. Last year, the Cardinal swept all three meetings, routing the Golden Bears 72-52 at Stanford on Jan. 26, 2008, getting a late go-ahead layup from Candice Wiggins to steal a 60-58 decision in Berkeley on Feb. 23, 2008, then clamping down on California in a 56-35 victory that clinched Stanford's fifth Pac-10 Tournament crown.

When Stanford Wins, It Wins Big
Over the last 34 meetings between Stanford and California, of which the Cardinal has won 32, the average margin of victory in that stretch has paralleled Stanford's dominance of the series. The Cardinal has won those last 32 contests by an average of 23.9 points, with only five of them being decided by less than 10 points.

A Couple Of Century Marks
Stanford swept Washington and Washington State at home last weekend and made a heck of a statement in the process. The Cardinal first routed the Huskies 112-35 Thursday night, the 77-point margin of victory setting a new school and Pac-10 record. Saturday, the Cardinal continued the hot shooting, beating the Cougars, 102-53. The two 100-point games marked the first time since Feb. 9 and 11, 1995 that Stanford had reached the century mark in consecutive games.

Hot, Hot, Hot
The Cardinal had nothing but hot hands last weekend in its routs of Washington and Washington State, shooting a combined 56.7 percent (76-for-134) over the two contests. The totals were Stanford's two top single-game shooting percentages of the season, and individually the Cardinal were paced by the hot hands of Jayne Appel (18-for-21 - 85.7 percent), Jillian Harmon (9-for-10 - 90.0 percent) and Jeanette Pohlen (10-for-18 - 55.6 percent, and 7-for-13 from behind the arc - 53.8 percent).

Give A Little Bit
Stanford has firmly established itself as one of the top passing and ball-control teams in the nation at the halfway point of the regular season, ranking second in the nation in both assists per game (19.0 per game) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.32). The Cardinal handed out an astonishing 60 assists over last weekend's victories, led by Jeanette Pohlen's 12 assists and Rosalyn Gold-Onwude's 10 on the weekend.

Downtown Duo
Guards Rosalyn Gold-Onwude and Jeanette Pohlen paired up to shoot lights out from behind the arc last weekend, going a combined 13-for-22 (59.1 percent) on their three-point attempts. Pohlen, the Pac-10 leader with 2.7 three-pointers per game, nailed 7-of-13 attempts (53.8 percent) against the two Washington schools, while Gold-Onwude showed that she is heating up by hitting six of her eight attempts for a 75.0-percent success rate.

Harmon's The Jack Of All Trades
Senior forward Jillian Harmon continued her strong all-around play last weekend, contributing to the winning effort with her scoring, rebounding, passing and defense. Over the two victories, Harmon shot 90.0 percent (9-for-10) from the field, averaging10.0 points, while grabbing 4.0 rebounds a game, passing out 2.5 assists and making 2.5 steals per contest. Through four Pac-10 contests, Harmon is shooting 70.0 percent (21-for-30) from the field.

Harrison's Big Weekend
Redshirt sophomore forward Michelle Harrison was among the Stanford reserves who used the opportunity of the weekend's big wins to showcase their game. After scoring five points and grabbing five boards in the win over Washington, Harrison caught fire Saturday against Washington State, going 6-for-11 from the field for a career-high 16 points while also grabbing six rebounds and making a pair of steals.

Limited Time, Maximum Damage
Despite playing just 18.5 minutes a game last weekend, well below her season average, junior center Jayne Appel put up some gaudy numbers. Appel shot 85.7 percent (18-for-21) from the field while averaging 18.5 points per game. The magnificent effort from the floor raised her shooting percentage to a Pac-10-leading 60.9 percent.

Berkeley A Second Home?
After a glance at the all-time game-by-game results between Stanford and California, it appears that the Cardinal has gotten quite comfortable in Berkeley over the last 15-plus years. Since suffering a 64-59 loss in Berkeley on Feb. 12, 1993, Stanford has gone on to capture 15 straight decisions at Haas Pavilion, most recently last year's thrilling 60-58 victory in front of 10,525 fans.

The Health Report
Guard Melanie Murphy has missed the last three games due to injuries to her big toes, and her status for Sunday at California is uncertain. Junior JJ Hones will miss the rest of the season after tearing the ACL in her left knee Nov. 23 against Rutgers. Morgan Clyburn is also out for the season after undergoing offseason foot surgery.

Movin' On Up The Career List
Jayne Appel continued her climb up the Stanford career record books last week, as her scoring, rebounding, and blocked shot totals continued to ascend. Following Friday's game, Appel now boasts career totals of 1,252 points (22nd overall), 746 rebounds (eighth) and 177 blocked shots (second). Appel's tally of blocks is currently just 24 away from tying Val Whiting's all-time record of 201, and it is seventh on the all-time Pac-10 list.