HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS : Stanford Saw Berth in Final

Along with her basketball scoring, rebounding and speed, you have to give Nordhoff High’s Keyana Stanford credit for something more: foresight.

The 5-foot-7 guard leads the Rangers into Friday’s Southern Section Division III-A final at the Pyramid in Long Beach--an occurrence she predicted to Coach Jack Smith before the season began.

“It just kind of came up in a conversation and it took me back,” said Smith, whose team is 20-8 and finished second to Moorpark in the Frontier League. “I wondered about it to myself but Keyana has a lot of confidence in herself and her teammates.”

Stanford averaged 10.3 points and six rebounds throughout the season, but is averaging 16 points in the playoffs.

A senior, Stanford played for the Ventura Stars club in junior high and attended Buena as a freshman. She moved into the Nordhoff attendance area as a sophomore and has helped lead the Ranger attack since.

“She’s a very unselfish player, which makes her a great leader,” Smith said. “Last year she was a very good defensive player but this year she’s really improved her passing.”

Much of Stanford’s improvement came last summer when four times a week she endured four-hour round trips to USC to play in an intensive basketball program for high school and local college players.

Friday, Nordhoff is hoping to avenge an earlier holiday tournament loss to Morningside. The Rangers trailed by as many as 20 points in that game and Smith said he believes the Monarchs will be overconfident.

“We know how they play and we move the ball a lot better now,” Stanford said. “Getting [to the section finals] and going to the state playoffs was my main goal. Now we want to win, so [Morningside’s] going to have to play a lot harder this time.”