Why Stanford and South Carolina’s No. 1-vs.-No. 2 showdown is so significant — even if it’s not so rare

There are many reasons to look forward to Stanford’s highly anticipated game Sunday at Maples Pavilion against South Carolina.

They’re the last two programs to win the national championship. They each have some of the best players in the country, like South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston and Stanford’s Haley Jones and Cameron Brink. They’re led by two of the best coaches in all of basketball, Tara VanDerveer and Dawn Staley.

“I think it’s gonna be really exciting,” VanDerveer said.

But really, there are only two numbers that you need to know to understand the significance of Sunday’s noon showdown on ABC:

No. 1 and No. 2.

That’s where South Carolina (3-0) and Stanford (5-0) are ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 poll this week, respectively. Both Staley and VanDerveer are thrilled to have the matchup drawing national attention, even in the middle of a jam-packed Sunday sports slate.

“I think that we’re all thinking this is for the greater good of the game,” Staley said. “This generates a lot of publicity. It generates a lot of buzz. It puts us on a platform to be seen by the rest of women’s basketball teams, programs, fans, bands and everybody that just enjoys watching basketball.

“I know everybody’s been in a football mode, but it kind of jump-shocks you, to know it’s basketball season, and there’s a space for the basketball enthusiast to see a quality basketball game.”

A matchup between the top two teams in the country anytime in the season is a significant national occurrence in the college landscape — and one that has happened far more often in the women’s game than in the men’s.

Since 2000, the No. 1 and No. 2 team in the men’s Associated Press poll have only squared off nine times, according to the College Poll Archive. For the women? It’s happened 33 times — and No. 34 is coming Sunday.

It’s even starker when you look at games intentionally scheduled with such a colossal collision in mind — nonconference games. When you remove preordained conference games and NCAA Tournament games between the top two teams, the split is even more apparent.

For the men, there have only been six matchups in the 23 seasons since 2000 — about once every four years.

On the women’s side? Sunday will be No. 21 — almost one per season.

Intentionally scheduling the best teams in the country is something that both VanDerveer and Staley feel is incredibly important.

“You don’t play for the ranking, but we certainly play to see where we are — like, where do we stand up against the rich tradition of Stanford and their style of play?” Staley said. “It has an ambiguous meaning, but ultimately, it’s a measure of where you are, and when you stack up against one of the best teams in the country.”

VanDerveer added, “I think that what you see in women’s basketball is that teams aren’t afraid to play great competition. Everybody plays each other and I think that’s a great thing.”

VanDerveer also pointed out that most of the matchups between top teams in women’s basketball don’t happen at neutral sites in cities that are far from both schools, but rather in home-and-home series, like what Stanford and South Carolina are currently doing.

“It rewards your fans when you’re playing a home game,” VanDerveer said. “Everyone can’t afford to fly to Vegas or wherever the tournaments are, but this rewards your home fans with a great game and great turnout, playing a tough schedule.”

Or, if you are the road team, it can test your players in a daunting atmosphere — like 11 months ago, when the No. 2 Cardinal went to Columbia, South Carolina, to play the No. 1 Gamecocks on Dec. 21. Staley remembers Stanford “punching us in the mouth” in building an 18-point lead before the Cardinal collapsed in the second half and eventually lost 65-61.

“We had a packed house and we just didn’t have it in the first half,” Staley said. “Then we made a few adjustments at halftime and we got ourselves back in the game and we made it a game for the people who paid their money to watch, the people that were watching on TV or streaming it. We made (the fans) lock into it because we came back from the 18-point deficit and ended up winning the game, and that’s what you want.

“I know Tara didn’t like the outcome, but I’m sure she could appreciate it being a highly contested basketball game.”

Sunday will be the 11th time the Cardinal women have been in a No. 1-versus-No. 2 matchup, but the Cardinal will enter the showdown with a 1-9 record in games between the top two teams. Their only win was a 74-65 win over No. 2 Alabama on Nov. 17, 1996 — VanDerveer’s first game back from a yearlong sabbatical to coach Staley, then a point guard, and Team USA at the 1996 Olympics.

That depth of history is why both coaches tend to see the big picture, understanding that the sport of women’s basketball still has so much room to flourish.

And the fact that Sunday is the first of four top-level women’s basketball games that will air on ABC in the next two months — something Staley said is “long overdue” — is significant to VanDerveer, who indicated she’ll be paying attention to the viewership numbers and ratings.

“I think anytime you go up against NFL football, it’s going to be challenging,” VanDerveer said. “We are so excited that ABC and the sponsors are valuing women’s basketball, that they see value in our game, our product and the players and the programs.”

It’s with that value in mind that Stanford, South Carolina and so many of the other top women’s basketball programs will continue to seek major matchups like what we’ll see on Sunday.

“We are all trying to grow the game,” VanDerveer said. “And when you have these kinds of matchups, it helps grow the game.”