LOS ANGELES — They were being studied.

Every shot, every improbable defensive stop, every rebound — Washington's every move was noted by Stanford. And when the Cardinal players felt they had their mark dissected, they took advantage and rolled to a 76-57 victory Thursday at the Galen Center on the USC campus.

The top-seeded Cardinal, ranked second in the country, advances to play Arizona State in the semifinal round of the Pac-12 women's basketball tournament on Friday at Staples Center. The fourth-seeded Sun Devils advanced by defeating Arizona 68-53.

"Once we kind of got the hang (of UW's) plays ... we made a run," said Stanford senior Nnemkadi Ogwumike.

Ogwumike took a charge against Regina Rogers to force the Huskies' leading scorer to the bench with two fouls and Washington down seven points with 4:15 remaining in the first half.

Then, Ogwumike displayed her athleticism against senior post players Mackenzie Argens and Mollie Williams. The Pac-12 player of the year scored six of Stanford's 11 points as the Cardinal took a 37-24 lead into the break.

Ogwumike led her team with 18 points on 8-for-13 shooting. Her sister Chiney added 16 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.

"The Ogwumike sisters are unbelievable," Argens said. "It was difficult guarding them, but I feel like our team over the years, especially this year, we've done well to figure out a way to guard them."

Washington out-rebounded the Cardinal 21-18 in the first half. Yet, with the Cardinal shooting 51.7 percent and limiting the Huskies to nine points off 10 offensive rebounds, it didn't make much difference.

"We definitely addressed that," Cardinal coach Tara VanDerveer said of the rebounding discrepancy. "And I think it got better."

Stanford out-rebounded Washington 22-14 in the second half as its lead grew to 27 points with 7:58 remaining. Rogers' return to the lineup made little difference.

Washington's Jazmine Davis, the Pac-12 freshman of the year, struggled offensively. Davis was 2 for 18 from the field and scored eight points after nailing seven three-pointers in an opening-round win against Oregon's soft defense Wednesday.

"They were really aggressive on her," said Washington coach Kevin McGuff. "And when she (Davis) did get shots, she didn't finish like she normally does. But most of it had to do with Stanford's defense."

Argens scored 10 in the second half and finished with 12 points, the same as Williams and Rogers.

None of the seniors believes their college careers are over. Washington (17-13) anticipates a WNIT invitation on Monday. The Huskies are 5-11 all-time in conference tournament play, never winning back-to-back games.

"They deserve to be in postseason play," McGuff said of his team, which was 8-2 in nonconference play and has a RPI of 98 after tying for seventh in the conference. "It would be a great reward for this team and a reflection of how hard they've worked."

Washington participated in the inaugural Women's Basketball Invitational in 2010. It lost in the opening round of the NCAA tournament in 2007.

"I'm keeping my hopes up and not thinking this was my last game," Argens said. "In the back of my head it is, but definitely I'm looking forward to the WNIT and I can't want until Monday."

Jayda Evans: 206-464-2067 or jevans@seattletimes.com.

On Twitter @JaydaEvans

Box score

WASHINGTON (17-13)
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Barlow	18	1-3	0-0	1-2	0	0	2
Argens	28	5-8	2-2	2-4	1	2	12
Rogers	27	4-9	5-9	3-4	4	3	13
Wetmore	27	0-4	4-4	0-3	1	0	4
Davis	36	2-18	3-6	0-0	0	0	8
M-Smith	16	1-1	0-0	0-3	0	2	3
A Williams	24	0-4	3-4	2-6	1	3	3
M Williams	24	4-7	3-3	1-5	0	2	12
	200	17-54	20-28	15-35	7	12	57

Percentages: FG .315, FT .714. Three-point goals: 3-8, .375 (McCann-Smith 1-1, Davis 1-3, M. Williams 1-3, A. Williams 0-1). Team rebounds: 8. Blocked shots: 3 (Rogers, M. Williams, Argens). Turnovers: 15 (Rogers 5, Barlow 3, Davis 3, M. Williams, Wetmore, Argens). Steals: 6 (A. Williams 3, Davis, Rogers, Wetmore). Technical fouls: None.

STANFORD (29-1)
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
C.Ogwmike	27	7-11	2-3	4-11	2	4	16
N.Ogwmike	25	8-13	2-4	1-7	4	2	18
Tinkle	25	4-8	0-0	3-6	1	2	8
Kokenis	28	3-6	2-2	0-3	6	2	8
Orrange	23	3-5	1-1	1-1	3	2	7
Mashore	1	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	1	0
Greenfield	13	0-4	0-0	1-2	0	0	0
La Rocque	24	3-6	0-0	0-1	1	0	8
James	4	0-0	0-0	0-0	1	1	0
Payne	5	0-2	0-0	0-0	0	1	0
Samuelson	17	3-6	2-2	0-3	0	2	11
Boothe	9	0-2	0-0	0-1	1	1	0
	201	31-63	9-12	14-40	19	18	76

Percentages: FG .492, FT .750. Three-point goals: 5-16, .313 (Samuelson 3-5, La Rocque 2-5, Tinkle 0-1, Kokenis 0-2, Greenfield 0-3). Team rebounds: 5. Blocked shots: 6 (Tinkle 2, N. Ogwumike, Orrange, C. Ogwumike, Boothe). Turnovers: 10 (Orrange 4, La Rocque 2, Payne, Kokenis, Boothe, Mashore). Steals: 5 (Kokenis 2, Orrange 2, La Rocque). Technical fouls: None.

Washington	24	33	—	57
Stanford	37	39	—	76

Attendance: NA. Officials: Michael Price, Anita Ortega, Penny Davis.