The Redhawks were held to their lowest scoring output of the year

~ The Redhawks were held to their lowest scoring output of the year and finished the program's most successful season in Division I at 22-9.

DENVER, Colo. -- Tradition-rich Stanford put an emphatic end to Southeast Missouri State's first appearance at the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament.

The third-seeded Cardinal, playing in its 19th straight NCAA tournament, built a 13-point halftime lead and rolled to a 72-45 victory over the 14th-seeded Redhawks Saturday night.

Stanford, ranked 13th nationally, will carry a 24-7 record into Monday's second-round game against sixth-seeded Florida State, which beat 11th-seeded Louisiana Tech 80-71 earlier Saturday.

Southeast, which this year captured a share of its first Ohio Valley Conference championship and won its first OVC tournament title, finishes 22-9.

Sophomore guard Candice Wiggins, a second-team All-American last season and a current finalist for national player of the year honors, led the Cardinal with 21 points. She entered the contest as the nation's No. 10 scorer at 21.2 points per game.

Wiggins, scoring mostly on athletic drives to the basket, hit eight of 15 field-goal attempts. She had 13 first-half points, and played just eight second-half minutes as Stanford built a huge lead.

Stanford's other first-team all-Pac 10 performer, 6-foot-3 junior center Brooke Smith, added 14 points and nine rebounds as the Cardinal dominated the boards 52-35.

Senior forward Natalie Purcell scored 17 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for the Redhawks, while senior center Tatiana Conceicao added 12 points. She entered play averaging 19.6 points.

Conceicao did not have a field goal in the first half -- she missed all six of her attempts, although she did hit seven of eight free throws -- and finished the game one of 14 from the floor, while making 10 of 13 foul shots.

The Redhawks, averaging 71.9 points per game, struggled offensively all night against taller Stanford as they finished with their lowest point total of the season.

Southeast shot 21.1 percent from the field (12 of 57), and 16.7 percent on 3-pointers (three of 18).

Stanford shot 42.9 percent (27 of 63) and had a 40-8 edge in points in the paint.

The Redhawks entered the contest having won 16 of their past 17 games, but they found themselves in an early hole Saturday as they never led and were tied just once, at 2-2.

Stanford built a 15-4 advantage less than 7 minutes in, as Southeast had just one field goal in the first 6 minutes 30 seconds.

Southeast chipped away and pulled within 20-15 when senior point guard Wanika Owsley made one of two free throws with 7:52 left before halftime.

But Stanford responded with a 7-0 run -- getting five points from Wiggins -- to go up 27-15.

The Cardinal led by 17 points twice late in the opening period and carried a 37-24 advantage into the break.

Southeast scored the first five points of the second half to make it 37-29, but Stanford responded with a 16-0 run that built its lead to 53-29.

Stanford's lead never dipped under 23 points and the Cardinal's biggest advantage was 29 points.

Now the Cardinal will move on as they chase the program's sixth Final Four appearance. Stanford has won two national championships, in 1989-90 and 1991-92.