WACO, Texas - Measuring sticks don't have to be standard-sized. Sometimes, it depends on what's being calculated.

Take Sunday in the Ferrell Center as an example. Baylor's 17th-ranked women's team upset second-ranked Stanford, 81-65. November is a marathon from March. So what does the Bears' victory mean?

"It allows us to gain confidence, to know we can compete with teams across the country," Baylor coach Kim Mulkey said. "It allows us to take (Monday) off.

"I don't know what we are. All I know is we're a pretty good program. Don't overlook us. We're always picked middle of the pack in the Big 12. We just play, play hard."

Mulkey measured her victory differently than Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer.

"For our team, it's a wakeup call," she said. "Sometimes you go into a fight ... this was Round One. We got a big bloody nose. We need to get up and come out and get better. See us in Round 15."

For a mid-November non-conference game, this was played with NCAA Tournament intensity. Last year, Baylor lost at Stanford, 87-63, last December. The Cardinal went on to lose in the national championship game. The Bears lost in the second round of the NCAAs.

"Last year it just hurt, it hurt our hearts," senior forward Rachel Allison said of the 24-point defeat.

And you know how payback can be ... an itch. The Bears scratched.

Allison (game-high 25 points) and fellow senior Jhasmin Player tag teamed Stanford. Allison gave Baylor confidence, scoring 17 of the Bears' first 21 points. She made three 3-pointers and six consecutive shots.

"You had to be blind not to see it," Player said of Allison's hot start. "When she didn't shoot it, I was upset. I wanted her to shoot it every time."

In the second half, Allison tagged Player, who came in off the top turnbuckle. She scored 12 of the Bears' 19 points over an eight-minute span in the second half as Baylor inexorably pulled away.

The Bears were 20-1 last season when Player suffered a torn ACL. The second-half spurt - which included two three-point plays - was another brick in the foundation of her comeback.

"The injury, now it's all about confidence," said Player, who finished with 14 points. "I have great days and bad days. I'm seeing flashes of my old self. Eventually I'll be back."

Stanford returns four starters from last season's national runner-up. The missing piece is four-time All-American Candice Wiggins. At halftime, Baylor retired the number of Sophia Young, a two-time All-American who helped the Bears win the 2005 national championship.

Games like Sunday are all about replacing missing pieces and finding pieces that fit.

Stanford has height and talent. The Cardinal lack an experienced point guard. Against Baylor, they played to their strength - inside play. Stanford didn't convert, shooting just 37.9 percent from the field. The starting front court combined to make 8-of-26 shots.

Allison, selected to last year's Big 12 all-defensive team, and 6-3 junior Danielle Wilson did a lot of the heavy lifting against Stanford's post players. Mulkey says that Wilson, who finished with 12 points, nine rebounds and six blocked shots, is the team's most-improved player.

"Her confidence is at an all-time high," Mulkey said. "A lot of those blocks and shots she contested, she went up strong with both hands, like if you're gonna make this shot, sister, you're gonna have to go through me."

Figure in Saturday's 41-21 defeat of Texas A&M - the Bears' biggest margin of victory over the Aggies since 1980 - plus the Baylor men opening with a victory Saturday night, it was a good weekend in Waco ... no matter how you measure it.