Men's Basketball Nine-Game Win Streak Snapped by Broncos

Saturday, January 15

McKeon Pavilion

5:05 PM

Saint Mary's College of California

*Santa Clara

Men's Basketball Nine-Game Win Streak Snapped by Broncos

1/15/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Jan. 15, 2005

Box Score

By JANIE McCAULEY
AP Sports Writer

MORAGA, Calif. (AP) - Doron Perkins had 20 points and seven rebounds, to help the Santa Clara Broncos defeat the Saint Mary's men's basketball team 64-42 on Saturday.

Daniel Kickert had 15 points and 10 rebounds for Saint Mary's to notch is fourth double-double of the season and 10th of his career. The Gaels trailed by as many as 26 points and couldn't overcome an 18-point halftime deficit, its biggest of the season.

Santa Clara, which lost last season's meetings in the rivalry by 32 and 30 points, snapped the Gaels' streak of nine straight wins and 11 victories in a row at home.

A week after hitting a school-record 16 3-pointers to beat Gonzaga, Saint Mary's shot 2-for-18 from long range and connected on just 13-of-50 shots from the field to shoot 26 percent for the game.

Travis Niesen added 16 points and Kyle Bailey 14 for Santa Clara, which shot 51.7 percent in the first half and held Saint Mary's without a basket for 10 minutes. The Broncos matched their biggest margin of victory against Saint Mary's since 1990.

Santa Clara (9-9, 2-1) ended a five-game losing streak by beating Portland 76-63 last Saturday. But the Broncos - who gained national attention after shocking third-ranked North Carolina in November - had been inconsistent in losing seven of their previous nine games.

The loss is a letdown for the Gaels, who sold out McKeon Pavilion for the second straight week after beating No. 16 Gonzaga 89-81 last Saturday, their first victory over the favored Bulldogs in seven seasons.

Saint Mary's received votes in both The Associated Press and coaches' polls after beating the Zags.

Many in the sellout crowd of 3,500 were on their feet from the beginning, but the Gaels couldn't make shots against Santa Clara's relentless man-to-man defense. After making six of their first nine shots, the Gaels went 7-for-41 from the field to end the game.

They opened the second half with a 9-2 run, getting five straight points from Frederic Adjiwanou and a blocked shot, but it wasn't enough. Saint Mary's leading scorer, Paul Marigney, was held to 10 points.

After Kickert was called for three seconds in the key at the 15-minute mark of the first half, Niesen slapped the ball out of his hands and immediately picked up a technical foul. That enraged Santa Clara coach Dick Davey, who threw his sport coat on the floor and kicked it so hard it landed on his chair.

Saint Mary's went 0-for-11 during a 10-minute first-half drought and trailed 39-21 at the break.

Saint Mary's will return to West Coast Conference action on Thursday, January 20 when the Gaels travel to Pepperdine University. The game between SMC and the Waves will begin at 7:05 p.m. at the Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, CA. The game will also be televised on CSTV.