Jordan Ford scored 10 of the Gaels' first 13 points and finished with 16 Tuesday to go with four rebounds and two assists.

Men's Basketball 12/19/2017 12:00:00 AM

MBK | Gaels Fly Past Dayton With Potent Second Half

Dec. 19, 2017

MORAGA, Calif. -- The Saint Mary's men's basketball team's offense exploded in the second half Tuesday, turning a two-point half-time deficit into a 15-point victory, as the Gaels downed Atlantic-10 Conference member Dayton, 69-54, in a non-conference matchup at McKeon Pavilion.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Saint Mary's (10-2) came alive after halftime following a relatively quiet first half. Calvin Hermanson played a big part in staking the Gaels to a 41-33 lead, scoring six points during a 12-2 run right out of the gate. Dayton (5-6) cut it back down to a four-point contest, but Hermanson got going again with eight points during a 19-2 run that buried the Flyers and gave the Gaels a 20-point advantage at 68-48. Hermanson would score all 17 of his points (four 3-pointers) in the second half after going 0 for 5 in the first half (0 for 4 from deep).
Jock Landale finished with his sixth double-double of the season (14 points, 11 rebounds), but he was held without a rebound for the first 10 minutes of the game. He also was held scoreless by the Dayton defense for the first 11:34 of the game. After a quiet first half with only one made bucket, Landale came alive with 12 points and 10 rebounds in the final twenty minutes to help propel the Gaels' offense.
Landale and Hermanson teamed up to ignite the Gaels' offense in the second half and change the momentum. The senior duo scored six points each during the initial 12-2 run, and they combined for 12 more during the Gaels' 19-2 stretch that put the game away.
Saint Mary's took early control as Jordan Ford scored 10 of the Gaels first 13 points on 4-of-4 shooting. After Ford knocked down two free throws to give SMC a five-point lead, the Flyers broke out on an 8-0 run spanning only 65 seconds to retake the lead, 16-13.

NUMBERS TO KNOW

9: The Gaels needed just nine bench points in the win. Cullen Neal (7) and Jordan Hunter (2) were the contributing substitutes for SMC.
35: Saint Mary's held Dayton to 35 percent shooting from the field. The Flyers were just 4 for 16 (25 percent) in the last 10 minutes of the first half.
40: The Gaels scored 40 second-half points and outscored the Flyers by 17 in the final half. Saint Mary's shot 61.9 percent in the second half, including 54.5 percent from beyond the 3-point arc.
41: Saint Mary's grabbed a season-high 41 rebounds, topping Dayton on the glass 41-24, including 29-15 on the defensive end.

QUICK FACTS

Saint Mary's is now 2-1 all-time against Dayton. The two teams most recently played last season in Dayton in a Gaels' 61-57 victory.
Emmett Naar's nine assists Tuesday gave him seven games this season in which he's had at least nine helpers. He is now averaging 8.9 assists per contest.
Three Gaels (Hermanson, Ford, Landale) finished in double-figure scoring. It is the third straight game and 11th in 12 this season that Saint Mary's has had at least three double-figure scorers.

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