MBB | Gaels Win Big Over Broncos on Australia Night

Thursday, January 17

Moraga, Calif.

8:00 PM

Saint Mary's College of California

12-7, 3-1WCC

Santa Clara

10-9, 2-3WCC

Santa Clara

Saint Mary's (CA)

Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner

MBB | Gaels Win Big Over Broncos on Australia Night

1/17/2019 10:52:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Saint Mary's rode to a 20-point win Thursday night as they took down their most historic rival, Santa Clara.

MORAGA, Calif. — An all-around team effort led Saint Mary's to their third conference victory of the season and seventh straight against Santa Clara as the Gaels rocked the Broncos on Australia Night in McKeon Pavilion, 75-55.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Jordan Ford had a game-high 18 points in 35 minutes to power the Gaels' offense. The junior guard found most of his production at the charity stripe by going a perfect 10-for-10. Malik Fitts just missed his fifth double-double of the season as he turned in a 10 point, nine rebound performance.

Santa Clara closed the Gaels' lead to 10 with a 5-0 run six minutes into the second half but Saint Mary's responded with a 7-0 run of their own for their biggest lead of the game to that point. Fitts scored five of those seven and had an acrobatic tip-in while crashing the boards after being held to two points in the opening half.

While Saint Mary's committed an usual 18 turnovers in the contest, the defense made up for their possession mishaps. Santa Clara shot 40 percent from the field and was only 2-for-16 from beyond the arc, including just two 3-point attempts in the first half. The Gaels forced 19 Bronco turnovers and had eight steals in the win.

Saint Mary's took a 42-28 lead into the half. Ford had 13 points and eight from free throws while seven other Gaels put up points in the first half.

Early in the contest, Saint Mary's scored four straight buckets in the paint to turn an 8-0 run into a 10-4 lead. Saint Mary's and the WCC's leading scorer, Ford, was held off the scoreboard for the first 11-plus minutes of the game but then exploded for seven points in a minute's span.

Foul trouble plagued both teams as Santa Clara finished the contest with four players with four fouls while Jordan Hunter fouled out for the Gaels and had two more players with four fouls.

Prior to the game, the Australian national anthem was played in honor of Australia Day, the country's day of independence, which takes place on Jan. 26. The Gaels have five Australians on this year's roster.

NUMBERS TO KNOW
10: 10 of the 12 active players on Saint Mary's roster scored on Thursday.
18: SMC has won 18 of their last 20 matchups against Santa Clara.
22: The Gael's Australians contributed 22 of the team's 75 points.
26: The Gaels took 26 free throws and made 22 of them (85 percent).
39: Saint Mary's shooters knocked down 39 percent of their tries from the perimeter (9-of-23).

QUOTABLE

Elijah Thomas: "We're a young team and we're coming into our own. We're right there and once we take that next step, we'll be dangerous. Personally, a lot of the stuff I do out there doesn't show up in the box score and great teams have guys like that. I take pride in ball pressure and getting steals or tips which really helps us."

UP NEXT: SAN DIEGO

Saint Mary's returns to McKeon Pavilion on Saturday when they take on the Toreros for the first time this season. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the action will be broadcast on NBC Sports Bay Area. Links for the game can be found on the Gaels' schedule page.