MORAGA, Calif. –  With the Gaels' impressive performance on Saturday afternoon, Saint Mary's improves to their seventh-straight win over the Broncos following an 83-59 victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• QUARTER 1 |  Emily Codding put up the first points for the Gaels on Saturday afternoon with a three-pointer in the first 30 seconds of the quarter. At the first media timeout, Saint Mary's was up by five as the Gaels and the Broncos traded buckets throughout the first half of the period. Sam Simons collected 7-points in the first quarter and chipped in two buckets from beyond-the-arc to improve the Gael's to a 10-point lead. With just one minute left in the period, the Gaels scored a flurry of points to cause the Santa Clara head coach to call a timeout. Taycee Wedin scored her first bucket of the game with under a minute left of play as the Gaels then ended the period on a 9-0 run and a 22-10 lead over the Broncos.

 

• QUARTER 2 | After a strong defensive first quarter, Simons made a 3-point jumper to begin the period. The Gaels made a number of key three-pointers to continue their lead over the Broncos. With just six minutes left in the half and a few points added for the Broncos, Jasmine Forcadilla made her first three-pointer of the contest to improve the Gaels to a 17-point lead. Megan McKay added her second layup of the game as she shot 2-for-2 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free-throw line. With just 1:55 left in the game, the Gaels achieved their biggest lead of the half with 19 points over the Broncos and carried an 8-0 run into the half as time expired with Saint Mary's atop Santa Clara 42-23.

 

• QUARTER 3 | Megan McKay got the scoring started in the third quarter after making a layup and a free-throw within the first two minutes of play. The Gaels were able to hold their big lead throughout the period as Holland and McKay consistently added points to the board within a three-minute time-span. With two minutes left in the period, the Gaels improved to a 21-point lead and had totaled 18 assists on 21-made buckets. Within the third quarter, four Gaels were in the double-digits as Holland and McKay went into the last quarter with 13 points a piece. Saint Mary's was able to extend their lead every quarter and ended the third with a 24-point lead over Santa Clara.

 

• QUARTER 4 | Three minutes into the fourth period, the Broncos were able to shorten their deficit to a 20-point trail, but Simons continued to shine as she added two three-pointers to the board to strengthen the Gaels' lead. Although the shooting was back-and-forth, Saint Mary's continued to dominate with a minimum of a 20-point lead throughout the entire final frame. Saint Mary's remained in control through the remainder of the matchup and eventually took the 83-59 victory. In the end, the matchup came down to rebounds, as the Gaels ended with a season-high 50 compared to Santa Clara's 20.

NUMBERS TO KNOW

• 5: Season-high three-pointers for freshman Simons.
• 61.5: Saint Mary's shooting percentage in the second half.
• 27: Total assists for the Gaels, which surpasses their previous season-high by five.
• 11: Total made three-pointers, four shy of their team season-high (15).
• 24: Largest final point margin since December 21 against Texas State, third largest of the season.

QUOTABLE

"Today we were solid on both ends of the floor," said Paul Thomas. "We bounced back from a poor rebounding game to an exceptional one. Also, having 27 assists on 29 baskets speaks volumes for our teamwork."


COMING UP

The Gaels return home to face Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount on Jan. 24 and 26 respectively. Links to the live stats and the live stream can be found by clicking here, or visiting the Gaels' schedule page.