MBB | Gaels to Host NIU, Take On Dayton in Phoenix

MORAGA, Calif. — Saint Mary's (8-1) will host Northern Illinois on Thursday at 7 p.m. before traveling to Arizona to face off against No. 19 Dayton on Sunday at 2 p.m.

GAME INFORMATION
Game No. 9 vs. Northern Illinois (6-2)
Date/Time: Thursday, Dec. 5 at 7:00 p.m. PST
Location: McKeon Pavilion (Moraga, Calif.)
Radio: Tune In, Internet 966
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Gaels' all-time head to head record: SMC and NIU have not met in program history.

Game No. 10 vs. Dayton (5-1)
Date/Time: Sunday, Dec. 7 at 1:00 p.m. PST
Location: Talking Stick Resort Arena (Phoenix, Ariz.)
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Gaels' all-time head to head record: 2-1 (Last meeting: 12/19/17, H, SMC 69 — UD 54)

ABOUT NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Northern Illinois (6-2) is coming off two straight wins as they defeated SIU Edwardsville in the Collegiate Hoops Roadshow and Oakland last week. The Huskies have not dropped a game since they fell 70-52 against Iowa State on Nov. 12.

Senior guard Eugene German has been at the forefront of the Huskies' offense as he has averaged 21.4 points per game while averaging 32.5 minutes of action and posting 22 assists. German is the lone Husky who is averaging more than 20 points per contest. Trendon Hankerson has led the team from beyond-the-arc as he has tallied 15 of his 23 three-pointer attempts and is shooting 65 percent from deep.

As a team, Northern Illinois is outrebounding their opposition 42.9 to 33.2 per game while making 38 percent of their three-pointers attempts compared to their opponents with 26 percent.

Thursday's meeting between Saint Mary's and Northern Illinois will be the first time in program history.

ABOUT DAYTON
No. 19 Dayton is heading into Sunday's contest against the Gaels with a 5-1 record as they are coming off their first loss of the season at the Maui Jim Maui Invitational last week. The Flyers picked up two victories in the first two games of the Invite but later fell to No. 4 Kansas by six points in overtime to close out the tournament. Dayton will host Houston Baptist on Tuesday prior to taking on Saint Mary's.

Redshirt sophomore Obi Toppin has been a key starter in every game this season as he leads the team in four categories: points per game (23), three-pointer percentage (50%), rebounds per contest (8.3) and blocks (9). Toppin and guard Jalen Crutcher are the lone Flyers to average over 30 minutes per game while Crutcher has recorded 40 assists and nine steals to lead the team.

Saint Mary's owns the 2-1 record over Dayton as the Gaels have won the last two contests over the Flyers dating back to 2016. In their most recent meeting, SMC defeated UD at home in a 69-54 victory.

LAST TIME OUT
Saint Mary's had a successful weekend last week as they collected big wins against No. 15 Utah State and Omaha. Following the wins, the Gaels improved their overall record to 8-1 and have recorded seven straight victories.

The Gaels outlasted No. 15 Utah State 81-73 on Friday which was their first home victory over a ranked opponent for the first time since 2012 and the team's first win over a top-15 team at home since 2007. During the contest, Jordan Ford and Malik Fitts were SMC's top scorers as they each posted season-highs in points. Ford had 27 with 22 of those coming in the final half while Fitts recorded 21 on 7-of-10 shooting.

In the contest against Omaha, Tanner Krebs had 19 points for the Gaels to lead the team and made five of his six tries from beyond the arc while Fitts earned his third double-double of the year with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Aaron Menzies recorded a season-high 10 points in 14 minutes on the court and Kristers Zoriks played a career-high 30 minutes while tallying 11 points.

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