STOCKTON, Calif. — Saint Mary's (14-3, 1-1 WCC) and Pacific (14-4, 2-0 WCC) battled all night long in a 3-hour-22-minute, four overtime thriller inside Spanos Center on Saturday but the Tigers would ultimately come out on top, 107-99, to snap the Gaels' five-game winning streak.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Regulation could not decide a winner as the team's went into overtime tied up at 64-all. The Gaels got a look at the buzzer with Tanner Krebs getting a last second trey off in time but the shot found rim.

Saint Mary's would be without Malik Fitts in the extra session as the redshirt junior fouled out with 36 seconds to play in regulation after scoring seven and grabbing 10 rebounds in 39 minutes. Just seconds into the first overtime, Dan Fotu would be called for his fifth personal and exit the game with eight points. With 42 seconds left in the extra period, Tanner Krebs was knocked out of the game as well, leaving the Gaels with just Jordan Ford and Tommy Kuhse as their only remaining starters. 

In total, 57 fouls were called in the game and 86 free throws were awarded. 

Jahlil Tripp, who had game-high 39 points for the Tigers before also fouling out, nearly ended the game at the buzzer of the first overtime with a half court shot that clunked off the rim. Locked up at 74-74, the teams headed to the second session of bonus basketball. 

Saint Mary's led by one in the waning seconds of overtime number two and would expand that lead to three with nine seconds to play as Alex Ducas ducked a defender and made a one-footed jumper as the shot clock expired. Unfortunately for the Gaels, Pacific's Gary Chivichyan banked in a buzzer beater three on the opposite end to force a third session. 

Kyle Bowen appeared to have the game won at the end of the third overtime with a last second layup but a block by Shaquillo Fritz would negate his try. The Gaels' bench pleaded for a goaltending call but with the play non-reviewable, Saint Mary's headed for their first four-overtime game in program history. 

Free throws would ultimately decide the fourth overtime and game. Pacific shot 16 free throws in the final overtime session alone and made 13 of them. Saint Mary's took just two trips to the charity stripe in the same session while going 3-for-11 from the field. In total, the Tigers outscored SMC 16-8 in the deciding period to claim the win. 

Saint Mary's was able to fight to four overtime sessions despite having their worst shooting night of the season. The Gaels were 36 percent from the floor, 30 percent from three, and made 71 percent of their free throws (29-of-41). Pacific made 47 percent of their tries in the game but took 16 fewer shots than their counterpart. 

Ford finished with a career-high 36 points while also playing a career-high 58 minutes. Kuhse had 16 points and Krebs contributed 13. 

Saint Mary's held an 11-point lead over Pacific at halftime, 36-25, with Ford leading the charge with 16 points. The Gaels shot only 40 percent in the half but connected on four of their nine tries from beyond the arc and 8-of-10 from the free throw line to make up for it. 

A 9-2 run by the Tigers would bring the Gaels' lead down to four immediately out of the halftime break. After some back and forth action, SMC led by eight with three and a half to go but a 6-0 run by Pacific would cut that back down to a single possession game. 

NUMBERS TO KNOW
10: A total of 10 Gaels scored in the game. 
38: Saint Mary's led for 38:40 of the 60 total minutes. 
13: Pacific had 13 blocks on defense. 
57: The Gaels shot 85 percent at the free throw line during regulation but only 57 in overtime.
14: Jahlil Tripp drew 14 foul calls in the game. 

UP NEXT: WCC HOME OPENER
Saint Mary's returns to University Credit Union Pavilion on Thursday for a showdown with BYU at 8 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU. Tickets can be purchased by clicking here or by calling the Ticket Office at (925) 631-4689.