MORAGA, Calif. — With one final home game before a quick stint in Arizona, Saint Mary's Men's Basketball welcome in Stanislaus State on Tuesday night. In a game that benefited Grateful Gatherings, the Gaels benefited from yet another strong second half. After falling behind early, Saint Mary's used their best second half of the season to power past the Warriors with a 76-39 final. With the win, the Gaels will head on the road with a 10-2 record, the second-best in the WCC.
 
SECOND HALF SURGE
After struggling through the first half, Saint Mary's came out making plays in the second half. An early Warriors bucket to put them up by three led to a 21-2 run for Saint Mary's over the next eight minutes of play, including a 16-0 run that spanned 5:30. While the offense was certainly playing better, the defense held the Warriors to an early 3-17 from the floor halfway through the period, while SMC was shooting at a 60% clip. When extended over the entire period, the Gaels outscored the Warriors 49-11 in the second half, limiting them to just five made baskets.
 
BRAGGING ABOUT BOWEN
Kyle Bowen shined in the season-opening win against Prairie View A&M, and stepped up again against Stanislaus State. After recording 12 points and nine rebounds in the opener, Bowen matched those totals on Tuesday night. He was strong no matter the half, scoring eight points in the first half, and grabbing five of his rebounds in the second half. Bowen has also been particularly strong at home, where his six-best scoring games have been in all six home games for Saint Mary's.
 
THEY MADE AN IMPACT
With the Gaels pulling ahead in the second half, Saint Mary's went deep into their bench to give some valuable minutes to players. Season-bests in points were scored by three Gaels off the bench: Judah Brown, Mitchell Saxen, and Luke Barrett. Saxen went a quick 3-4 from the floor with three rebounds in his seven minutes of action. Brown was 3-5 from the field and grabbed four rebounds (a career-best), while sending the crowd into elation with a nasty, highlight-reel dunk. Barrett scored five points for the first time in his career, including drilling his first three.
 
ADDITIONAL NUMBERS
Matthias Tass joined Bowen in the 12-point, nine-rebound club, the fifth-straight game in which Tass has scored at least 10 points…Saint Mary's hauled in 48 rebounds on the night, their best total of the season by eight…after a sloppy first half, the Gaels only turned the ball over four times in the second half…SMC attempted 25 free throws and made 17, both representing the second-most in a game this year…Stanislaus State shot just 21.9% from the field, the lowest percentage allowed by the Gaels since February 21, 2019 (Pacific, 21.6%).
 
UP NEXT
Saint Mary's goes outside of California for their next contest, taking on another California school on neutral ground in Phoenix. Saint Mary's will play San Diego State on Friday, December 17 as part of the Jerry Colangelo Classic at the Footprint Center, home of the Phoenix Suns. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 pm MT, or 6:00 pm PT. The Gaels came up short last year in another neutral-site game against the Aztecs, who are once again projected to be one of the top teams in the Mountain West.
 
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