MORAGA, Calif. — After returning from their first true road trip of the season, Saint Mary's Men's Basketball is back inside University Credit Union Pavilion on December 11 and 14 with non-conference games against UC Santa Barbara and Stanislaus State. After these two games, there will be just three non-conference games remaining in the regular season.
 
THE DETAILS
Saint Mary's Gaels (8-2) vs. UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (5-2)
Saturday, December 11 at 3:00 pm
University Credit Union Pavilion – Moraga, Calif.
Watch | Live Audio | Live Stats | Get Tickets
 
Saint Mary's Gaels vs. Stanislaus State Warriors (2-5)
Tuesday, December 14 at 7:00 pm
University Credit Union Pavilion – Moraga, Calif.
Watch | Live Audio | Live Stats
 
LAST TIME OUT
Saint Mary's split on their road trip to Utah State and Colorado State last weekend, which is a good accomplishment given the nature of both teams. The Gaels were able to get past the Aggies Thursday night in a 60-58 win thanks to a pair of free throws from Alex Ducas with 0.9 seconds on the clock. Ducas was the team's leading scorer in that game with 13 points. Two days later, the Gaels fell to the unbeaten Rams 74-58 in a game that saw Saint Mary's run into a buzz-saw of an offense. Colorado State pulled ahead early and never trailed, despite the Gaels pulling within four late in the first half. Even still, the Gaels are 8-2 and find themselves ranked in the top-40 according to KenPom.
 
STANISLAUS STATE GAME BENEFITS GRATEFUL GATHERINGS
The Gaels added the December 14 game against Stanislaus State to its schedule and partnered with Grateful Gatherings, a local non-profit to provide a way to give back to the community. The game versus Stanislaus State will be free for all fans to attend, with free parking and a free game ticket. Donations day of the game will be encouraged to benefit a community service project with Grateful Gatherings. Grateful Gatherings provides furniture and household items to people transitioning from homelessness. In the spring, Saint Mary's staff and student-athletes will be renovating a home by providing furniture and household items for a designated family by Grateful Gatherings. Grateful Gatherings is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible. 
 
ABOUT UC SANTA BARBARA
The Gauchos are 5-2 to begin the season, and their offense has been flowing in their five wins. In those victories, UC Santa Barbara is averaging 91.8 points per game, including 119 points in their season-opener against San Francisco State (the fourth-most points in program history). They are currently in a stretch of WCC games, after beating Pepperdine on December 3 and with Pacific on the schedule for December 14. The Gauchos shoot 52.4% from the field and limit opponents to just 37.2% from the field. Offensively, they are led by Amadou Sow, who off to a blistering start with 19.1 points per game and 7.9 rebounds per game to pace UCSB.
 
ABOUT STANISLAUS STATE
This game against the Warriors stands as an exhibition for Stanislaus State, but is a countable game for SMC. The Warriors are three games into CCAA play, with a fourth on the way Saturday afternoon against Humboldt State. CSU Stanislaus has lost three in a row, all in conference play, and their offense has been the primary culprit this year. They've averaged just 59.6 points per game in their first seven games this year, while shooting just 39.1% from the floor. Despite the lack of offense, they've done a great job at scoring off of turnovers, forcing 14.9 turnovers per game, leading to 17 points off of turnovers on average.
 
DIGITAL GAMEDAY PROGRAM
All Saint Mary's Men's Basketball gameday programs will be virtual during the 2021-22 season, and the first edition can be found HERE. In it, fans will find a recap of the the Maui Invitational, the Gaels true road trip, and a preview of their final non-conference games AND the conference opener against San Francisco.
 
2021-22 YEARBOOK
The 2021-22 Saint Mary's Basketball Yearbook is available HERE. This contains all of your information on both Saint Mary's basketball programs, coach and player profiles, as well as Saint Mary's, administration, and fan information.
 
#GaelsRise — 2021-22 tickets and ticket packages are on sale now! To purchase tickets, click HERE. If you have questions, contact the ticket office by email smctickets@stmarys-ca.edu or call 925-631-4689…Saint Mary's Basketball…#TogetherAgain