SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Wrapping up their weekend of basketball in the Bay, Saint Mary's Women's Basketball took on Santa Clara on their home court. It marked just the second home game of the year for Santa Clara after county restrictions prevented them from playing games at the Leavey Center, but they were happy to be back this week. The two teams were locked into a tie going into the fourth, but the Broncos were able to pull ahead and secure a 75-64 win. The Broncos earned their 11^th win (11-7, 7-5 WCC) while the Gaels fall to 5-14 and 3-10 in WCC play.
 
TALE OF TWO QUARTERS
The second and third quarters could not have gone differently after the Gaels and Broncos were tied after the first. Santa Clara scored 27 points in the second quarter, reminiscent to what the Dons did against the Gaels on Thursday night. While Saint Mary's fell behind by 11 at the break, they got it all back thanks to a huge third quarter that saw the Gaels outscore the Broncos 23-12. Jade Kirisome had her best quarter of the season, scoring eight points, including a pair of shots from beyond the arc. Madeline Holland also got rolling, with nine points, including the game-tying shot on the Gaels' final possession of the quarter.
 
ANOTHER STRONG QUARTER
In the first quarter, the Gaels fell behind early before they turned to the bench and Jordyn Boesel starting knocking down shots. Twice in the quarter, Boesel hit a three-pointer that gave Saint Mary's a lead, albeit brief one. First, at 3:24 left in the quarter, Boesel knocked one down off a turnover to give SMC a 12-11 lead. On the Gaels final possession of the first, Boesel hit another three that was eventually answered, leading to a 17-17 tie. For Boesel, it also represented her best quarter of the season.
 
LET'S MAKE IT RAIN
As a whole, the Gaels have been attempting fewer three-pointers per game than they did one season ago, but things changed on Saturday. Saint Mary's attempted 34 three-pointers on Saturday against the Broncos, their most since they attempted 40 against Fresno State on December 11. Taycee Wedin made the most threes among Gaels, with a trio of triples hit in the contest. Holland, Kirisome, and Boesel each hit a pair of threes as well for Saint Mary's. It was a contrast of styles, as the Gaels attempted 16 threes in the second half, while the Broncos attempted just two.
 
AMONG OTHER NUMBERS
Saturday marked the second time this season that Saint Mary's had fewer turnovers than their opposition (17 vs. 16)…a pair of Gaels recorded three steals in the game: Wedin and Ellie Croco….both teams entered the bonus in the fourth quarter, leading to a total of 16 free throws attempted.
 
UP NEXT
The Gaels will return to University Credit Union Pavilion on Thursday night to begin their final home stand of the 2020-21 season, as the Gaels host San Diego on Thursday night and then BYU on Saturday for Senior Day. Tip-off for the game against the Toreros on Thursday is set for 6:30 pm.
 
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