MORAGA, Calif. — In their final week before kicking off WCC play, Saint Mary's will put their unbeaten home record to the test against Merrimack and Utah State. The Gaels have opened up their season at 9-2, and with a pair of wins this week, would record their best start since the 2019-20 campaign. Standing in their way, however, are a Merrimack team that has won four of their last five, and a Utah State team who has won ten of their first 11. The Warriors and Aggies should each provide a solid test for the Gaels in their final two tune ups before WCC play.
THE DETAILS
Saint Mary's Gaels vs. Merrimack Warriors
Thursday, December 19 at 7 PM
UCU Pavilion – Moraga, Calif.
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Saint Mary's Gaels vs. Utah State Aggies
Sunday, December 22 at 5 PM
UCU Pavilion – Moraga, Calif.
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70 IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
This season, when the Gaels have reached the 70 point mark in a game, they are unbeaten (9-0). This has been due in most part to the Gaels stellar defense, that has held eight of 11 opponents, including six of their last seven, under 70 points. As a team, Saint Mary's is limiting opponents to just 63.4 points per contest (23rd in the nation), holding them to 38.8% shooting from the field (31st in the nation) and 30.5% shooting from three (93rd in the nation). Mitchell Saxen has had the biggest defensive impact for the Gaels this season. The defending WCC Defensive Player of the Year, Saxen leads the Gaels with 19 steals and 14 blocks, while altering countless other looks at the rim and preventing post touches for Gael opponents.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS
After a 1-6 start, the Merrimack Warriors have rebounded to get to a 5-7 record heading into Thursday's contest. Head Coach Joe Gallo has been at the helm of the Warriors for their last three seasons as a Division II program, and their first now six at the DI level, having just one sub-0.500 season in his tenure. A team that runs zone defense almost exclusively, Merrimack has done an excellent job defending this season, holding opponents to just 67.3 points per game. That said, they have struggled to score themselves, only scoring 63.2 per game. The only player who is an exception to that rule has been Adam "Bud" Clark. The sophomore point guard is coming off of a career-high 32 points against Stanford, and is averaging 21 points per game, having shot 64% from the field over the last three contests. Clark ranks in the top-10 in the country in field goals made, field goals attempted, points scored and minutes played, but there is not another player on the Warrior roster averaging more than nine points per game. In their lone matchup with a common opponent, Merrimack fell to UTSA 76-74, a team that the Gaels needed overtime to defeat 82-74. This will be the first all-time meeting between the Gaels and Warriors.
ABOUT THE AGGIES
Utah State is coming off of their first loss of the season at the hands of UC San Diego in Logan 75-73. Prior to that, the Aggies opened the season with 10 straight wins, including the NIT Season Tip-Off title in Orlando. No stranger to winning basketball, Utah State has been to the NCAA Tournament each of the last two years, doing so with two different coaches, Ryan Odom (now at VCU) in 2023 and Danny Sprinkle (now at Washington) in 2024. First year Head Coach Jerrod Calhoun has the chance to be the third different head coach to lead the Aggies to the NCAA Tournament in as many years, and is off to a great start towards that goal. Utah State would be the third team in NCAA history to reach three-straight tournaments with three different head coaches (excluding interim head coaches) if they can accomplish this feat. Calhoun previously spent the last 7 years at Youngstown State, where he turned an 8 win team in his first year to five straight winning seasons to close out his time with the Penguins. Unlike Saint Mary's previous Mountain West opponent, Boise State, Utah State is a team that thrives in transition, averaging 10 steals and 18 fast break points per game. Offensively, the Aggie rely heavily on their backcourt duo of Ian Martinez and Mason Falslev, each averaging better than 17 points per game. Both players have the ability to score on all three levels, with Martinez serving more as a high volume shooter, and Falslev generating a good amount of his looks in transition off of steals (26 on the season). After a strong start to the season from beyond the arc, the Aggies have struggled to find their shooting stroke of late, shooting just 27.8% from three over their last four games. In 12 all-time meetings between SMC and Utah State, the series is split at six apiece. Saint Mary's has won each of the last two meetings, and five of their last seven.
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