MORAGA, Calif. — The regular season has come to an end for the Saint Mary's Gaels (27-4, 17-1) who now enter postseason play on a high, defeating the Oregon State Beavers (20-11, 10-8) 74-64. The Beavers played the Gaels much tougher than their first meeting of 2025 in Corvallis, but an 18-6 surge from Saint Mary's starting the final minute of the first half would prove to be the difference. As it was the final home game of the season, the Gaels honored seniors
Augustas Marciulionis,
Luke Barrett and
Mitchell Saxen in a pregame ceremony, and, in turn, the trio combined for 50 of the Gaels 74 points in the victory. The 17-1 conference record marks a new program record for conference wins and win percentage in a single season. The Gaels now ride a seven game winning streak into the postseason, also a new program best.
Oregon State came out energized, looking to avenge a loss on their home court to the Gaels earlier this season. Shooting in the high 70s from the field for the first seven plus minutes, the Beavers took an early 18-13 lead. While the Gaels didn't quite have the same shooting numbers, they continued to dominate on the offensive glass, with 13 o-boards, leading to 15 second chance points. A huge offensive board from Luke Barrett led to an Augustas Marciulionis three with 7:56 remaining in the frame to push the Gaels ahead 21-20, their first lead since 11-10. Both teams traded blows, with Oregon State regaining a two possession lead with a minute to go, but in that final 60 seconds, the Gaels went on a 5-0 run to take a 34-33 lead into the break. On his senior day, Augustas Marciulionis served as both the Gaels primary scorer and playmaker, with 13 points and three assists. Senior Luke Barrett stuffed the statsheet with five points, five boards and two assists, while Paulius Muauskas also finished with five points and five boards. The Gaels finished +7 on the glass, +8 on the offensive glass, and +5 in second chance scoring.
The two teams traded buckets to start the second half, but a Harry Wessels layup gave the Gaels a 38-37 lead just 2:20 into the second half, a lead they would not relinquish. After not leading by more than a single possession in the first half, an 18-6 run that spanned nearly seven minutes would not only give Saint Mary's their first multi-possession lead, but would push it out to eight points. Oregon State would four times get back within one possession, but the Gaels remained steadfast in their staunch defense, limiting the Beavers to just eight made second half field goals, as they were unable to hit an equalizer when given the opportunity. Oregon State would get the deficit to just two with 8:40 to play, but a 9-0 Gaels run would drain all wind out of the Beavers' sails, giving the Gaels their first double-digit lead. Saint Mary's would go on to finish out the game with a double-digit victory, 74-64. Augustas Marciulionis kept his momentum rolling in the second half, with 12 more points and four more assists. Fellow seniors Luke Barrett and Mitchell Saxen each added eight in the second stanza, while recording seven and five rebounds respectively. Rebounding again told the story in the second half, with the Gaels finishing +10 on the glass in the second half, +6 on the offensive glass and +7 in second chance scoring.
Defending WCC Player of the Year, and strong candidate to repeat, Augustas Marciulionis, put on one final show for the hometown fans in Moraga, with 25 points and seven assists. Marciulionis tied his career-high with four made threes, burying four on six attempts. Fellow seniors Luke Barrett and Mitchell Saxen both tallied double-doubles on their senior nights, with Barrett going for 13 points and 10 boards, and Saxen scoring 12 and 11 rebounds. To say the Gaels were dominant on the boards would be an understatement, as the Gaels won the rebounding battle 39-22, won the offensive rebounding battle 20-6, and the second chance scoring battle 24-12, the key separating factor in this one.
SENIOR STARS SHINE
On senior night, Augustas Marciulionis, Luke Barrett and Mitchell Saxen all starred, combining for 50 of the Gaels 74 points. Marciulionis was the go-to scorer for the Gaels, scoring both inside and out, with three made shots in the paint and four from beyond the arc, while also being a foul drawing machine, getting seven infractions called against Oregon State, resulting in eight attempted free throws, seven of which he connected on. While Marciulionis was excellent as ever as scorer tonight, he also made his teammates look good with seven assists, moving him to 189 for the season, tying him with current Gael Assistant Coach Joe Rahon for 12th most in a single season. Barrett and Saxen each recorded double-doubles, their sixth and ninth of the season respectively. Barrett, like Marciulionis, was a well balanced scorer, with two made layups, two threes, and a perfect 3-3 clip at the stripe. He also had five offensive and five defensive rebounds, while also dishing out three assists. Saxen entered the evening ranked third in the country in offensive rebounding, and will likely climb even higher, with seven of his 11 boards being of the offensive variety. He scored 12 points in total, doing most of his work on second chance opportunities, with six of his 12 coming as a direct result from one of his own offensive boards. This group has led the Gaels all season long, with Marciulionis serving as the Gaels leader in points, assists and steals, Saxen ranking third in scoring, second in rebounding and leading the team in blocked shots, and Barrett ranking fourth in scoring, third in rebounding, and leading the team in minutes played.
YOU DON'T SEE THAT EVERY GAME…
While Saint Mary's has been one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the country this year, they accomplished something today that is seldom seen in the game of basketball at any level. The Gaels finished tonight's contest with more offensive rebounds (20) than defensive boards (19). Mitchell Saxen led the charge with seven o-boards, as he has consistently had more offensive boards than defense all season, with 130 of his 247 boards being on the offensive end. Luke Barrett chipped in five, bringing his season total to 81 o-boards on the year. Interestingly enough, this was not the first time the Gaels accomplished this feat this year. In their win over Nebraska way back on 11-17, the Gaels had 17 offensive rebounds to 14 defensive. In total, this was the sixth time this season that the Gaels have reached 20 offensive rebounds in a game.
POSTGAME CHATS
UP NEXT
The Gaels will be the #1 seed at the Credit Union One WCC Basketball Championship, having won the WCC Regular Season Title, and will have a bye until the semifinals in Las Vegas, which will take place on Monday, March 10 at 6 PM on ESPN.
#GaelsRise
