Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
MBB | Musauskas Named NABC First Team All-Pacific District, Bennett Named NABC Pacific District Coach of the Year
3/17/2026 8:01:00 AM | Men's Basketball
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — After going 27-5 heading into the 2025-26 NCAA DI Basketball postseason, the Saint Mary's Gaels once again proved to be the creme de la creme of West Coast hoops. As such, the National Association of Basketball Coaches has named Paulius Murauskas as a first team member of their All-Pacific District team, and named Randy Bennett the Pacific District Coach of the Year. The All-District honors are voted on by NABC-member coaches across NCAA Division I.
Murauskas has scored 602 points and counting in his second year with the Gaels. The junior out of Kaunas, Lithuania has scored in double figures in 30 of 32 contests, and leads the WCC in points scored, as well as free throws made and attempted. He twice scored 30+ points in a game this season, and surpassed 1000 points as both a collegian (three years) and as a Gael (two years) this season. Murauskas also earned first team All-WCC honors for the second time in his career this year. Joining him on the first team all-district list from the West Coast Conference are Graham Ike (Gonzaga) and Christian Hammond (Santa Clara).
Year 25 for Head Coach Randy Bennett was yet another rousing success for the Gaels, as they once again proved to be top dogs in the West Coast Conference with their fourth straight conference regular season title. This is the longest active regular season conference title streak in all of NCAA DI men's basketball. Bennett has amassed at least 25 wins in each of the last six seasons (COVID-19 shortened 24 game 2020-21 season excluded), and has his team headed to their program record fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament. He is the fifth longest active tenured coach at one school in DI basketball.
The Gaels are headed back to the NCAA Tournament for a program-record fifth consecutive year, heading to Oklahoma City as a seven-seed. Saint Mary's will see an SEC opponent in their opening tournament contest for the second straight year, taking on Texas A&M. Tip-off for that contest on Thursday, March 19 is set for 4:35 PM PST.
#GaelsRise
Murauskas has scored 602 points and counting in his second year with the Gaels. The junior out of Kaunas, Lithuania has scored in double figures in 30 of 32 contests, and leads the WCC in points scored, as well as free throws made and attempted. He twice scored 30+ points in a game this season, and surpassed 1000 points as both a collegian (three years) and as a Gael (two years) this season. Murauskas also earned first team All-WCC honors for the second time in his career this year. Joining him on the first team all-district list from the West Coast Conference are Graham Ike (Gonzaga) and Christian Hammond (Santa Clara).
Year 25 for Head Coach Randy Bennett was yet another rousing success for the Gaels, as they once again proved to be top dogs in the West Coast Conference with their fourth straight conference regular season title. This is the longest active regular season conference title streak in all of NCAA DI men's basketball. Bennett has amassed at least 25 wins in each of the last six seasons (COVID-19 shortened 24 game 2020-21 season excluded), and has his team headed to their program record fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament. He is the fifth longest active tenured coach at one school in DI basketball.
The Gaels are headed back to the NCAA Tournament for a program-record fifth consecutive year, heading to Oklahoma City as a seven-seed. Saint Mary's will see an SEC opponent in their opening tournament contest for the second straight year, taking on Texas A&M. Tip-off for that contest on Thursday, March 19 is set for 4:35 PM PST.
#GaelsRise
Players Mentioned
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