Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball
| Saint Mary's Gaels | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
Gaels | ||||
| Colors | Navy, red, and silver[1] | |||
| Uniforms | ||||
| ||||
| NCAA tournament Elite Eight | ||||
| 1959 | ||||
| NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen | ||||
| 1959, 2010 | ||||
| NCAA tournament round of 32 | ||||
| 2010, 2017, 2022, 2023 | ||||
| NCAA tournament appearances | ||||
| 1959, 1989, 1997, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2017, 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024 | ||||
| Conference tournament champions | ||||
| 1997, 2010, 2012, 2019, 2024 | ||||
| Conference regular season champions | ||||
| 1959, 1980, 1989, 1997, 2011, 2012, 2016, 2023, 2024 | ||||
The Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball team represents
.On March 1, 2013, they were placed on probation by the NCAA for four years due to rules violations.[3]
Their two historic rivals are the San Francisco Dons and the Santa Clara Broncos, two other Catholic schools in the San Francisco Bay Area that are in the WCC. More recently, the Saint Mary's Gaels have developed a rivalry with the Gonzaga University Bulldogs of Spokane, Washington.
History
Recent success
Under coach
After rebuilding seasons in 2005–06 and 2006–07, the team enjoyed one of their best seasons in school history in 2007–08, behind the play of Australian freshman Patty Mills. The team was ranked in the AP and USA Today top 25 lists for five and six weeks, respectively. They ended up receiving an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament in 2008 as well, but again lost in the first round.[2] In 2008, the team got off to a strong start, going 14–2 before Mills broke his hand and missed a month.[6] Mills came back in time for the West Coast Conference tournament, but after a loss to Gonzaga in the WCC tournament finals, the team was not selected for the NCAA tournament and played in the NIT. After the end of the year, Mills declared for the NBA draft and was a second-round selection.[2]
In March 2010, the Gaels received an automatic bid to the
Following the loss of Samhan to graduation, many expected the Gaels next season to be a rebuilding year. Led by point guard Mickey McConnell, however, Saint Mary's compiled a 25–9 record, 11–3 in the WCC, including the Gaels' first win against Gonzaga in Spokane since 1995. But after absorbing a late-season loss to last-place San Diego and dropping an ESPN BracketBuster game at home against Utah State, Saint Mary's failed to make the NCAA tournament. They would be upset in the first round of the NIT by Kent State. After McConnell graduated, Australian point guard Matthew Dellavedova became the team's new star alongside San Diego transfer and San Francisco native Rob Jones. The Gaels compiled a 27–6 record and went 14–2 in the WCC in 2011–12, including a win in Moraga over Gonzaga and a sweep of new conference member BYU. Saint Mary's spent most of the season ranked in the AP and Coaches' polls and won the outright WCC regular season title, the first time since 2000 that Gonzaga had not claimed part of the title. The Gaels then defeated Gonzaga in overtime in the WCC tournament, marking the first time in school history Saint Mary's won both the regular season and tournament titles. Saint Mary's lost to Purdue in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Saint Mary's Australian pipeline, historically focused on the Australian Institute of Sport (from where Caporn and Mills were recruited), continues to the present. The 2011–12 team featured four AIS graduates, including 2012 WCC Player of the Year Dellavedova, and another Australian, Jorden Page. The 2015–16 team had four AIS graduates, boasting a total of six Australians, and the 2016–17 roster had a program record of seven Australians.[5] In the latter season, the Gaels went so far as to hold an official celebration of Australia Day for their home game against San Francisco, which fell on the holiday's date of January 26. Before the game, Australia's national anthem was played alongside the US anthem, and the school honored officials from Australia's San Francisco consulate.[9]
Postseason
NCAA tournament results
The Gaels have made 13 NCAA tournament appearances. They have an overall 7–13 record in tournament games.[10]
| Year | Seed | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | N/A | Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight |
Idaho State California |
W 80–71 L 46–66 |
| 1989 | #8 | First Round | #9 Clemson | L 70–83 |
| 1997 | #14 | First Round | #3 Wake Forest | L 46–68 |
| 2005 | #10 | First Round | #7 Southern Illinois | L 56–65 |
| 2008 | #10 | First Round | #7 Miami (FL) | L 64–78 |
| 2010 | #10 | First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen |
#7 Richmond #2 Villanova #3 Baylor |
W 80–71 W 75–68 L 49–72 |
| 2012 | #7 | Second Round | #10 Purdue | L 69–72 |
| 2013 | #11 | First Four First Round |
#11 Middle Tennessee #6 Memphis |
W 67–54 L 52–54 |
| 2017 | #7 | First Round Second Round |
#10 VCU #2 Arizona |
W 85–77 L 60–69 |
| 2019 | #11 | First Round | #6 Villanova | L 57–61 |
| 2022 | #5 | First Round Second Round |
#12 Indiana #4 UCLA |
W 82–53 L 56–72 |
| 2023 | #5 | First Round Second Round |
#12 UConn |
W 63–51 L 55–70 |
| 2024 | #5 | First Round | #12 Grand Canyon | L 66–75 |
NIT results
The Gaels have appeared in six National Invitation Tournaments. Their combined record is 7–7.
| Year | Seed | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | #2 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals |
#7 Washington State #6 Davidson #1 San Diego State |
W 68–57 W 80–68 L 66–70 |
| 2011 | #2 | First Round | #7 Kent State | L 70–71 |
| 2014 | #4 | First Round Second Round |
#5 Utah #1 Minnesota |
W 70–58 L 55–63 |
| 2015 | #4 | First Round | #5 Vanderbilt | L 64–75 |
| 2016 | #2 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals |
#7 New Mexico State #3 Georgia #1 Valparaiso |
W 58–56 W 77–65 L 44–60 |
| 2018 | #1 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals |
#8 Southeastern Louisiana #5 Washington #2 Utah |
W 89–45 W 85–81 L 58–67 OT |
| 2021 | #2 | First Round | #3 Western Kentucky | L 67–69 |
Venues
Saint Mary's basketball and volleyball teams play their home games at the
Notable players
Retired numbers
_(cropped).jpg)
| Saint Mary's Gaels retired numbers | |||||
| No. | Player | Pos. | Career | No. ret. | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Matthew Dellavedova | PG / SG | 2009–2013 | 2014 | [14] |
| 13 | Patty Mills | PG | 2007–2009 | 2015 | [15] |
| 31 | Tom Meschery | PF |
1958–1961 | [16][17] | |
| 34 | Jock Landale | C | 2014-2018 | 2024 | |
Notable in other fields
- Academy Award winning actor, listed as Hershal Gilmore while at Saint Mary's[18]
References
- ^ "Gaels Color Guide". Saint Mary’s College of California Style Guide (PDF). January 10, 2018. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
- ^ Saint Mary's College Gaels. Saint Mary's College of California. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
- ^ "Saint Mary's (California) failed to monitor its men's basketball program - NCAA.org". www.ncaa.org. Archived from the original on 2013-03-04.
- ^ Killion, Ann (March 26, 2010). "Saint Mary's finds success by turning blind eye to expectations". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
- ^ a b c Brown, C. L. (October 21, 2016). "Saint Mary's Australian connection keeps growing". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
- ^ Katz, Andy. "Mills out four weeks with broken hand". ESPN. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
- ^ "McConnell, Allen hot from outside as Gaels upset Bulldogs". ESPN. Associated Press.
- ^ "St. Mary's Team Notes". USA Today. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
- ^ "No. 21 Saint Mary's beats San Francisco 66-46". ESPN.com. Associated Press. January 27, 2017. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
- ^ "Saint Mary's Gaels Tournament History". ESPN Internet Ventures. 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- Saint Mary's College Gaels. Saint Mary's College of California. Archived from the originalon December 30, 2010. Retrieved October 13, 2010.
- ^ Farmer, Zack (September 6, 2006). "McKeon Pavilion gets a facelift". Saint Mary's College Collegian. Saint Mary's College of California. Retrieved October 13, 2010.
- ^ "Saint Mary's College, University Credit Union Announce Historic Campus-Wide Relationship". SMC California Athletics. Retrieved 2020-01-27.
- ^ Matthew Dellavedova's jersey retired at ESPN, 15 Feb 2014
- ^ Gaels Number "13" Retired at Lamorindaweekly.com, 25 Feb 2015
- ^ Tom Meschery '61 at St. Mary's
- ^ Tom Meschery's bio at Smcgaels.com
- ^ "Here's a look at two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali's college basketball career". NCAA.com.
External links
