SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara men's basketball will look to continue their great start to WCC play on Wednesday evening with a quick trip to Moraga to take on Saint Mary's - the lone team to defeat the Broncos in league play so far. The game is set for an 8:00 p.m. tip on ESPNU with Dave Feldman and Dan Dickau on the call. Fans can also catch the audio streaming call with Anthony Passarelli and Henry Caruso on the call live from the UCU Pavilion. Both links can be found above.
The Broncos (15-7, 6-1) are off to their best start in WCC play since 1994-95 when Santa Clara was 12-2 and crowned WCC regular season champs. They are currently riding a three-game win streak that has seen the Broncos win by an average of 19 points and average 94.3 points per game. During the stretch, Santa Clara has outrebounded their opponents 112-66, is shooting 53.6 percent from the field and has knocked down 10 or more treys in each game on 41.8 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
Santa Clara's latest win was a 94-71 thriller over Pepperdine that saw the Broncos shake off a 15-0 deficit to begin the game thanks to their best shooting performance of the season (58.2 percent) and another dominating night on the boards (36-21). Adama-Alpha Bal logged his seventh 20-point game of the year with 23 points on 9-of-11 shooting while Carlos Marshall, Jr. nearly eclipsed 20 himself with a 19-point outing on 7-of-9 shooting. Johnny O'Neil and Tyeree Bryan each chipped in 11 points in the winning effort.
The Broncos are looking to fare better in their second bout against the Gaels, who check into the contest as the last undefeated WCC team at 7-0 in league play. The Gaels took control early in the teams' first meeting, running off to a 30-8 advantage midway through the first half before holding on for a 73-49 victory. Led by 23rd-year head coach Randy Bennett, the Gaels are 16-6 overall and feature the nation's top rebounding team with a plus-12.3 margin and boasts the nation's second-best defense with just 57.5 points allowed per contest.
For more information, check the game notes links above.
