SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Santa Clara men's basketball uncharacteristically was unable to find much offensive success on Saturday afternoon, shooting just 32 percent from the field and 14 percent from 3-point range, as they suffered a 70-59 loss to San Diego inside the Leavey Center. 
 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:  

• Santa Clara (15-9, 6-3) had yet another slow start to the night, falling behind by as much as 14 in the opening half. Despite that, the Broncos did begin to find some rhythm later in the half, finishing on a 7-0 run to make it 36-31 in the Torero's favor heading to the locker room. 
• The Broncos erased the deficit completely just minutes into the second half as Camaron Tongue knocked down a pair of free throws and Brenton Knapper followed with a jumper to give Santa Clara a 41-38 advantage with 15:21 to play. 
• San Diego regained the lead and pushed it back up to four before Johnny O'Neil knocked down a crucial 3-pointer to knock the deficit back to one with 7:36 to go, however that was as close as the Broncos would get as the Toreros used an 11-2 run to grab a double digit lead with just under three minutes on the clock.
• San Diego was able to maintain no less than a seven-point advantage for the rest of the way as they picked up the victory to improve to 13-11 and 3-6 in league play. 

NOTABLE NUMBERS:

• O'Neil finished with 21 points and a season-high 12 rebounds for his second double-double of the season. It was the seventh double-double of the Miami Shores, Fla., native's career. 
• Christoph Tilly returned from a one-game absence to tally 10 points as the only other Bronco to reach double figures. 
• Jake Ensminger had a solid game overall with career-highs in rebounds (10) and assists (6) to go with six points. 
• This is the first game that two Broncos have pulled down 10 or more rebounds in a game since Brandin Podziemski and Tongue achieved the feat vs. Pepperdine on Feb. 23, 2023. 
• The Broncos were successful on the boards (51-29), tying their highest rebound total of the season (Saint Francis on Nov. 11, 2023). 
• After having some success in limiting the turnovers as of late, the Broncos were bit by the turnover bug once again with 20 on the night resulting in 24 Torero points.  

UP NEXT:  

• The Broncos will have a couple of days off before heading up to San Francisco to take on their rival Dons in a 7:00 p.m. tip on Saturday, Feb. 10.