PULLMAN, Wash. –
Allen Graves was nearly unstoppable Saturday afternoon in Beasley Coliseum. The redshirt freshman turned in a monster double-double with a season-best 30 points and 13 rebounds to help Santa Clara men's basketball maintain its No. 1 spot atop the WCC standings with a hard-fought 96-92 victory over Washington State.
The Broncos extended their winning streak to eight games and improved to 21-5 overall and 12-1 in league play, marking their best start in 31 years.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Graves was nothing short of outstanding in the win. The Ponchatoula, La., native connected on 10-of-14 shots from the field and went 9-of-10 at the free-throw line, including a pair of clutch makes in the final 15 seconds to hold off the Cougars' upset bid.
- Both teams shot better than 50 percent in the shootout, with Santa Clara edging Washington State 56 percent to 54 percent.
- After a deadlocked first half that saw the teams enter the locker room tied at 49-49, Santa Clara built a 10-point lead heading into the final six minutes. Washington State responded with an 11-2 run to pull within one at 83-82 with 4:33 remaining.
- Graves drilled a clutch 3-pointer and Christian Hammond scored in the paint to push the Bronco lead back to six at 90-84 with 2:30 to play, but the Cougars answered again to trim the margin to four with 1:40 remaining.
- Washington State (11-15, 6-7) nearly capitalized on a steal inside the final 20 seconds when Ace Glass launched a transition 3 that would have cut the deficit to one, but junior guard Jake Ensminger made one of the biggest plays of the game by getting a hand on the shot. The ball fell harmlessly into the waiting arms of Graves, who was fouled and knocked down both free throws to all but seal the win.
- Hammond officially iced the game following a late Cougar basket. The Denver native drew a foul with 0.7 seconds remaining and converted the first of two free throws to put the game to rest.
- The opening half featured 15 lead changes and 10 ties as both offenses clicked early. Santa Clara shot 58 percent while Washington State followed closely at 57 percent.
- Washington State held the largest lead of the first half at five points (32-27) with 7:31 remaining before Elijah Mahi buried a 3-pointer and Brenton Knapper scored inside to even the score.
- The Cougars appeared poised to take a two-point lead into the locker room following a late 3-pointer from Glass with seven seconds left, but Santa Clara responded as Sash Gavalyugov found Mahi on a cross-court pass for a buzzer-beating layup to tie the game at 49-49.
- Both teams continued scoring at a high clip early in the second half, but Santa Clara created separation with a 10-2 run punctuated by a KJ Cochran steal and layup to take a 70-60 lead with 12:45 remaining.
- Washington State answered with a 5-0 run, but Thierry Darlan countered with two free throws followed by a 3-pointer to give the Broncos a double-digit cushion at 79-69 with eight minutes to play.
- Washington State finished 13-of-25 (52 percent) from 3-point range. Eemeli Yalaho (21) and Glass (20) each scored 20 points to pace the Cougars.
NOTABLE NUMBERS:
- Graves' 30 points were the most by a Bronco freshman in a road game since Jared Brownridge in 2014.
- The performance marked the second-highest scoring output by a Bronco this season (37 by Gavalyugov) and the 19th 30-point game by a Santa Clara player over the last 10 seasons.
- Nine of Graves' season high-tying 13 rebounds came on the offensive glass. He also added two steals and four assists.
- The double-double was the third of the season for Graves and his second in the last three games.
- Graves has now scored in double figures in 10 straight games and 18 times this season.
- Graves moved ahead of Kevin Foster for the third-most rebounds by a freshman in program history (184).
- Hammond finished with 16 points for his 15th game with 15 or more and his team-best 21st game scoring in double figures.
- Bukky Oboye also reached double figures with 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting. He has now scored 10 or more points in 10 games.
- Mahi (9), Gavalyugov (8), Darlan (8) and Knapper (7) also contributed offensively, while Ensminger filled the box score with five points, four rebounds, two steals and a key block.
- Santa Clara improved to 16-0 this season when scoring 80 or more points.
- The Broncos broke a 6-6 tie in the all-time series against Washington State and have won seven of the last nine meetings.
- Santa Clara's eight-game win streak is its longest since a nine-game stretch during the 1994-95 season.
POSTGAME COMMENTS:
UP NEXT:
The Broncos return home for their next two games, beginning Wednesday, Feb. 11, against Seattle before hosting Gonzaga on Saturday, Feb. 14.
