Coming off a narrow defeat to No. 1 seed Gonzaga in the WCC Championship, the Gaels look to make a run in their seventh tournament appearance in school history.
What’s there to like and not like about this feisty Gaels team? Let’s take a look at a few quick facts.
1. At 27-6 and the WCC tournament runner-up, the Gaels are a mid-major to be reckoned with. Despite six losses on a mid-major schedule, three of them came at the hands of the No. 1 seed Gonzaga Bulldogs. The other three: to Pacific (No. 15 seed in this years tournament), Georgia Tech and Northern Iowa. A positive spin? Gonzaga has their number and they had no terrible losses.
2. The Gaels will have some work to do if they want to make some noise in this tournament. St. Mary’s came up with the unfortunate draw of playing Middle Tennessee State in Tuesday’s play-in game for the right to play No. 6 seed Memphis in the Midwest Region.
3. While the Gaels may not be ranked, they draw high praise from KenPom.com, a trusted source among college basketball experts. KenPom has the Gaels ranked at No. 22 overall, scoring high in three important categories crucial to tournament success: effective field goal percentage, turnover percentage and offensive rebound percentage.
4. The Gaels are led by senior guard Matthew Dellavedova. The Australian native does it all for Saint Mary’s, averaging 15.4 points, 6.4 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game as a point guard. When they Gaels are in a tight spot, you can be sure the ball will be in Dellavedova’s hands.
5. St Mary’s best finish in the NCAA tournament? The Regional Final in 1959. Unfortunately it was not in a field of 68. Most recently the Gaels lost in the Sweet Sixteen to Baylor in 2010. Despite the extra game, the Gaels are a team to watch if they can escape the first two rounds.
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