Saint Mary’s shot on the Candy 16 went amiss Sunday, 15 years after reaching that NCAA Event stage for the one time in program historical past.
No. 2-seed Alabama ended the cold-shooting Gaels’ season, 80-66, in a second-round sport at Cleveland’s Rocket Area.
No. 7-seed Saint Mary’s (29-6) struggled offensively from the outset, and a 42-29 halftime deficit pressured the Gaels to strive repeating Friday’s first-round comeback, during which they trailed by 12 earlier than outlasting Vanderbilt 59-56.
A yr after reaching its first Last 4, Alabama (27-8) superior to Thursday’s East Area semifinals in Newark, N.J. towards No. 6 seed BYU, which knocked off No. 3 Wisconsin 91-89 Saturday.
“Great year. A really good team, one of our best since I’ve been there,” Randy Bennett, Saint Mary’s Twenty fourth-year coach, advised reporters postgame. “They had a few goals up there and kept checking the boxes. It was a special team. I have nothing but positive feelings.
“Obviously you don’t like to lose and we didn’t play good enough to win,” Bennett added. “I will miss coaching these guys. That’s the one negative.”
Saint Mary’s exited with a second-round defeat for the third time in 4 years, having been upset in final yr’s first spherical as a No. 5 seed. The Gaels have misplaced 5 straight appearances within the second spherical since their 2010 run to the Candy 16.
Saint Mary’s made a season-low 34.3% of their field-goal makes an attempt, and simply 25% within the first half en path to a 13-point deficit on the break. The Gaels missed their first 9 3-point makes an attempt — a behavior that plagued their remaining 4 video games — and exited 3-of-14 from past the arc.
“We can get back here. We have enough pieces where if we can them to follow the lead of these three seniors, we can get back here again,” Bennett stated. “Who knows, we could be better next year, maybe.”
Even after Augustas Marciulionis and Paulius Murauskas made back-to-back 3-pointers, a 10-point deficit remained with 7 minutes left of their season. Marciulionis completed with 9 factors and was 3-of-11 from the ground, symbolic of the Gaels’ general capturing struggles.
Saint Mary’s repeatedly pulled inside single digits within the second half, however Alabama answered each time. Six Alabama gamers scored in double figures and the Crimson Tide made 51.8% of its field-goal makes an attempt whereas hitting 7-of-17 3-point tries.
Mitchell Saxen led Saint Mary’s with 15 factors in his program-record 156th and remaining sport. Fellow huge man Harry Wessels had 12 factors, whereas the Gaels’ different factors got here from Jordan Ross (eight; 4-of-15 capturing), Murauskas (seven; 2-of-7), Lewis (seven; 3-of-8) and Luke Barrett (six; 2-of-7).
“We kept fighting. I’m really proud we kept trying to get back in this game,” Marciulionis stated. “Against a team like Alabama, you have to play 40 minutes, not 20 to get this done.”
Bennett heralded the usual set by the exiting trio of Marciulionis, Barrett and Saxen, the latter of whom stated: “I hope the undergrads were taking notes.”
Alabama ahead Grant Nelson (4) defends Saint Mary’s middle Mitchell Saxen (11) within the first half within the second spherical of the NCAA faculty basketball match, Sunday, March 23, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Picture/David Richard)
Saint Mary’s entered the match with the NCAA’s finest rebounding margin (plus-10.8 per sport), however Alabama owned the boards this sport 41-36, with the Gaels corraling 15 offensive rebounds in a sport providing many extra.
Mikey Lewis’ nook 3-pointer trimmed Alabama’s result in 76-66 with 86 seconds remaining, but it surely was the Gaels’ remaining 3 of the night time.
“A lot of people were saying we were about to lose this game,” Alabama ahead Grant Nelson stated, “so we knew we had to come out and bring energy. The starting group got us going.”
Within the first half, the Gaels had been 9-of-36 on field-goal makes an attempt and 0-of-6 from 3-point vary, no strategy to begin towards the nation’s top-scoring group. Nearly all of their different 21 first-half misses got here within the paint.
Alabama, which entered at an NCAA-best 91.1 factors per sport, transformed over 55% of its first-half field-goal makes an attempt, with Chris Youngblood scoring 13 factors within the first half whereas Sears had simply 4 factors. Youngblood completed with 13 factors, and Sears had 12.
Saint Mary’s began ice chilly from 3-point vary for a fourth straight sport. Saint Mary’s shot 3-of-35 on first-half 3-point photographs by way of its remaining 4 video games.
Of their earlier three video games, Saint Mary’s 3-point shooters made 2-of-13 towards Pepperdine and 0-of-16 towards Gonzaga within the WCC Event, then 7-of-25 within the NCAA opener towards Vanderbilt regardless of a 2-of-18 begin.
The Gaels led this finale for all of 30 seconds, with two leads shortly evaporating within the opening minutes. That they had no first-half turnovers versus Alabama’s 9.
“It’s tough to guard us when you have six guys capable of scoring in double digits,” Alabama coach Nate Oats stated.
Added Marciulionis: “If we made our shots, made our layups, it would have been a close game at halftime, and then who knows.”
Not sufficient photographs had been made, not by the Gaels, not less than.
As for Saint Mary’s future, Bennett stated: “I like our guys. The future is a little more unstable nowadays because of the dynamics of college basketball. But we have some good young guys.
“Mikey and Jordan Ross are going to be good players, Paulus is a good player and only a sophomore, and Harry is a good player, and Ashton (Hardaway) is talented,” Bennett stated. “We’re sitting on some guys and some new ones are coming in. Looking forward to putting it together but I can’t wrap my head around it still dealing with the emotions of this team.”
Saint Mary’s middle Harry Wessels (1) shoots in entrance of Alabama ahead Mouhamed Dioubate (10) within the first half within the second spherical of the NCAA faculty basketball match, Sunday, March 23, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Picture/Sue Ogrocki)
Initially Revealed: March 23, 2025 at 5:26 PM PDT
