Hermanson helps Gaels push back against Tigers
Calvin Hermanson scored seven of his 17 points as part of a big run in the second half and No. 23 St. Mary’s beat visiting Pacific 62-50 at McKeon Pavilion on Thursday night.
Jock Landale added 10 points and 10 rebounds and Joe Rahon had nine points and nine assists for St. Mary’s, which has won 10 of 11.
The Gaels (16-2, 6-1 WCC) let most of a 19-point first-half lead lead slip away and were up 35-30 early in the second half before Hermanson sparked a 17-4 run. Landale had four points during the run and Tanner Krebbs made two of his three three-pointers.
St. Mary’s finished with 13 three-pointers, one shy of its season high.
T.J. Wallace scored 13 points to lead four Pacific players in double figures. The Tigers (8-12, 2-5) were 1-for-6 from three-point range.
“I have a funny feeling on a game like that,” St. Mary’s head coach Randy Bennett said. “We won against a team that’s good, experienced, physical. I felt good about that. We just were inconsistent. They made it tough for us to score.”
St. Mary’s bounced back nicely after losing 79-56 at Gonzaga on Saturday night. As usual, it was the defense that paved the way for the Gaels, who held Pacific 19 points below its season average.
“St. Mary’s is like Floyd Mayweather,” Pacific head coach Damon Stoudamire said. “They’re a counterpuncher. They wait until somebody makes a mistake, then they capitalize.”
St. Mary’s outrebounded the Tigers 30-21.
St. Mary’s shot well early from the perimeter while building a 30-11 lead with 6:40 left in the first half.
The Gaels made only one shot over the final 6½ minutes of the first half as the Tigers used a 14-3 run to trim their deficit to 33-25.