Naar’s 15 assists help Gaels roll over Tigers
While Evan Fitzner was being interviewed in the hallway outside of the St. Mary’s locker room following the Gaels’ 74-56 win over Pacific at McKeon Pavilion on Thursday, Emmett Naar walked past his teammate.
“There he is right there,” Fitzner said of Naar. “I don’t feed his ego too much.”
Fitzner’s lighthearted needle came on a night when all Naar seemingly did was feed. The senior point guard dished out a career-high 15 assists.
When told that was one shy of the school record, Naar said, “I assume Delly had that,” referring to fellow Aussie Matthew Dellavedova, who’s now with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Actually, the record of 16 was set by Ray Orgill against Southern Utah on Dec. 3, 1980.
Naar’s previous career high was 12, which he had accomplished four times this season. He came into Thursday averaging 9.1 assists per game this season, second in the nation behind Oklahoma’s Trae Young (10.6).
Naar believes the high assist totals come as a function of running efficient offenses.
“The ball is in my hands quite a lot,” Naar said. “It’s the same with Trae Young. I’ve watched him play; he’s fun to watch. When the ball’s in your hands that much, (assists are) kind of going to happen.”
Naar has 684 career assists, the fifth most in WCC history. The top four: USF’s Orlando Smart at 902, Dellavedova (761), San Diego’s Christopher Anderson (757) and Loyola Marymount’s Terrell Lowry (689).
On Thursday, St. Mary’s head coach Randy Bennett praised Naar’s passing — “That’s phenomenal, 15 assists in a game” — and stressed that Naar’s defense against Pacific guard Roberto Gallinat also was key.
Gallinat was leading the Tigers (6-10, 1-2 WCC) in scoring at 13.7 points per game. He had three points against St. Mary’s on 1-for-5 shooting.
The Gaels (14-2, 3-0), who’ve won nine straight, got 13 points and 17 rebounds from center Jock Landale for his ninth double-double this season.
Fitzner came off the bench to score a team-high 16 points. And all needling aside, he appreciates what Naar did against the Tigers and what he has done throughout his career.
“He’s an unbelievable passer, a pleasure to play with, in that sense,” Fitzner said of Naar. “That’s kind of what we expect him to do at this point. It’s a lot of fun when you get to play with someone like that.”
Briefly: St. Mary’s has beaten Pacific 10 straight times, the past nine coming since the Tigers rejoined the WCC for the 2013-14 season. … The Gaels host San Diego (12-3, 3-0) on Saturday night with first place at stake. … After that, the Gaels begin a four-game road swing that ends with a rematch against Pacific on Jan. 20.