Saint Mary’s rolls past SCU; Stanford wins third straight
Saint Mary’s, whose hopes of returning to the NCAA tournament hinge on a thin margin for error in the West Coast Conference, won its 11th straight game Thursday night, beating ancient rival Santa Clara 81-57 at Leavey Center.
The Gaels (16-2, 5- 0) got 19 points and 10 rebounds from Jock Landale to keep pace atop the WCC with No. 15 Gonzaga.
Beating the Broncos (611, 3-2) won’t much bolster their resume, but a loss to virtually anyone in the conference except Gonzaga can be near- catastrophic. The Gaels boast a solid No. 40 ranking in the NCAA’s RPI computer, but they actually lost four spots after beating San Diego last Saturday.
Saint Mary’s has beaten Santa Clara, its rival since 1910, five straight and 16 times in their past 18 meetings. STANFORD 79, WASHINGTON STATE 70 » Dorian Pickens had a career-high 28 points, including a key 3-pointer with 76 seconds left, to help the Cardinal (9-8, 3-1 Pac12) top the Cougars (8- 8, 0- 4) in Pullman. WASHINGTON 66, CAL 56 » Justice Sueing led Cal (710, 1- 3 Pac-12) with a career-high 27 points, but the visiting Bears faltered late against the Huskies ( 13- 4, 3-1) after leading scorer Don Coleman fouled out with nearly 13 minutes remaining. Coleman, who was averaging 18.9 points, went to the bench after going 0 of 4 fromthe field and just four points.
Washington went on an 18- 5 run after Coleman fouled out, including 14 straight during one stretch. UCLA 83, UTAH 64 » Aaron Holiday scored 20 points, and the Bruins (13- 4, 4-1 Pac-12) defeated the Utes (10- 6, 2-3) to stay atop the Pac-12 standings. OREGON 76, ARIZONA STATE 72 » Payton Pritchard scored 18 points and hit two free throws with 13.8 seconds left, helping the Ducks ( 12- 5, 2-2 Pac-12) hold off the 11th-ranked Sun Devils. Kodi Justice had 21 points as Arizona State (133, 1-3) played its first home game since Dec. 22. GONZAGA 103, PORTLAND 57 » Silas Melson scored a career-high 23 points, making seven 3- pointers, as the 15th-ranked Bulldogs routed the Pilots. Gonzaga (15-3, 5- 0 West Coast Conference) leading scorer Johnathan Williams suffered what appeared to be a knee injury late in the first half. Marcus Shaver Jr. scored 16 points for Portland (6-12, 0- 5), which has dropped five straight. ARIZONA 62, OREGON STATE 53 » Allonzo Trier scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half, and the 17thranked Wildcats (13- 4, 3-1 Pac-12) pulled away in the final 7 ½ minutes. Tres Tinkle scored 18 points for the Beavers ( 10- 6, 2-2), who have won just once in Tucson in the past 35 years. LMU67, USF 65 » Jeffery McClendon made three free throws with 0.7 seconds left to lift the Lions (6-10, 1- 4 WCC) over the Dons (10- 8, 2-3) and snap a sixgame skid. Souley Boum (12 points) gave USF a 6564 lead on a layup with three seconds left but then fouled McClendon beyond the 3-point line to send him to the line. USC’S MELTON WILL SIT ENTIRE SEASON » USC will sit De’Anthony Melton for the remainder of the season after the sophomore was linked to the college basketball bribery case.The decision ends a three-month saga. The school has held Melton out of all 18 games this season as a precaution while it investigated his ties to the scandal that rocked the sport and resulted in the indictment of Trojans associate head coach Tony Bland.
Women
TEXAS A& M 79, TENNESSEE 76 » Danni Williams scored seven points in overtime, and the No. 17 Aggies handed the sixth-ranked Volunteers (15-1, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) their first loss. Texas A& M (14- 4, 3-1) won despite missing 18 consecutive shots from the field late in the game before recovering in the extra period. SAINT MARY’S 59, SANTA CLARA 46 » Megan McKay scored a game- high 20 points to lead the host Gaels (11- 5, 4-1 WCC) over the Broncos (5-11, 1- 4). Morgan McGwire and Dru Toleafoa both scored 12 points to lead Santa Clara.