What is going on in Santa Clara?
Prospects didn’t look good for Santa Clara when it lost its season-opening game at home to Prairie View A&M by 17 points.
Things looked worse when Prairie View then dropped its next 11 games and worse still when top scorer KJ Feagin went down to injury that would ultimately end his season.
So who in the world expected the Broncos could win seven of eight games (including over USC and Washington State) in a span of 32 days to find themselves in the upper half of the West Coast Conference standings?
Well, coach Herb Sendek thought it was possible.
“Our team was dealt several early blows that put our young players in a position to really be baptized by fire,” Sendek said. “I feel good about our team. We’re trying to get better every day.
“We’re a different team than we were when the season started. November is a long time ago.”
When the Broncos (10-8, 2-2) visit Saint Mary’s (11-7, 2-1) on Thursday night, they will field a lineup featuring two freshmen among four first-year starters, and a freshman sixth man.
Seventy-five percent of the team’s scoring comes from newcomers and the future is promising with the team’s top four scorers scheduled to return next season.
Sophomore guard Tahj Eaddy (16.6 points per game), a native of Connecticut and transfer from Southeast Missouri, and freshman guard Trey Wertz (11.8) from Charlotte, NC, both have 30-point games to their credit.