Saint Mary's defeats the number 1 Gonzaga 60-47 in great surprise, "we knew we could beat them"



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Saint Mary's heard about it for weeks of the NCAA tournament bubble. The first four, the first four, are fortunate to be in the discussion and to be included in the 68 field.

Tired of all this gossip, the Gaels put a definite end to it, breaking the bubble by eliminating a team that no one outside their program thought they could beat.

Saint Mary's put an end to his longest streak of wins and Gonzaga's reign for six years as West Coast Conference tournament champions, winning a 60-47 victory at the title match on Tuesday evening.

"People who do not know us have asked us to perform a miracle," said Jordan Hunter, goalkeeper of St. Mary's, who scored 12 points and 15 rebounds. "We did not need a miracle, we knew we could beat them."

Saint Mary's (22-11) virtually shut down the country's team that scored the most goals by slowing down the game and forcing Gonzaga to own his property instead of playing fast and free.

The Gaels held off Gonzaga's top scorer, Rui Hachimura, and limited the Zags (30-3) to 2 of 17 shots over the 3-point range to end the longest streak of wins. country to 21 games.

The series of 18 consecutive victories at the COE Gonzaga Tournament, which dates back to the 2012 title match, also ended, as did his candidacy for the No. 1 NCAA tournament title.

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Instead of waiting for Sunday for the selection, Saint Mary's went back to the NCAA tournament after a year-long absence with his first WCC title in nine years.

Jordan Ford had 17 points and Tanner Krebs scored 13 points for the Gaels.

"The way we have proceeded, from the beginning of the year to the present, gives me a lot of satisfaction," said Saint Mary's coach Randy Bennett.

Tommy Kuhse (12) of St. Mary shoots against Gonzaga during the second half of a college basketball game in the NCAA for the title of the West Coast Conference's men's tournament.

Tommy Kuhse (12) of St. Mary shoots against Gonzaga during the second half of a college basketball game in the NCAA for the title of the West Coast Conference's men's tournament.
(AP)

Gonzaga managed to qualify for the regular season title and cross the WCC semi-finals by qualifying for the transition and shooting open shots.

The Zags did not do either against Saint Mary's, whose point count was the lowest of the season and where 37 percent were drawn. Gonzaga earned six assists after finishing with 26 WCC semifinal wins over Pepperdine.

Brandon Clarke led Gonzaga with 16 points and Hachimura was limited to nine, almost 12 points below his average.

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"It was our worst offensive game of the year and gave them credit for it," said Gonzaga coach Mark Few.

Gonzaga dominated the CMC during the regular season, finishing 16-0 and imposing with a record of 27 points per game.

Two of these victories were won against Saint Mary's: 66-55 at Moraga and 94-46 at Spokane.

The Bulldogs qualified for their 20th consecutive title game under Few – and 22nd overall – by crushing Pepperdine 100-74 in Monday's semifinal.

Saint Mary's controlled the pace in the third round against Gonzaga, blocking the Zags' attack and forcing them to make difficult shots. Gonzaga has trouble dropping anything, whether it's open or not, scoring 24 points in the mid-season, a low point of the season, and missing six of his seven 3-point attempts.

"Gonzaga likes to go out and run, they produce energy," Ford said. "It was a bit like a home game for them and we had to slow down the tempo."

The Zags also struggled to contain Krebs. The junior, averaging 8.9 points per game, was 13 at half-time to push the Gaels to a 27-24 lead. Saint Mary's did it with Malik Fitts, the second-leading scorer, limited to less than a minute because of serious problems.

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Saint Mary's continued to bog down in Gonzaga and Fitts scored eight quick points to open the second half. The Gaels extended the lead at 48-41, 7 minutes and half away, and responded each time Gonzaga tried to run.

"They missed everything a bit by entering the halls and we just could not shoot," said Josh Perkins of Gonzaga's guard, who got 10 points, four assists and five turnovers.

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GREAT IMAGE

Saint Mary's played his best game of the season at the best possible time. Now, it's at the NCAA tournament.

Gonzaga has never been able to accelerate the Gaels and make the most of them, revealing a weakness that can be exploited.

STOP RUI

Few teams have managed to slow Hachimura this season. The 6-foot-8 Japanese all-round striker has entered the WCC title match with an average of 20.1 points and is a contender for the US title.

Saint Mary's never allowed Hachimura to get in the water, hit him and bring defense help whenever he was doing it. a gesture. Hachimura only tried six throws and made three throws while three throws for six free throws.

FOLLOWING

Both teams are waiting for their ranking in the NCAA.

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