As I have stated on the Student Union Podcast several times, the Saint Mary’s Gaels are the best team that no one knows about. The people in sports media are making that possible by giving them a lowly ranking in the AP Poll (22nd), and only a 9-seed in the latest bracketology, along with advanced metrics not being overly kind with RPI ranking of 4oth, BPI ranking of 23rd, Kenpom ranking of 23rd. They are better than that and I will explain why.
Resume:
Record: 27-4 (16-2) West Coast Conference
Best wins: New Mexico State (by 18), BYU x2 (by 10 & 13), Gonzaga (by 3)
Bad losses: Washington State (by 5), San Francisco (by 7)
Why they are legit
This team is lead by their trio of stars: Jock Landale (21.5 PPG, 10.2 RPG), Emmett Naar (10.2 PPG, 8.1 APG), and Calvin Hermanson (10.9 PPG, 43.7% from 3). Not only do they have this dynamic trio, there is consistency with all their players who play significant minutes. Saint Mary’s has seven players that average 15 minutes a game, six of them shoot over 40% from the field and six of them shoot over 37% from 3. Here are some more stats to back up how legit this team is:
Field Goal Percentage: 51.6% (Best in the nation)
3 Point Percentage: 40.5% (16th in the nation)
Free Throw Percentage: 77.6 (12th in the nation)
Assist-Turnover ratio: 1.67 (2nd in the nation)
Rebound Margin: +5.6 (35th in the nation)
Personal Fouls: 15.5 per game (24th in the nation)
Opponent 3 Point Percentage: 32% (31st in the nation)
Scoring Defense: 63.8 PPG (11th in the nation)
There is a lot to like about this team and they are definitely not getting enough respect. This team is very deep at the guard position and Randy Bennett has done a great job coaching this team, which are both very important team attributes in March.
What could hold them back in March
For starters, they are very thin at the center and forward position. Of the seven players who play 15 minutes or more a game, only three play forward or center. They did lose Kyle Clark–a good depth forward–after he re-injured his knee and have had to rely heavily on Landale and Hermanson to carry load for the front court. This kind of loss does show itself a little bit, as they have suffered defensively.
Opponent Field Goal Percentage: 43.6% (156th in the nation)
Blocks Per Game: 2.8 (T-252nd in the nation)
Defensive Rebounding Per Game: 25.58 (T-149th in the nation)
Offensive Rebounding Per Game: 7.97 (314th in the nation)
Turnovers Forced Per Game: 9.87 (350th in the nation)
Summary
Obviously this team has their flaws, but the overall product they have shown has me thinking they are better than the modest 9-seed given to them. Not to mention that the bracket they are projected in is very weak–but who I am kidding, all brackets look weak–so they could easily make a run. There has been little consistency in college basketball this year, but Saint Mary’s has been one of the few teams that has shown some all year long. So if you want to bet on a Cinderella team to make a deep run, this is the team to bet on.