Saint Mary’s Upset by South Carolina in Hawai’i
By Simon Tryzna
In a game where Saint Mary’s was favored by 10, they instead lost 78-71, dropping their first game of the year.
They got torn apart defensively, where South Carolina shot an impressive 57%. After being down 12 at point, the Gaels tied the game on multiple occasions, but were unable to do take the lead. Poor decision making and controversial calls down the stretch doomed Saint Mary’s.
Brad Waldow led the Gaels offense with 20 points , most of which came in the second half. Beau Levesque led the charge on the glass with 8 rebounds. Stephen Holts 6 assists were a team-high.
Tyrone Johnson scored 16 points on 6 of 9 shooting. Sophomore forward Laimonas Chatkevicius chipped in 12 points off the bench.
A loss is a loss, but the real question is how will Saint Mary’s rebound. They have a quick turn around as they play the loser of Boise State vs. Hawai’i. Both will be tough tests. Hopefully this is a set-back and a learning experience rather than a trend. After the loss to Pacific last year, Saint Mary’s lost a tough game to Georgia Tech, a game eerily similar to this one. If they can not have a let-down, then they should be okay come conference play.
They next play tomorrow at 8:30 p.m. PT on ESPNU.