Undefeated Gaels Travel to Pacific
By Josh Horton
The Gaels will look to keep an undefeated WCC campaign going while the Pacific Tigers look to get back on track and play spoiler in a matchup between two travel partners.
Saint Mary’s Gaels (11-3, 4-0) @ Pacific Tigers (9-7, 1-3)
Date: Saturday, January 10, 2015
Location: Spanos Center, Stockton, California
Time: 8:00 PM PT
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What’s New?
Not like this is anything new, but the Gaels are atop the WCC standings – along with the Gonzaga Bulldogs – and Randy Bennett appears to have his team functioning at a high level once again after finishing fourth last season, a disappointing performance from the schools recent standards.
Pacific was expected to go through a rebuilding season with nine newcomers (10 if you count Ray Bowles, who redshirted last season) and that appears to be the case, as the Tigers are 1-3 early in the WCC.
The Gaels are fresh off a blowout win against a mediocre Morgan State team, while Pacific split two matchups versus the Los Angeles based schools, squeaking out a win versus LMU and falling to Pepperdine. Saint Mary’s won both of their games on the road trip, defeating both the Waves and the Lions by nine points each contest.
Both sqauds boast two stars. The Gaels feature Brad Waldow, who is averaging a double-double, and the Tigers possess T.J. Wallace, an up and coming sophomore guard. Both teams need their stars to set the tone of the game and play at a high level to ensure victory.
However, both of the aforementioned players have experience setbacks in the last week or so. Wallace recently suffered a sprained toe – otherwise known as turf toe – while Waldow has seen an increase in defensive attention from teams that are fully aware of his talent in the low post. Both players’ numbers have taken a hit in conference play, but numbers can be deceiving. Wallace and Waldow are the heart and soul of their respective teams and the offense will run through both players when they meet.
In tonight’s matchup, Wallace will face the Gaels talented backcourt, where Aaron Bright or Kerry Carter will look to shut down the sophomore guard. Waldow will likely be matched up with monstrous center Sami Eleraky, who towers over Waldow at 7-0. The size discrepancy could give Waldow fits and disturb his back-to-the-basket moves. When Eleraky is out of the game – which is a great possibility, considering the JuCo transfer only averages about 20 minutes per game – expect junior forward Eric Thompson, freshman forward Jacob Lampkin or Gabriel Aguirre to slide over and try their hand at guarding Waldow, which will be a daunting task for any player.
Prediction
With Wallace banged up, Dulani Robinson must be a force. While the City College of San Francisco Transfer has the ability to run the offense, the Tigers will be overmatched with Saint Mary’s excess of weapons on the perimeter and inside. The Gaels improve to 5-0 in conference with a 72-61 win over at Pacific.