MORAGA, California -- Strong defense and an efficient night on the offensive end spelled victory for the Saint Mary's men's basketball team as the Gaels turned back visiting Morgan State and closed the non-conference portion of their schedule with a 78-52 victory at McKeon Pavilion.
Garrett Jackson scored in double figures for the fifth-straight game, posting a career-high 24 points on 10 of 11 shooting for Saint Mary's (12-3). Jackson also grabbed a season-high nine rebounds. Kerry Carter added 15 points, Brad Waldow added 14 and Aaron Bright chipped in with nine points and 10 assists. Blake Bozeman led Morgan State (2-14) with 22.
Good early defense helped Saint Mary’s build a lead Tuesday, and the Gaels took an 11-point lead to halftime as a result. An 8-2 start came courtesy of two 3-pointers by Carter and a bucket by Waldow, giving some early fire to the Gaels on a cold night in Moraga.
Morgan State stayed close for the next few minutes, but Saint Mary’s tightened its grip on defense and began to pull away. The Gaels forced the Bears into a scoreless stretch that lasted over five minutes, taking a 14-6 lead and building a little steam. A 3-pointer by Kyle Thomas ended the cold spell, but back to back baskets capped by a layup by Dane Pineau pushed SMC’s advantage back to nine at 18-9.
Bozeman put the Bears on his back for a few minutes, and his back to back 3s cut Saint Mary’s lead to 18-14. By the final media time out of the half, Saint Mary’s had re-established a 10-point lead and a pair of free throws by Aaron Bright gave the Gaels their 11-point advantage heading into the locker room.
Saint Mary’s wasted no time asserting itself to begin the second half, scoring the first six points out of intermission on 3-pointers by Bright and Jackson. Morgan State countered with a layup but two buckets inside from Jackson and a layup by Carter moved the Gaels’ lead north of 20 and gave the home five complete control.
"I like the way it's headed. We've definitely improved the last month and I think that's what you want to do. We still have a lot of room to improve," Saint Mary's coach Randy Bennett said. "Garrett is coming on, Des (Simmons) is coming on and Aaron's come on. We had to get them in a comfort zone, so to speak, so they could play with confidence. I think we have them there."
Morgan State never got untracked offensively, shooting just 35 percent for the night. Saint Mary's was able to empty its bench at the end of the game, giving valuable rest to several starters who rank at or near the top of the WCC in minutes played. Center Jock Landale played a solid all-around game in a career-high 13 minutes.
The Gaels continued their dominance on the boards, outrebounding Morgan State 42-21 led by 12 from Simmons. Saint Mary's has outrebounded its opponent in every game this season, and the Gaels lead the WCC in rebounding margin. SMC also dominated the paint, outscoring the Bears 48-22 down low.
"We've worked on it a lot in practice. Coach preaches it and I think we have a really good rebounding group," Simmons said. "I like to rebound, Garrett likes to rebound, Brad rebounds great. Kerry is a great rebounding guard, (Aaron) and Emmett (Naar) are starting to pick it up with the rebounding part. I think collectively we have a group that likes to rebound."
Saint Mary's returns to action on Saturday when it travels to Stockton for an 8 p.m. tip vs. Pacific. That game will be televised live by Comcast SportsNet Bay Area and live audio/statistics will be available through SMCGaels.com. The Gaels come back to Moraga on Jan. 15 to take on San Diego and BYU visits McKeon Pavilion on Jan. 17. Tickets for those games, as well as all home games, are available by clicking the Tickets link at SMCGaels.com or by calling the SMC Athletic Ticket Office at (925) 631-GoTx.
BOX SCORE
COURTESY SAINT MARY'S COLLEGE ATHLETICS
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