While the Gaels and their fans are undoubtedly disappointed with Friday’s 72-49 Sweet Sixteen loss to Baylor, it needs to be remembered that this was the most successful season in the history of Saint Mary’s basketball.
The Gaels, who were predicted by most experts to finish either second or third in the conference behind Gonzaga and Portland, finished second in the regular season. Saint Mary’s upset the Gonzaga Bulldogs, who had won 10 straight regular season conference titles and nine of the past 11 tournaments. Saint Mary’s beat Gonzaga 81-62 and earned an automatic NCAA bid.
This year’s 28-6 team tied a school record for the most wins in a season which was set by last year’s squad. This year’s record is even more impressive when considering that the Gaels did all this after losing Patty Mills (NBA) and five other seniors from last year’s team.
Once the team got into the tournament they did not waste the coveted opportunity. The 10th seeded Gaels upset 7th seeded Richmond in the first round giving the school their first ever tournament win. They followed this performance with a shocking upset over the second seeded Villanova Wildcats, the school’s first ever victory over a top-10 team.
The heartbreak and disappointment of the final game will soon subside and eventually the Gaels along with their fans will acknowledge just how special this year was. “Maybe in a week or so, we’ll be able to look back at out season,” guard Matthew Dellavedova said. “We did have a good season.”
Original Story:
http://www.sportsscribes.net/index.ph...
