No. 18 Saint Mary's aims to dispatch Cal Poly
No. 18 Saint Mary's will be looking for its second consecutive victory over a Big West opponent when it hosts Cal Poly in Moraga, Calif., on Sunday night. The Gaels (2-1) bounced back from an upset loss to Winthrop to knock off visiting Long Beach State 81-63 on Thursday night. Tommy Kuhse recorded a career-best 20 points and a season-high eight assists. Star senior guard Jordan Ford, who had played all 85 minutes through two games, scored 10 points in 27 minutes. He averaged 24 points over the first two games. "Tonight we played well and it gave us confidence," coach Randy Bennett said afterward. "This game was good for us because we were able to get our guys reps. We were able to rest Ford and it gave some of our other guys the chance to step up, including Kuhse. It was a really good win for us and we're getting better with each game." It's already been an up-and-down season for Saint Mary's, which opened with a 65-63 overtime victory against Wisconsin on a neutral court in Sioux Falls, S.D., before suffering the 61-59 loss to Winthrop. "We have a ton of good players," Kuhse said after Thursday night's win. "It's just a matter of trusting each other and getting that culture re-established as to getting the ball moving because with that we are really tough to guard." Cal Poly (1-2) lost road games at Santa Clara (77-63) and North Dakota State (74-67) before winning its home opener 89-45 Friday night against Simpson, an NAIA school from Redding, Calif. Freshman forward Kyle Colvin scored a career-high 15 points, and freshman guard Colby Rogers added 14. The Mustangs connected on 11 of 20 3-point shots, and that long-range shooting has been the team's early strength, as it is hitting on 48.9 percent (23 of 47). Cal Poly, coming off a 6-23 season in which coach Joe Callero was fired, was picked to finish last in a preseason Big West media poll. First-year coach John Smith wants to emphasize defense, and the Mustangs held their first three opponents to 41.2 percent shooting from the field and 29.4 percent from beyond the arc. "Our defense is very good right now," redshirt junior Nolan Taylor said to the Mustang Media Group. "It's at a good energy level, so we're starting to focus on our offensive execution more." Sophomore guard Junior Ballard averages a team-best 14.3 points per game, followed by guard Jamal Smith (12.3 points, 5.3 rebounds), the son of the head coach. Jamal Smith is a graduate transfer from Cal State Fullerton, where his dad was an assistant coach. Saint Mary's will counter with a torrid 3-point attack of its own, hitting on 45.5 percent (25 of 55). Ford carved up the West Coast Conference last season with his array of runners and long-range shots, hitting 44.3 percent from deep. He is 7 of 14 on 3-pointers this season, while wing Tanner Krebs is 7 of 15. Kuhse hit all four of his 3-point shots against Long Beach State. "We took a step in the right direction," Bennett said Thursday night. "I've said all along I think we can be good but we're not that good yet." --Field Level Media |