MORAGA, Calif. (November 7, 2024) – Still missing a trio of key players, the Chattanooga Mocs men’s basketball team battled with a strong second-half performance, but ultimately dropped a hard-fought 86-74 decision at national power Saint Mary’s (CA) on Thursday night inside UCU Pavilion in Moraga, Calif.
The defeat marks the second time since the start of the 2012-13 season that Chattanooga has started a fresh campaign 0-2 with the other occurrence happening in 2017-18. Saint Mary’s (CA), now 2-0, continues its dominance against non-conference opponents over the last 10 years as its record in such games improved to 110-39 (.738).
Trailing 39-29 at the halftime break, Chattanooga responded with an emphatic 16-4 run with Honor Huff and Trey Bonham combing for 12 of the 16 points during the stretch to give the guests a 45-43 lead. SMC proved to be too much for the shorthanded Mocs after a key 12-2 run in the middle portion of the half helped create enough separation down the stretch.
Four different Mocs reached double figures in scoring with Makai Richards leading the way with a career-high 19 points. Honor Huff (14), Trey Bonham (13) and Garrison Keeslar (12) joined Richards as the double-digit scorers for UTC.
RECORDS/SERIES – Chattanooga 0-2 · Saint Mary’s (CA) 2-0 · SMC now leads the series 1-0 after the first-ever meeting.
GAME FLOW
17:29 – After knocking down a triple, Honor Huff scored his fifth-straight point on a layup to give UTC an early 5-2 lead.
12:43 – SMC takes a 12-8 lead after six unanswered with four coming from the free-throw line.
11:28 – Jack Kostel and Latif Diouf knock down back-to-back threes to tie things at 14-14.
9:02 – Augustas Marciulionis and Luke Barrett answer with triples of their own to give the Gaels a 21-18 lead.
4:06 – Marciulionis hit a pull-up jumper to help the Gaels build a 30-23 lead ahead of the under four media.
2:17 – Kostel snaps a 12-0 SMC run with his second three of the game to cut the UTC deficit to 37-26.
0:00 – Saint Mary’s (CA) 39, Chattanooga 29
HALFTIME #’s: SMC 8-0 in points off turnovers; SMC 8-3 edge in offensive rebounds; UTC shot 40.7% (11-of-27); Huff led all Mocs scorers in the half with 10 (4-of-5 FG, 1-2 3PT).
17:15 – Trey Bonham and Huff combined for 12 points in less than three minutes to help UTC tie the game, 41-41, forcing SMC into a timeout.
14:43 – Marciulionis converted at the rim to snap UTC’s blistering start, once again tying the contest at 45-45.
12:25 – SMC built back a multi-possession lead, 52-48, with a 7-3 run over a two-minute span.
10:24 – Garrison Keeslar knocked down a pair of free throws to half the hosts run, brining UTC within three, 57-54.
8:37 – Mikey Lewis hit his second triple of the game to put the Gaels on a 7-0 run, upping their lead to 64-54.
6:30 – Marciulionis answered a Keeslar three with a three of his own to keep SMC ahead by double digits, 71-59.
0:00 – Saint Mary’s (CA) 86, Chattanooga 74
FINAL #’s: Chattanooga shot a blistering 50.9% (27-of-53) from the floor; 61.5% (16-of-26) in the second half; 19 total assists to just nine turnovers; seven different Mocs recorded two or more assists.
KEY NOTES | MORE
– Head Coach Dan Earl‘s 70th game as the bench boss for the Mocs… 39-31 (.557) over the stretch… all 70 games, UTC made 5+ 3PT FGs… second-longest active streak in NCAA DI… currently tied for 20th longest such streak in DI history.
– Saint Mary’s (CA) entered the week receiving votes in both national top 25 polls… the Gaels have earned 17-straight postseason appearances (10 NCAA, 7 NIT)… fourth-longest streak behind Kansas, Michigan State and Gonzaga.
POSTGAME QUOTES | MORE
Dan Earl, Head Coach
On the team hanging in there against a tough Saint Mary’s team.
“I thought our guys did show some fight, which is good. Saint Mary’s is a very good basketball team. Their point guard, No. 3 (Augustas Marciulionis), gets Player of the Year in their conference for a reason. 23 (Paulius Murauskas) is really good. Both of their Lithuanian kids were solid. I thought our guys competed. We started making shots at the beginning of the second half, but one of the things we have to learn is we have to have competitive maturity. When you score couple buckets, you don’t need to keep it going with a barrage. Just stay solid. If you get and steal and a layup, you don’t have to turn around and try to get another steal right away. Just be solid and stick to the game plan. So yeah, some growing pains and still things we have to learn, but our guys fought and I’m proud of the growth we showed since the USC game. We still have a lot of getting better to do but we fought hard tonight against a very good team.”
UP NEXT – Chattanooga at Austin Peay – Monday, Nov. 11 – 8 p.m. ET – ESPN+ – Clarksville, Tenn.
FOLLOW CHATTANOOGA BASKETBALL
Follow @GoMocsMBB on Twitter & on Instagram for the most up-to-date information and news regarding Chattanooga men’s basketball.
GoMocs.com is the official website of the Chattanooga Mocs. Buy officially licensed gear in our online store. The Mocs can also be followed on their official Facebook page or on Twitter. Find out how to join the Mocs Club and support more than 300 student-athletes by clicking here.
