2020–21 Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball team represented Saint Mary's College of California during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team were led by head coach Randy Bennett in his 20th season at Saint Mary's. The Gaels played their home games at the University Credit Union Pavilion in Moraga, California as members of the West Coast Conference. They finished the season 14-10, 4-6 to finish in 7th place. They defeated Pepperdine in the quarterfinals in the WCC Tournament before losing in the semifinals to Gonzaga. They received an invitation to the NIT where they lost in the First Round to Western Kentucky.

2020–21 Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball
NIT, First Round
ConferenceWest Coast Conference
2020–21 record14–10 (4–6 WCC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaUniversity Credit Union Pavilion
2020–21 West Coast Conference men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 1 Gonzaga150 1.000311  .969
No. 23 BYU103 .769207  .741
Loyola Marymount75 .583139  .591
Pepperdine76 .5381512  .556
Pacific67 .46299  .500
Santa Clara45 .444128  .600
Saint Mary's46 .4001410  .583
San Francisco49 .3081114  .440
San Diego27 .222311  .214
Portland011 .000615  .286
2021 WCC Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season

The Gaels finished the 2019–20 season 26–8, 11–5 in WCC play to finish in a tie for third place. They defeated Pepperdine and BYU to advance to the championship game of the WCC Tournament where they lost to Gonzaga. Despite being a virtual lock to receive an at-large bid to NCAA Tournament, all postseason play was cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Offseason

Departures

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownReason for departure
Tanner Krebs00G6'6"205RS SeniorHobart, AustraliaGraduated/Signed to play professionally with Brisbane Bullets
Jordan Ford3G6'1"175SeniorFolsom, CAGraduated
Jock Perry5C7'1"250RS JuniorMelbourne, AustraliaGraduate transferred to UC Riverside
Elijah Thomas10F6'5"220RS JuniorPeroia, AZGraduated transferred to Cal Baptist
Dan Sheets15F6'5"205RS SeniorSan Ramon, CAWalk-on; graduated
Kristers Zoriks23G6'4"190RS SophomoreDobele, LatviaSigned to play professionally with BK VEF Rīga
Malik Fitts24F6'8"230RS JuniorRancho Cucamoga, CADeclare for 2020 NBA draft
Aaron Menzies41C7'3"265RS SeniorManchester, EnglandGraduated

Incoming transfers

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownPrevious school
Matt Van Komen23C7'4"220SophomorePleasant Grove, UTTransferred from Utah. Van Komen is granted a waiver for immediate eligibility. Will have three years of remaining eligibility.

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Judah Brown
SF
Santa Monica, CA Pacifica Christian High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jan 7, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Jabe Mullins
SG
Snoqualmie, WA Mount Si High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Sep 25, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Mitchell Saxen
SG
Seattle, WA Ingraham High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Sep 18, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Leemet Bockler
SG
Tallinn, Estonia TalTech Basketball 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Mar 20, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: nr   Rivals: nr  ESPN: nr
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "ESPN". ESPN.com.
  • "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

    2021 recruiting class

    Roster

    2020–21 Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball team
    PlayersCoaches
    Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
    G 0 Logan Johnson 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)170 lb (77 kg) JrSaint Francis HS
    Cincinnati
    Mountain View, California
    G 2 Quinn Clinton 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)185 lb (84 kg) RS SoChristchurch Boys HS Christchurch, New Zealand
    G 5 Jabe Mullins 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)190 lb (86 kg) RS FrMount Si HS Snoqualmie, Washington
    C 10 Mitchell Saxen 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)230 lb (104 kg) FrIngraham HS Seattle, Washington
    F/C 11 Matthias Tass 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)245 lb (111 kg) JrTallinna Reaalkool Tallinn, Estonia
    G 12 Tommy Kuhse 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)185 lb (84 kg) RS SrMountain View HS Mesa, Arizona
    F 14 Kyle Bowen 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)225 lb (102 kg) SoCentre of Excellence Perth, WA, Australia
    C 22 Matt Van Komen 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m)250 lb (113 kg) SoPleasant Grove HS
    Utah
    Pleasant Grove, Utah
    G 23 Leemet Böckler 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)215 lb (98 kg) RS FrTallinn Tech Tallinn, Estonia
    F 25 Judah Brown 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)205 lb (93 kg) FrPacifica Christian HS Bermuda Dunes, California
    G/F 33 Luke Barrett 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)190 lb (86 kg) RS FrPiedmont HS Piedmont, California
    F 42 Dan Fotu 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)225 lb (102 kg) JrRangitoto College Auckland, New Zealand
    G/F 44 Alex Ducas 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)215 lb (98 kg) SoCentre of Excellence Geraldton, WA, Australia
    Head coach
    Assistant coach(es)

    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • (W) Walk-on

    Roster
    Last update: November 19, 2020

    Schedule and results

    Date
    time, TV
    Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
    city, state
    Non-conference regular season
    November 25, 2020*
    11:30 am, ESPN2
    vs. Memphis
    Crossover Classic quarterfinals
    L 56–73  0–1
    Sanford Pentagon 
    Sioux Falls, SD
    November 26, 2020*
    2:00 pm, ESPN
    vs. Northern Iowa
    Crossover Classic consolation 2nd round
    W 66–64  1–1
    Sanford Pentagon 
    Sioux Falls, SD
    November 27, 2020*
    3:30 pm, ESPN2
    vs. South Dakota State
    Crossover Classic 5th place game
    W 72–59  2–1
    Sanford Pentagon 
    Sioux Falls, SD
    December 1, 2020*
    7:00 pm, WCC Network
    Nicholls W 73–50  3–1
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    December 3, 2020*
    7:00 pm, WCC Network
    Texas Southern W 82–70  4–1
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    December 8, 2020*
    7:00 pm, WCC Network
    UTEP W 73–61  5–1
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    December 11, 2020*
    7:00 pm, WCC Network
    San Jose State W 96–61  6–1
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    December 15, 2020*
    7:00 pm, WCC Network
    Eastern Washington W 80–75  7–1
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    December 19, 2020*
    5:00 pm, WCC Network
    Colorado State W 53–33  8–1
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    December 22, 2020*
    6:00 pm, CBSSN
    vs. San Diego State L 49–74  8–2
    Robert A. Mott Athletics Center 
    San Luis Obispo, CA
    December 30, 2020*
    7:00 pm, WCC Network
    Sacramento State W 63–45  9–2
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    WCC regular season
    January 2, 2021
    5:00 pm, WCC Network
    Pepperdine Postponed due to COVID-19 issues University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    January 7, 2021
    4:00 pm, WCC Network
    at San Diego Postponed due to COVID-19 issues Jenny Craig Pavilion 
    San Diego, CA
    January 9, 2021
    4:00 pm, CBSSN
    Santa Clara L 64–66  9–3
    (0–1)
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    January 14, 2021
    8:00 pm, ESPN2
    BYU L 52–62  9–4
    (0–2)
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    January 16, 2021
    5:00 pm, ESPN
    No. 1 Gonzaga
    Rivalry
    L 59–73  9–5
    (0–3)
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    January 21, 2021
    5:00 pm, WCC Network
    at Loyola Marymount W 65–61  10–5
    (1–3)
    Gersten Pavilion 
    Los Angeles, CA
    January 23, 2021
    4:00 pm, CBSSN
    at San Francisco W 67–63  11–5
    (2–3)
    War Memorial Gymnasium 
    San Francisco, CA
    January 28, 2021
    8:00 pm, NBCSCA
    Portland Canceled due to COVID-19 issues University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    January 30, 2021
    4:00 pm, WCC Network
    at Pacific Canceled due to COVID-19 issues Alex G. Spanos Center 
    Stockton, CA
    February 4, 2021
    4:00 pm, WCC Network
    at Santa Clara Canceled due to COVID-19 issues Kaiser Permanente Arena 
    Santa Cruz, CA
    February 6, 2021
    3:00 pm, WCC Network
    Loyola Marymount Canceled due to COVID-19 issues University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    February 8, 2021
    6:00 pm, WCC Network
    at San Diego
    rescheduled from January 7
    Canceled due to COVID-19 issues Jenny Craig Pavilion 
    San Diego, CA
    February 11, 2021
    8:00 pm, ESPN2
    at BYU Postponed due to COVID-19 issues Marriott Center 
    Provo, UT
    February 13, 2021
    5:00 pm, CBSSN
    at Pepperdine L 58–60  11–6
    (2–4)
    Firestone Fieldhouse 
    Malibu, CA
    February 18, 2021
    6:00 pm, ESPN
    at No. 1 Gonzaga
    Rivalry
    L 65–87  11–7
    (2–5)
    McCarthey Athletic Center 
    Spokane, WA
    February 22, 2021
    4:00 pm, NBCSBA
    Pepperdine
    rescheduled from January 2
    W 66–61  12–7
    (3–5)
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    San Francisco, CA
    February 25, 2021
    San Francisco Canceled due to scheduling changes University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    February 25, 2021
    8:00 pm, ESPN2
    Pacific
    moved from February 27
    W 58–46  13–7
    (4–5)
    University Credit Union Pavilion 
    Moraga, CA
    February 27, 2021
    1:00 pm, ESPN2
    at BYU
    rescheduled from February 11
    L 51–65  13–8
    (4–6)
    Marriott Center 
    Provo, UT
    WCC Tournament
    March 6, 2021
    6:00 pm, ESPNU
    (4) vs. (5) Loyola Marymount
    Quarterfinals
    W 52–47  14–8
    Orleans Arena 
    Paradise, NV
    March 8, 2021
    6:00 pm, ESPN
    (4) vs. (1) No. 1 Gonzaga
    Semifinals
    L 55–78  14–9
    Orleans Arena 
    Paradise, NV
    NIT
    March 17, 2021
    6:00 pm, ESPN2
    (2) vs. (3) Western Kentucky
    First Round – Ole Miss bracket
    L 67–69  14–10
    Comerica Center 
    Frisco, TX
    *Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
    All times are in Pacific Time.

    Source[1]

    Rankings

    Ranking movements
    Legend: — = Not ranked. RV = Received votes.
    Week
    PollPre123456789101112131415161718Final
    AP*
    CoachesRV

    *AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings

    References

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