Saint Mary’s Beats Notre Dame in Thrilling Opener of Maui Invitational
LAS VEGAS — Gaels fans had to wait until the end of the day to see Saint Mary’s in the Maui Jim Maui Invitational for the first time. The Gaels wrapped up day one of the annual tournament by taking on Notre Dame in what was easily the best game of the opening round. Saint Mary’s hit the big shot when it needed to, and hung on late for a thrilling 62-59 win over the Fighting Irish, handing them their first loss while pushing the Gaels to 5-0.
TO THE WIRE
From five minutes left in regulation, neither team held an advantage by more than two points, until the final horn. Saint Mary’s and Notre Dame flip-flopped back and forth, bucket after bucket. Dan Fotu hit a layup with 2:58 left that tied the score at 56-56, and a Logan Johnson free throw put the team up by one with a free throw. Notre Dame then pulled ahead on a pair of free throws, and with under a minute remaining, the Gaels needed a big shot. Down 58-57, Fotu hit the shot of the night. The senior buried a corner three to give him a new career-best (22 points), and put SMC up 60-58. Late free throws padded the score and helped the Gaels hold onto a 62-59 win.
DOESN’T GET MORE EVEN
The first half played out about as evenly as possible, tied at 31-31 after 20 minutes of play. Still, despite the score, it felt like the Gaels were in control for a majority of the half. Saint Mary’s led 31-24 with just under four minutes remaining in the half after a pair of Fotu free throws, but Gaels wouldn’t sink another shot in the half. Notre Dame closed out the first half on a 7-0 run, tying the score with just eight seconds left on the clock. The Gaels worked well in the paint early on, outscoring the Fighting Irish 14-6 in the paint in the first half.
CREAM RISES TO THE TOP
Fotu set his second career-best of the season with 22 points on the night, and was wildly efficient yet again, going 8-9 from the floor and hitting all three of his triples. Fotu not only performed late in the game when it mattered, but he led SMC with 12 points in the first half. He was followed closely by Tommy Kuhse, who finished with 10 points in the second half, and 14 for the game, also adding four rebounds to the mix.
AMONG OTHER NUMBERS
Saint Mary’s held Notre Dame without a field goal in the final 3:29 of the match…the Gaels out-rebounded their opponent for the fifth time in as many games this season, winning the board battle 32-29 while Alex Ducas led the way with eight…SMC shot better from beyond the arc (53.3%) then in the paint (46.9%) on Monday night, while holding Notre Dame to just 38.9% for the contest.
UP NEXT
With the win, Saint Mary’s will take on the Oregon Ducks on Tuesday night in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational. Oregon beat Chaminade in the quarterfinals with a 73-49 win just prior to the Gaels taking the floor. The winner of Tuesday’s semifinal match will take on the winner of Wisconsin and No. 12 Houston Wednesday afternoon. Tip-off of Tuesday’s SMC/Oregon game is set for 5:00 pm PT on ESPN.
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