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St. Mary's beats UDUBB, advances in the NIT

Photo by Eric Taylor

The Gaels moved one step closer to NYC and the Final 4 of the NIT with a 85-81 win at home over Washington. St. Mary's is making the most out of not making the Big Dance by keeping their season going longer then most teams who made the NCAA Tourney.

Out of 68 teams that went dancing last week, just 16 remain. Many top seeds are gone while Gaels players still have practice to go to and excuse me mr Iverson, they could not be happier.

The Gaels led by as much as 16 in the 3rd quarter and 14 at the start of the 4th but needed a couple of big three pointers down the stretch to hold off the Huskies. Washington used a 12-2 run at the start of the 4th quarter to close the gap to 73-70 but they could get no closer.

St. Mary’s (30-5), set a school record for wins in a season, also got 20 points off the bench from forward Evan fitzner and 12 assists from point guard Emmett Naar.

The WCC remained almost perfect in the post season with Gonzaga (NCAA Sweet 16), St. Mary's (NIT) and USF (Semi's of the CBI) all still playing while their more celebrated neighbors (PAC 12 men's teams) are all but done for the year.

BYU is the only WCC men's team to have lost in the post season.

St. Mary's now moves their attention to the PAC 12 with Utah. a 95-71 winner over LSU at home 3/21/2018. Game time is 7pm with a trip to the NIT Final 4 and famed Madison Square Garden on the line.

St. Mary's head coach Randy Bennett, who has been holding his breath since the Gaels lost back to back games late in the season to Gonzaga and USF, exhaled, smiled and took a deep breath again.

Moving on to dance some more

Photo by Eric Taylor

Unlike their male counterparts the women of the PAC 12 are doing just fine in the NCAA Tournament.

Stanford took full advantage of their size to knock off Florida Gulf Coast and reach yet another Sweet 16.

Faced with a team that shoots 3-pointers in their sleep and turning the ball over 10-times in the first half, Stanford turn to it's inside out game in the second half to pull away for a 90-70 victory.

Alanna Smith led Stanford with 28pts and 12-rebounds. Brittany McPhee chipped in with 17pts and nine rebounds.

The Lady Cardinal jumped out to a 33-17 lead after the first quarter. FGCU tried to make a game of it, out scoring Stanford 18-10 in the second quarter and it was 43-35 at the half.

Faced with a game on their hands to start the second half Stanford pulled away by out scoring FGCU 23-13 in the 3rd quarter and Stanford was never in danger again.

The second round of the NIT laid waste to three more PAC 12 teams on the men's side. After watching UCLA, Arizona and Arizona St. all lost their first round games, Washington, Stanford and USC had their season's ended in the second round of the NIT.

March Madness sets in

Photo by Eric Taylor

Man, oh man what a week it has been and if you like college basketball things are just heating up.

The conference championships are in full swing with teams post season hopes fully in the balance.

Who's in, who's on the bubble and who's trying to play their way into the Big Dance has fans nervous and excited at the same time.

A chinch to be one of the 68-teams a few weeks ago, the St. Mary's Gaels (Moraga, Ca.) must now sweat out the results of the goings on this week. A very good 28-5 record should be good enough to get their ticket to dance, but....

A loss to BYU in the WCC semi's put some shade on the Gaels season. BYU is good and that loss should not mean much in the eyes of the selection committee.

A two game losing streak in Feb, at home to Gonzaga (not a bad loss at all) was followed by a loss at USF (San Francisco) that was a head scratchier.

That loss does not look so bad at the moment because the Dons (USF) finished the season on a roll before getting bounced out of the WCC in the semi's by WCC Champion Gonzaga.

There is one thing that the NCAA Tournament has shown us in recent years, there really are no upsets when it comes to the Big Dance.

St. Mary's gets stiffed by the NCAA, so tell me something new

Photo by Eric Taylor

He saw it coming. The Gaels, a solid NCAA Tournament team for 85% of the season, was rolling right along until a two game losing streak at the hands of Gonzaga {at home) and on the road to USF.

The look on head coach Randy Bennett's face in the closing seconds of the USF loss said it all.

It was a look of "we just blew a sure NCAA bid and now we have to make the WCC Tourney final's to have a chance".

He also knew how good the league is and it is never a sure thing to make the finals, unless you are Gonzaga, the only team St. Mary's could afford to lose to.

Of course he hoped they would still make it and a 28-5 record meant little as St. Mary's finds itself in a very crowded NIT field.

Win that, or at least go far like making it all the way to Madison Square Garden and play in the Final 4 then a 28-5 record next year will get you in to the Big Dance. Being on the outside looking in must suck for the Gaels.

Teams like Oklahoma (losers of 8 in their last 9 games) and Syracuse skated thru despite worse records then the Gaels.

It will help and hurt them if Gonzaga and BYU bolt to the Mountain West. That would leave St. Mary's as the big dogs in the WCC but5 give them even less margin for error since Gonzaga would no longer be around to face off against. More click here

Stanford women trying to get right in PAC 12 play

Photo by Jason Reed

It has been a long time since the Lady Cardinal have been unranked this late in the season. That does not seem to matter to Stanford and they are where they want to be.

Playing for a league title as they season winds down.

Stanford got past #25 Arizona St. 74-50 At Maples behind Brittany McPhee's 24pts. McPhee, a senior passed the 1,000 point mark in the win.

Stanford lost 73-66 to Arizona St in Tempe. That was the Cardinal's first loss in PAC 12 play this year.

Just a game back of Oregon for first place in the PAC 12 Stanford heads to Oregon on their next road trip.

A trap game with Arizona (5-15, 1-8 PAC 12) is all that stands in the way the Cardinal playing for first place next week.

Stanford has played a great schedule and it is only going to get tougher with the Oregon schools waiting in the wings.

That tough pre season schedule (Ohio St twice, UCONN, Tennessee and Baylor) got them ready for the PAC 12.

The Cardinal began the PAC 12 season 7-6 then dusted off #11 UCLA and a talented USC squad in Maples to start the PAC 12 schedule and letting the league know that Stanford will still be a force to be reckoned with.

The wins over the LA schools came right on time. They followed losses to Western Illinois and #7 Tennessee at home. Brittany McPhee has stepped right back in after returning from an injury to lead Stanford in scoring.

McPhee had 26pts in the win over UCLA and 21 against USC.

That Cardinal head up to Oregon where the Ducks and Beavers will be waiting and trying to derail Stanford's title hopes.

The highly rated Ducks (18-3, 7-1 PAC 12) only league loss was to Oregon St (14-5, 5-3 PAC 12) last week. It could be the toughest road trip of the season for Stanford during league play.

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Bay Area college hoop scene heating up with St. Mary's and Stanford leading they way

The Gael's out there in Moraga are doing well with a win at Gonzaga under their belts and Stanford has come out of a fog to compete for a regular season PAC 12 title as we head into the stretch run before March Madness hits.

St. Mary's overcame a hostile crowd packed into a small gym and the talented Zags to grab one of the biggest wins in St. Mary's history.

Not big because they beat Gonzaga. Big because it does not seem like an upset anymore. St. Mary's is good enough to stand on their own too feet and they don't need an upset of Gonzaga.

The Zags will help themselves if they upset St. Mary's in Moraga Feb 10th.

The Stanford men just missed out on taking control of the PAC 12 men's race. A 73-71 loss at home to 14th ranked Arizona stopped a 5-game Cardinal win streak and left them a game behind the Wildcats at 5-2 in PAC 12 play.

Show me some Love - Cardinal ride the back of Bryce Love to win over Arizona St.

Photo by Jason Reed

Bryce Love put his Stanford cardinal on his back rushing for a Stanford record 301-yards in Stanford's 34-24 win at home against the Sun Devil's.

Scoring on touchdown runs of 61, 43 and 59-yards Love needed just 25-carries to reach the 301-yards against the Sun Devils.

Love is now over the 1,000-yard mark (1,088) in just five games and he is averaging a whopping 11.1-yards a carry.

Christian McCaffrey's school record of 284-yards lasted less then a year on the books..

Loves performance made life easy for QB KJ Costello who made his first start under center for the Cardinal. KJ was three for a TD (173-yards passing) with no turnovers.

Stanford (3-2, 2-1 in the PAC 12) seem to be back on track after back to back losses to USC and San Diego St.

Stanford keeps the Axe, Coach Shaw becomes programs winningest head coach

Photo by Eric Taylor

For the first time in a while the Cal Bears made a game of it against Stanford in what was the 120th Big Game at Stanford Stadium.

Stanford had to run out the clock in the 17-14 victory.

Cal's last hopes were dashed when Bears QB Ross Bowers threw an off balanced floater deep over the middle that Cardinal Safety Ben Edwards calmly picked off with just over two minutes left in the 4th.

Cameron Scarlett came in for a banged up Love running for 49-yards after the Edwards pick to help ice the game.

The win keeps Stanford's PAC 12 North title hopes alive. If Washington beats Wash. St. Saturday the Cardinal and not Washington St. goes into the PAC 12 title game against USC.

Bryce Love was the difference against Cal going for 101-yards and a back breaking 51-yard TD run in the 3rd quarter that made it 17-7 Cardinal.

Patrick Laird rushed for 153-yards and he gave Cal hope scoring on a 1yrd run late in the 3rd for the final points of the game. This was a defensive battle and it showed that Justin Wilcox seems to be turning the Bears around.

KJ Costello threw for 185-yards and a touchdown for Sanford who have now taken 8 Big Games in a row.

The win also gave Stanford head coach David Shaw the most wins in school history. Shaw passed the great Pop Warner who had a 71-18-8 record down on the Farm from 1924 - 32.

Shaw is now 72-20 and counting. More click here

The Cardinal back on their feet after road win at Utah 23-20

Photo by Jason Reed

Stanford head coach David Shaw went with his gut feeling and started Keller Chryst instead of K J Costello when the Cardinal faced another huge test taking on the Ute's.

Tailback Bryce Love rushed for 152-yards and he put the game away with a 68-yard burst early in the 4th quarter making it 23-13 Stanford.

That was the biggest lead the Cardinal had all game in this back and forth affair. Stanford did not have the offensive rhythm it had the past game and a half when Costello was under center.

Keller threw for just 106-yards but he ran for a score as well. Costello did produce when he played going 6 of 10 passing )82-yards) and running twice for 19-yards.

Stanford's defense came to play against Utah. The Cardinal picked off Troy Williams twice and allowed only 229-yards passing on 39-attempts. Utah's starting QB, Tyler Huntley missed his first game of the season with an injury.

Both of the Cardinal's picks came in the 4th quarter.

You need defense to win games on the road in front of hostile crowds against good teams. The loss was Utah's first of the year and it prevented them from moving into 1st place of the PAC 12 South as league play heats up.

Stanford (4-2, 3-1 PAC 12) stayed with reach of streaking Washington and Washington St. both 6-0.

Next up for Stanford is a home date with Oregon Oct 14th. After that is the Cardinal trap game of the year, a date with lowly Oregon St. The beavers come right before taking on the Washington schools.

Like Stanford the Ducks are 4-2, but PAC 12 play has not been kind to them (1-2). It is a game that the Cardinal need to win if they are going to have any chance of winning the PAC 12 North and playing for a conference championship. More click here

Show me some Love - Cardinal ride the back Bryce Love to win over Arizona St.

Photo by Jason Reed

Bryce Love put his Stanford cardinal on his back rushing for a Stanford record 301-yards in Stanford's 34-24 win at home against the Sun Devil's.

Scoring on touchdown runs of 61, 43 and 59-yards Love needed just 25-carries to reach the 301-yards against the Sun Devils.

Love is now over the 1,000-yard mark (1,088) in just five games and he is averaging a whopping 11.1-yards a carry.

Christian McCaffrey's school record of 284-yards lasted less then a year on the books..

Loves performance made life easy for QB KJ Costello who made his first start under center for the Cardinal. KJ was three for a TD (173-yards passing) with no turnovers.

Stanford (3-2, 2-1 in the PAC 12) seem to be back on track after back to back losses to USC and San Diego St.

Stanford faces early tests on the Gridiron

Photo by Eric Taylor

Not only do they have a trip down under to face Rice in August the Cardinal open up the PAC 12 with a road game against PAC 12 South favorites USC September 9th.

Stanford should have some of the questions about the team answered.

One question is how well quarterback Keller Chryst has healed from his leg injury suffered in Stanford's last game of the season , a 25-23 win over North Carolina in the Sun Bowl.

The running game and defensive line play will also be trying to answer if they can remain a threat after losing two first round draft picks to the NFL last year.

The Cardinal play their first three games away from The Farm before opening up their home season with UCLA Sept. 23rd which is about the time Stanford begins it's school year. More click here

Cal - Berkeley looking for it's place in the PAC 12

A new coach and hopefully a new defense will lead the Golden Bears into the 2017 football season. Add a new quarterback into the mix and you can see that fans of Cal football will have to wait and see how well their Bears will play this year.

Photo by Eric Taylor

Cal opens up on the road with North Carolina before home games against Weber St, Ole Miss and USC break in the Bears home field.

New head coach Justin Wilcox wants to turn the Bears into a defensive force which will be a welcome change from the shoddy D that was played under departed head coach Sonny Dykes.

The Bears gave up 44pts a game last season. They scored 37, but as you can see that is not a winning formula.

They will have to replace David Webb, who is now trying to catch on with the New York Giants, at quarterback.

Webb took all but one snap under center for Cal last season so it will be important for somebody to step in at that position and perform well. The Bears return tailback Tre Watson.

The Jr running back had 709-yards rushing with four TD's while sharing time with a couple of backs. He is the man now but Vic Enwere should get his fair share of carries this season. More click here

Stanford, Cal and San Jose St get ready for the 2017 football season

Photo by Eric Taylor

Hope springs eternal, as they say, which is wonderful news for the California Golden Bears and their porous defense.

Under fired head coach Sonny Dykes scored a ton of points and there are several of his players trying to make NFL rosters this pre season.

Dykes D was pitiful, no that is an understatement. Is was one of the worst in recent and ancient memory.

New Bears head coach Justin Wilcox seems to be the polar opposite of Dykes.

The defensive players already love him.

Stanford is searching for a star to take the place of Christian McCaffrey (on offense) and Solomon Thomas (defense). Bryce Love looks ready to take over for McCaffrey.

The question is who will back up Love.

Put on your Dancing shoes

Photo by Eric Taylor

The defending national champions (Villinova) did not make it out of the first week.

The Cats fell to Wisconsin but don't call it an upset. Wisconsin has won more NCAA Tourney games then any other team the past few years.

So Far Villinova is the only #1 seed to lose in this years Dance. North Carolina, Kansas and Gonzaga all made it thru the first week.

Oregon, UCLA and Arizona are still repping the PAC 12 while a 4th team, USC did win a game in the tournament this year.

The Ducks needed a game breaking three by Tyler Dorsey for a comeback 75-72 win over Rhode Island in the second round. That capped off a 9 of 10 shooting night for Dorsey and it was his 4th 3-of the game.

Arizona had their hands full with St. Mary's, grinding out a 66-60 win and UCLA ran away from Cincinnati, blowing open a 33-30 game at the half to win 79-67. Freshman Lonzo Ball led the way with 18pts, 9-assists and 7-rebounds.

The Mighty ACC, on the other hand, is a dismal 1-9 threw the first weekend of this years dance. Only #1 seeded North Carolina is left from that once powerful conference.

There are 15-other teams that do not care about the ACC's problems right now. All they can think of is winning two more games this week.

Complete NCAA D1 Men's bracket click here

Fighting for respect - St. Mary's Gaels set school record for wins

Photo by Eric Taylor

They are a robust 26-3 after beating Santa Clara 70-56 in Moraga to close out the regular season.

Up next is the WCC Tourney in Las Vegas this weekend.

The Gaels broke the team record set by the 1988-89 Gales that lost to Clemson in the NCAA Tourney.

The Gaels know they can't take anything for granted.

Last season St. Mary's beat Gonzaga twice during the regular season but lost to them in the WCC finals and just like that they were out of the big dance with a 25-4 record.

St. Mary's came back harder this year but they got swept by the Zags so we will have to see how the WCC goes for St. Mary's and if there body of work over the regular season is good enough for the selection committee if they do not get the automatic bid.

The Gaels take on the Zags in the 2017 WCC conference tourney final tonite in Las Vegas.

More click here