Gaels Fall to 24th-Ranked Vanderbilt, Finish as Battle 4 Atlantis Runners Up

Entering Friday’s championship contest in the Battle 4 Atlantis, the Vanderbilt Commodores (8–0) boasted the second best scoring offense in the country (98.1 points per game), while the Saint Mary's Gaels (8–1) held the fifth best scoring defense (58.9 points per game allowed). For the trophy in Paradise Island, Bahamas, it was offense over defense, as Vanderbilt dictated the pace of play en route to a 96–71 victory. The Gaels fell behind early and fought back into the contest early in the second half, but they couldn't claw out from the early hole.

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Paulius Murauskas led the charge for the Gaels yet again, with 24 points to go along with four rebounds and a team-high three assists. Continuing to be a load for anyone to defend, Murauskas scored nearly half of his points from the stripe, knocking down 11 of 13 attempts. Mikey Lewis bounced back after being limited to just five points in the semifinals, scoring 19 against Vandy, knocking down four of seven three point attempts, and reeling in five rebounds. Those two made up 60% of the Gaels’ scoring, with no other player reaching double figures. 

For the second straight season, the Gaels will finish as runners up in their annual MTE, after taking home second place at the Acrisure Classic a year ago. Murauskas and Lewis were both named to the Battle 4 Atlantis All-Tournament team. Murauskas led the Gaels, averaging 21 points per contest and knocking down 24–28 free throw attempts. He was the only Gael to score in double-figures in all three contests, reaching the 20 point mark in the first matchups, before coming up just one point shy of 20 in the championship. 

Lewis averaged 13 points per game, even more impressive when figuring that he was held to season-low five points against Virginia Tech. More than just a scorer, Lewis also did his part on the boards, as the Gaels’ top rebounding guard, averaging four per game, and distributed six assists, good for second most for the Gaels for the three game tournament. Joining Lewis and Murauskas on the all-tournament team were Vanderbilt's Jalen Washington, Tyler Tanner, and Tournament MVP Duke Miles. 

A Hill too Far to Climb

While Vanderbilt took an early 4–0 lead in the opening minute of the game, the Gaels fought back to knot things up at four apiece—and they kept things close, with the score sitting at 17–13 through the first eight minutes of play. Over the next 3:25, however, the Commodores exploded for a 17–0 run to pull ahead by 21. Saint Mary's responded with a 14–5 run of their own, sparked by a pair of Mikey Lewis threes, but Vandy nudged the lead back up to 17 at the half, at 51–34. 

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Mikey Lewis led Gaels offensive efforts with 16 first half points, burying four of five three point attempts and reeling in three rebounds. Paulius Murauskas continued to play his physical brand of basketball, earning six attempts at the stripe and knocking down all six, while also dishing out a pair of dimes. Andrew McKeever was limited to just two points but led the team with four rebounds and three assists. 

Despite the double-digit deficit coming out of halftime, the Gaels were unfazed, opening on a 10–2 run to trim the deficit to single digits. Unfortunately, that was as close as the Gaels would get; with every bucket they scored, the Commodores seemed to have an immediate answer. The Gaels kept the deficit within 16 for the first 12 minutes and change of the second half, before Vanderbilt eventually ran away with things late, closing the game out on a 15–5 run to finish out the contest with a 96–71 victory. 

Paulius Murauskas added 14 second half points, with Joshua Dent chipping in six and Dillan Shaw contributing five points and a team-high five boards. The Gaels saw statistical improvements in almost every category in the second half, shooting at 46.2% from the field (42.3% in first) and 37.5% from three (30.8% in first), while holding the Commodores to 47.2% from the field (58.1% in first) and 37.5% from three (45.5% in first). This helped the Gaels claw back into contention early in the frame, but the hill to victory was just too far to climb. 

Cashing in the Freebies

For the seventh time this season, the Gaels’ physical play earned them 20 trips to the free throw line. The Gaels were also sure to convert those chances, knocking down their first 15 in a row on Friday, and finishing at 18–20 overall. It is the second time this year that the Gaels have shot 90% or better from the stripe. 

In earning 13 trips to the stripe, West Coast Conference free throw leader Paulius Murauskas became the first Gael to do that since Logan Johnson earned 13 free throws at Gonzaga in February 2023. Murauskas is also the first Gael to bury 11 free throws in a game since Johnson in that same game. 

Mikey Lewis and Joshua Dent were both perfect at the line, going 5–5 and 2–2 respectively, running their percentages for the season to 96.8% and 97.3%. As a team, the Gaels are back over 80% for the season. 

Another 70

For the first time since the 2017–18 season, the Gaels have scored 70 or more points in nine straight contests. This is the fifth time in the Randy Bennett era and 16th time overall that the Gaels have accomplished this feat. The program record for consecutive 70+ games is 16 straight, stretching from January 28, 1977 to December 13, 1977. 

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Up Next: Gaels Head to Davidson

After the gauntlet of three games in three days, the Gaels will have no competitions for the next eight days, before returning to the court on Sunday, December 7, in North Carolina to take on the Wildcats of Davidson College. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. Eastern  / 11 a.m. Pacific. Watch the game on ESPN+.

The Gaels last played the Wildcats at home in November 2023. For longtime Bay Area basketball fans, etched within memory is a March 2009 matchup in Moraga between Saint Mary’s and Davidson in the second round of the NIT. The frenzy of the crowd about blew the roof off the gym at Saint Mary’s. Why? Davidson was led by a rising star by the name of Steph Curry, with the Saint Mary’s squad led by Patty Mills. For the last game of his collegiate career, Curry scored 26 points; Mills scored 23 and had 10 assists. Final score: 80–68 Saint Mary’s.

In conversation a couple years back with sportswriter Jeff Faraudo for the Mercury News, Mills said that in all the times he has met Curry over the years, the topic of SMC’s victory over Davidson had never come up. “I’m not one to talk a lot of trash,” Mills told Faraudo. “Maybe I should start now.”