 | | | Matthew Dellavedova Photo Tod Fierner
| | | | | | Saint Mary's men's basketball program has won its share of thrillers this season but could not repeat the magic in the second round of the NCAA tournament. In a match-up against No. 6 Memphis on March 21, the No. 11 Gaels fell 54-52, ending their season 28-7.
Saint Mary's trailed by five with about three seconds remaining when sophomore forward Eividas Petrulis hit a three-pointer. The Gaels forced a Memphis turnover with 1.9 seconds to play. On the in-bound, senior guard Matthew Dellavedova put up a potential game-winning three, but it was long.
Dellavedova hit a game-tying three against USD and a game-winner against BYU this season.
After the game, sophomore forward Brad Waldow, who had a game-high 17 points, spoke of Dellavedova's last game. "He's just a great person like all around," he said. "He taught me how to be like a winner on and off the court and a great role model, great person."
Dellavedova has the school record for most points, three-pointers, assists, and highest free-throw percentage.
Saint Mary's qualified for the NCAA tournament by winning the play-in game. The Gaels were pitted against Middle Tennessee State on March 19. Led by Dellavedova, the Gaels cruised to a comfortable 67-54 win over MTSU. Dellavedova had 22 points. Junior guard Stephen Holt contributed 18 and junior forward Beau Levesque added 13 points for SMC.
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA