NCAA | Team News | Saint Mary's Gaels

Saint Mary's Gaels (22-12)

Thu. 2/28	Sat. 3/2	Mon. 3/11	Tue. 3/12	Thu. 3/21
vs. Por W 65-48 Box	vs. Gonz L 55-69 Box	vs. SD W 69-62 Box	@ Gonz W 60-47 Box	@ Vill L 57-61 Box

Defending NCAA champ Villanova holds off Saint Mary's

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) Villanova got off to a slow start in defense of its NCAA championship against a determined, defensive-minded Saint Mary's team that came in confident after a season-defining win.

But the Wildcats, a No. 6 seed in this NCAA Tournament after an up-and-down season, have one thing no team in the field of 64 has: a pair of leaders who have won two national titles.

Phil Booth scored 20 points, fellow senior Eric Paschell added 14 and Villanova held off 11th-seeded Saint Mary's 61-57 on Thursday night.

Leaders
Points:	J. Ford	21.1
Rebounds:	M. Fitts	7.6
Assists:	T. Kuhse	2.9
FG%:	J. Ford	48.9%
FT%:	J. Ford	80.0%
3P%:	J. Ford	41.2%
Steals:	J. Ford	1.3
Blocks:	J. Hunter	1.4

AP Rankings
Rank	School	Rec
1	Duke	32-6
2	Virginia	35-3
3	North Carolina	29-7
4	Gonzaga	33-4
5	Michigan State	32-7
6	Tennessee	31-6
7	Kentucky	30-7
8	Michigan	30-7
9	Texas Tech	31-7
10	Florida State	29-8
View Complete Poll

Coaches Rankings
Rank	School	Rec
1	Virginia	35-3
2	Texas Tech	31-7
3	Michigan State	32-7
4	Duke	32-6
5	Auburn	30-10
6	Gonzaga	33-4
7	Kentucky	30-7
8	Purdue	26-10
9	North Carolina	29-7
10	Tennessee	31-6
View Complete Poll

West Coast Standings
	Conference	Overall
	W-L	W-L
4 Gonzaga	16-0	33-4
Saint Mary's	11-5	22-12
BYU	11-5	19-13
San Francisco	9-7	21-10
Loyola Marymount	8-8	22-12
Santa Clara	8-8	16-15
San Diego	7-9	21-15
Pepperdine	6-10	16-18
Pacific	4-12	14-18
Portland	0-16	7-25
View Full Standings

Offense (Rank)
Points:	72.4 (177)
Rebounds:	9.8 (193)
Assists:	10.0 (348)
FG%:	47.2% (42)
FT%:	74.2% (63)
3P%:	37.8% (33)

Defense (Rank)
Points:	64.3 (28)
Rebounds:	24.9 (219)
Assists:	10.2 (21)
FG%:	43.8% (189)
FT%:	73.6% (331)
3P%:	32.1% (70)