The Broncos (15-6, 3-3) return to WCC play riding a three-game winning streak and will look to win three straight WCC regular season road games for the first time in six seasons when they travel to San Diego for a matinee with the Toreros (11-10, 4-2) on Sat., Jan. 26. USD lost 81-48 at Saint Mary's on Thursday night.
Tip-off for the WCC Game of the Week is set for 1 p.m. and the game will be televised on Time Warner Cable and Comcast SportsNet. Ari Wolfe and Brad Holland will call the regionally televised game. The game can also be heard live on KLIV 1590 AM with the broadcast beginning at 1 p.m. Anthony Passarelli is in his sixth season as the Broncos' play-by-play announcer.
Santa Clara allowed a season-low point total in its 66-36 win over CSU Bakersfield on Jan. 23, winning its third straight game following a three-game losing streak. SCU built a 17-3 lead just over eight minutes in and was up 31-13 at the break. The 13 first-half points were the fewest first half points scored by a SCU opponent since Humboldt St. scored 13 on Dec. 11, 1999. The fewest points an opponent has scored in the first half during the Keating era is 14. Sac State scored 14 in the first half, losing 51-32 on Dec. 6, 2008. A week later Notre Dame de Namur scored 14 in the first half, losing the game 67-47 on Dec. 13, 2008. The Broncos allowed the Roadrunners to convert just three first half field goals and held them to 17.6% shooting (3-of-17) in the half. Marc Trasolini led SCU with 14 points and 10 rebounds for his 5th double-double of the season and 11th career. Raymond Cowels III added 11 points and 11 of the 12 players who saw action scored at least two points. The 36 points allowed was the fewest by SCU since Dec. 6, 2008 in a 51-32 win over Sacramento State. The Broncos also won a game by 30 or more points for the fourth time this season.
Coming off conference road wins at USF (Jan. 17) and at Pepperdine (Jan. 19) prior to their victory over CSU Bakersfield, the Broncos will be looking for their first 3-game WCC regular season road win streak since they won their first five league games of the 2007 season. SCU went 10-4 and finished second in the WCC standings that season.
The Broncos are the only WCC team to boast four double-digit scorers this season, and three of the four have scored over 1,000 career points. Kevin Foster (19.6 ppg, 2,103 career points), Marc Trasolini (15.1 ppg, 1,429) and Evan Roquemore (12.9 ppg, 1,131) are the only active trio in the country on the same team with 1,000 or more career points. Foster is No. 2 in active career points scored behind Lehigh's C.J. McCollum (2,361) who is out for the season with a broken foot. Raymond Cowels III is the fourth Bronco to average in double figures this season at 10.1 and he is 53 points away from 1,000 point, scoring 947 in his career.
At San Diego
The Broncos and Toreros will be playing for the 73rd time with SCU holding a 39-33 lead all-time. USD swept the series last season winning 75-62 at Santa Clara on Jan. 12, 2012 and 70-65 at home on Feb. 4, 2012. SCU won both games during the 2011 campaign. This will be the 34th meeting in San Diego with the Toreros leading 17-16. Since the 2000 season eight of the 13 games played in San Diego have been decided by six or fewer points with USD winning five times. Sophomore Johnny Dee leads the Toreros in scoring this season at 14.7 ppg and compiled his third-highest career point total when he scored 26 at Santa Clara on Jan 12, 2012. He totaled 45 points in both games against SCU last season making 9-of-17 (52.9%) 3-point shots.
SCU's Raymond Cowels III has played in seven games against USD during his career and has not missed a free throw, going 6-for-6. Marc Trasolini has played eight games against USD and is averaging just 7.5 points a game. He went scoreless against the Toreros on Jan. 8, 2010, the only game during his career he failed to score a point when playing more than 20 minutes. Evan Roquemore attempted a career-high 19 field goals at USD (2/4/12). Denzel Johnson scored 20 points at USD (2/4/12), his second-highest career point total. Niyi Harrison attempted a career-high 12 free throws vs. USD (1/12/12). Santa Clara and San Diego combined to commit 48 personal fouls during their last meeting (2/4/12). Santa Clara and San Diego have played one other time on Jan. 26 with USD posting a 53-51 home win in 2008.
Fun and Done
Kevin Foster has made more three-point baskets (380) than free throws (373) during his career ... This year: The Broncos have won seven games by 20 or more points .... SCU has allowed fewer than 20 first half points four times and has outscored opponents 778 to 616 in the first half.
This Week's WCC Player of the Week Plays Here!
For the second time this season, Kevin Foster is the West Coast Conference Player of the Week after he averaged 27.5 ppg, including 57.1 percent from beyond the arc (12 of 21). Foster averaged 27.5 points per game in a pair of Broncos road wins last week. The Broncos won both road games at USF, winning 85-54, and Pepperdine last week to move to 14-6 and 3-3 in the WCC. In two WCC road games last week, Foster averaged 27.5 ppg in 33 mpg, hitting six threes in both victories. Foster shot 62.5 percent for the week (20 of 32), hitting 57.1 percent of his threes (12 of 21). He also scored his first career double-double at USF with 27 points and 10 rebounds. On the week he averaged 6 rpg, 3.0, apg and 2.5 spg.
1,000 and Counting
There have been 30 players in the history of SCU basketball to score 1,000 career points and three of them are on the current roster. SCU was the first Division I school with three 1,000 point scorers on its roster. Kevin Foster (2,103) became SCU's all-time scoring leader, surpassing 1980 West Coast Conference Player of the Year and former NBA star Kurt Rambis, in a win at St. Louis on Nov. 14 and became the seventh player in WCC history to score 2,000 career points when he netted 29 against Gonzaga on Jan. 5. Not even ranked in the top 25 career scorers in WCC history when the season began, Foster currently sits at No. 4 and needs just 14 points to pass USF great Bill Cartwright (2,116) for the No. 3 spot.
Marc Trasolini became the 13th Bronco to score 1,400 career points when he tallied 18 in a win at Pepperdine on Jan. 19 and now has 1,429. He is nine points away from overtaking Bud Ogden (1966-69, 1,437) for the 12th spot and trails Mike Stewart (1979-73, 1,446) by just 18 points for No. 11 all-time.
Evan Roquemore joined the 1,000-point club this season, reaching the plateau in a win at Pacific on Dec. 15. He scored his 1,100th career point at LMU on Jan. 10, becoming just the 25th player in school history to score that many. He currently has 1,131 career points and sits at No. 24 all-time. He needs 52 to move past Nathan Fast (1996-00, 1,182) and into the 23rd spot.
Shooting Straight
After enduring one of their poorest shooting outings of the season in a loss to BYU on Jan. 12, the Broncos have rebounded nicely shooting over 50% from the field combined in three games since. SCU hit 47.9% of its shots (23-of-48) in a 66-36 win over CS Bakersfield on Jan. 23, but has still combined to shot over 50% during its 3-game win streak. In their three games since shooting just 38.5% in a loss to the Cougars, the Broncos have made 85-of-167 field goals (50.9%) and are 35-of-72 from 3-point range (48.6%) in wins at USF (Jan. 17), at Pepperdine (Jan. 19) and over CS Bakersfield. SCU converted 50.8% (32-of-63) of its shots, including a season-high tying 14 threes in 30 tries (46.7%) against the Dons, and followed that by shooting a season-best 53.6% (30-of-56) at Pepperdine. SCU also made 12 of its 23 three-point attempts against the Waves. The Broncos shot 50% or better from the field in each of their first three games of the season and in four of the first five, but had gone 13 straight contests without reaching the 50% mark until their win at USF.
Inching Up
Raymond Cowels III has played in all but one game during his four-year career (family funeral) and has started 51 straight times since the beginning of the 2011-12 season. RC3 is fourth on the team in scoring with 10.1 ppg and needs 53 points to become the fourth member of the current roster to score 1,000 career points. Cowels III scored 11 points against CS Bakersfield on Jan. 23, equaling his career-long single-season streak of double-digit scoring games with five. It was also the 14th time this season and 49th of his career scoring 10 or more points in a game. During the five game run, RCIII has scored 72 points (14.4 ppg) with 36 rebounds (7.2 rpg) and has raised his per game scoring average from 8.8 ppg to 10.1 ppg. RCIII's other run of five straight double-digit scoring games covered the last five games of last season. He extended that streak to six with a 12-point effort against Simpson in the 2012-13 season opener (Nov. 10).
All Time Leader
Kevin Foster added another record to his list of achievements during SCU's loss to BYU on Jan. 12. He is now the WCC's career leader in 3-point baskets made after breaking a tie with LMU's Jeff Fryer. Foster hit his 364th career 3 knocking down a shot from the corner with 10:44 left in the first half for the record. Foster scored eight points in the win over CS Bakersfield on Jan. 23, his second-lowest total of the year, snapping a string of three straight 20+ point games. He did, however, make two 3-pointers in the game and has made at least one 3-point basket in 109 of his 116 career games played with five or more 3s in a game 28 times. Foster moved into sole possession of 16th place on the NCAA Division I all-time threes made list with 380 with his two against CS Bakersfield. He needs eight to tie Baylor's LaceDarius Dunn and crack the top 15 and is 20 away from becoming the 11th player in Division I to make 400 career threes.
Foster's 128 made threes in WCC games is No. 6 all-time in league history. He needs three to jump into the top five and he needs five to set the school record, now held by two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash, who made 132 in his 56 league games. Nash is currently No. 4 all-time in WCC only games.
Foster has also launched a bunch of 3s during his career. With 1,045 attempted he is the SCU and WCC leader and he ranks No. 7 in NCAA Division I history. He needs 147 attempts to break the all-time NCAA record set by Keydren Clark in 2006 (1,192, Saint Peter's). Foster has attempted 10 or more 3s in a game 10 times this season and 54 times in his 116 game career. (Since 1998-99 – sports-reference.com)
Rk Player 3PA From To Last School
1. Keydren Clark 1192 2003 2006 Saint Peter's
2. David Holston 1147 2006 2009 Chicago State
3. Joe Zeglinski 1140 2007 2011 Hartford
4. Gerry McNamara 1131 2003 2006 Syracuse
5. J.J. Redick 1126 2003 2006 Duke
6. Michael Watson 1098 2001 2004 Missouri-Kansas City
7. Kevin Foster 1045 2009 2013 Santa Clara
8. Chris Lofton 1027 2005 2008 Tennessee
9. Jack Leasure 1009 2005 2008 Coastal Carolina
10. Stephen Curry 1004 2007 2009 Davidson
Dishes
A 2013 Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year Award nominee, Evan Roquemore is Santa Clara's floor leader in minutes played (671) and is averaging 32 mpg. Roquemore dished out 5 assists against CS Bakersfield and has at least 5 assists in all but two games this season to rank No. 2 in the WCC with 6.4 per game. He had just one turnover in the game and his 3.1 assist/turnover ratio tops the WCC.
During SCU's Jan. 10 game at LMU, Roquemore scored his 1,100th career point and collected his 400th career assist joining Brian Jones, Steve Nash and Kyle Bailey as the only Broncos to amass that many points and assists over a career. He produced his first double-double game of the season, and third career, with 16 points and a career-high 10 rebounds in the Cable Car Classic title game win over Wagner on Dec. 22.
Roquemore has 135 assists for the season and is on pace to break John Woolery's 1993-94 single season school record of 190. With 432 career assists, Roquemore has an outside chance of becoming the fourth Bronco with 500 by the time his junior season ends. He currently sits at No. 6 on the school's all-time assist list and needs 21 to overtake Kyle Bailey (2001-05) for the fifth spot.
Bay Area Scorers
Kevin Foster continues his chase of Bill Cartwright for the No. 3 spot in WCC and Bay Area career scoring. Foster had eight points against CSU Bakersfield on Jan. 23 and surpassed the 2,100 mark in career points with 2,103. It was just the third time this season he failed to reach double figures, but he did inch closer to the former USF standout. Foster needs just 14 points to overtake Cartwright, who scored 2,116 points, on both lists.
Foster has reached double figures 18 times in 21 games this season, has topped the 20-point mark 12 times, and scored at least 30 in a game twice to lead the Broncos in scoring. Foster became the 7th player in West Coast Conference history to score 2,000 career points, reaching that mark on a runner in the lane early in the second half of SCU's loss to Gonzaga on Jan. 5. He scored his 1,900th career point on a 3-point basket at Pacific on Dec. 15 and also scored career point No. 1,800 on a three-pointer against Utah State on Nov. 28, converting his second 4-point play of the season after being fouled.
Foster became SCU's career points leader, overtaking 1980 WCC Player of the Year Kurt Rambis, in a win at St. Louis on Nov. 14. It's unlikely he will catch LMU's Hank Gathers (1987-90) for the WCC's top spot (2,490), but Foster is moving closer to the No. 2 overall spot, currently held by LMU's Terrell Lowery (2,201). He needs 98 points to move to No. 2 all-time.
Against No. 10 Gonzaga on Jan. 5, he became the fourth player in Bay Area Division I history (includes Cal, Stanford, Santa Clara, Saint Mary's, USF and San Jose State), and the first in 21 years, to score 2,000 career points, joining Stanford's Todd Lichti (2,336) and Adam Keefe (2,319) and USF's Bill Cartwright (2,116).
Rank/Name School Years Total points
1.Todd Lichti Stanford 1986-89 2,336
2.Adam Keefe Stanford 1989-92 2,319
3.Bill Cartwright USF 1976-79 2,116
4.Kevin Foster Santa Clara 2008-13 2,103
In SCU's 88-75 win over Air Force on March 18, 2011, Foster broke the school record with nine threes, tying a career-high with 36 points. He also had a career-high 36 in Santa Clara's 85-71 win over Gonzaga on Jan. 20, 2011. Foster shattered the WCC single season threes made record with 140 in 2010-11, leading the country, and grabbed the nation's top spot in threes made per game as well with 3.68. His 768 points that year were No. 6 on the WCC's single season points scored list as he finished as the leading scorer in a single season in the Bay Area as well. He broke the school's single season mark for points scored, minutes played, threes made and threes attempted. He was named first-team All-WCC and was named the WCC Player of the Month in February and March. He was named the WCC Player of the Year by CollegeInsider.com.
Foster was nicknamed 'Microwave' by his father during his youth after the Detroit Piston's Vinnie Johnson. Johnson earned the nickname 'the Microwave' from Celtics guard Danny Ainge for his ability to score many points in a short period of time, heating up the offense. Foster has scored 15+ points in 76 of 115 career games and he has scored 19+ in 56 career games. Foster's 19+ games follow:
Opponent/Date Pts. (3s)
1. vs. Arizona/Nov. 25, 2008 21 (5)
2. vs. Belmont/Dec. 29, 2008 24 (3)
3. at Harvard/Jan. 2, 2009 20 (4)
4. at Saint Mary's/Jan. 9, 2009 31 (5)
5. at Portland/Jan. 17, 2009 20 (3)
6. vs. LMU/Jan. 29, 2009 20 (3)
7. vs. Saint Mary's/Feb. 7, 2009 26 (4)
8. at LMU/Feb. 14, 2009 26 (5)
9. at USF/Feb. 21, 2009 20 (2)
10. vs. Gonzaga/Feb. 26, 2009 20 (3)
11. vs. San Diego/March 7, 2009 21 (4)
12. at CSUB/Nov. 13, 2009 21 (3)
13. vs. Menlo/Nov. 19, 2009 19 (4)
14. at Pacific/Nov. 22, 2009 22 (5)
15. vs. Fresno State/Nov. 28, 2009 25 (5)
16. vs. CSU Bakersfield/Nov. 12, 2010 19 (4)
17. at So. California/Nov. 15, 2010 26 (4)
18. vs. Bethune-Cookman/Nov. 21, 2010 21 (6)
19. vs. N. Colorado/Nov. 23, 2010 19 (4)
20. vs. UC Santa Barbara/Dec. 4, 2010 25 (6)
21. at San Jose State/Dec. 10, 2010 26 (3)
22. vs. Washington St./Dec. 19, 2010 29 (4)
23. at CSU Northridge/Dec. 22, 2010 22 (2)
24. vs. Bethany/Jan. 3, 2011 19 (6)
25. vs. USF/Jan. 8, 2011 26 (8)
26. vs. Gonzaga/Jan. 20, 2011 36 (6)
27. vs. Portland/Jan. 22, 2011 19 (3)
28. vs. LMU/Jan. 29, 2011 28 (3)
29. vs. St. Mary's/Feb. 10, 2011 25 (4)
30. vs. San Diego/Feb. 12, 2011 21 (3)
31. at Gonzaga/Feb. 17, 2011 27 (8)
32. at Portland/Feb. 19, 2011 29 (7)
33. vs. Air Force/March 18, 2011 36 (9)
34. at USF/March 22, 2011 27 (3)
35. at SMU (March 25, 2011 35 (5)
36. vs. New Mexico (Nov. 24, 2011) 26 (5)
37. vs. Oklahoma (Nov. 25, 2011) 19 (3)
38. vs. Cal State Northridge (Dec. 3, 2011) 20 (4)
39. vs. Pacific (Dec. 17, 2011) 26 (6)
40. at Houston Baptist (Dec. 21, 2011) 19 (3)
41. vs. Eastern Michigan (Dec. 29, 2011) 25 (6)
42. vs. Wagner (Dec. 30, 2011) 20 (4)
43. at BYU (Jan. 14, 2012) 22 (4)
44. vs. Saint Mary's (Jan. 21, 2012) 22 (5)
45. vs. Simpson (Nov. 10, 2012) 27 (7)
46. at Saint Louis (Nov. 14, 2012) 30 (2)
47. vs. Utah Valley (Nov. 21, 2012) 21 (1)
48. vs. Utah State (Nov. 28, 2012) 27 (5)
49. vs. UC Santa Barbara (Dec. 1, 2012) 28 (4)
50. at Pacific (Dec. 15, 2012) 31 (4)
51. at Duke (Dec. 29, 2012) 29 (5)
52. vs. USF (Jan. 2, 2013) 21 (5)
53. vs. Gonzaga (Jan. 5, 2013) 29 (2)
54. vs. BYU (Jan. 12, 2013) 22 (3)
55. at USF (Jan. 17, 2013) 27 (6)
56. at Pepperdine (Jan. 19, 2013) 29 (6)
First On
Seniors Marc Trasolini (92), Raymond Cowels III (71) and Kevin Foster (108) have started all 20 games for the Broncos this season and have combined for 271 starts in their Santa Clara careers. Evan Roquemore has started 20 of 21 games this season and has 75 career starts under his belt. The remaining nine players on the roster have a total of 115 career starts with Niyi Harrison leading the group with 44. Foster became the sixth Bronco to start 100 career games when SCU defeated Wagner in the title of the Cable Car Classic on Dec. 22 and his 108 starts are the third-most in school history. With eight more starts he will tie Brian Jones (1996-01) for the school record.