SCU Travels to Provo For Saturday Evening Game at BYU; Returns Home To Host Saint Mary's Feb. 7

Evan Roquemore shoots a free throw at No. 1 Duke.
Evan Roquemore shoots a free throw at No. 1 Duke.

Santa Clara Game Notes

   Winners of five straight games overall and four straight in West Coast Conference play, the Broncos (17-6, 5-3) travel to Provo, Utah for a matchup with BYU (17-6, 7-2) on Saturday, Feb. 2. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m. Pacific at the Marriott Center.  The game will be shown on BYUTV with Dave McCann and Steve Cleveland making the call.  The game can also be heard live on KDOW 1220 AM with the broadcast beginning at 6 p.m. Anthony Passarelli is in his sixth season as the Broncos' play-by-play announcer. 

    Since losing 82-64 at home to BYU on Jan. 12, its worst defeat of the season, Santa Clara has won five straight games outscoring opponents by an average of 21.2 points per game. The Broncos scored the first nine points and held Portland without a field goal for the first 11:27 snapping a four-game losing skid to the Pilots with an impressive 70-46 win on Jan. 31. The win also snapped SCU's two-game WCC home losing streak. Marc Trasolini registered his sixth double-double of the season with a game-high 23 points on 11-of-17 shooting and added 13 rebounds. Brandon Clark scored 15 points off the bench while Raymond Cowels III (11) and Kevin Foster (10) also scored in double figures. Yannick Atanga, making his second start of the season, added a career-high tying 13 rebounds. SCU shot 50% from the field and limited Portland to just 25% shooting (13-of-52).

    During their 5-game winning streak the Broncos have held opponents to an average of 52.4 points a game and 34.6% field goal shooting (84-of-243) while scoring 73.6 points a game. Three of the five wins have been by more than 20 points with two coming by 30 or more points. They have four wins by at least 30 points this season and their +11.4 scoring margin is one of the best in the WCC. SCU has not trailed in a game since late in the first half at San Diego on Jan. 26 when they were behind 18-16 with 3:50 to play.

    The Broncos will look to end a long drought against BYU when the two hook up on Saturday. SCU has not beaten the Cougars since 1972, losing seven straight games, including the first meeting this season, 82-64, on Jan. 12 in Santa Clara. The Broncos are 2-10 in games played in Provo.

    One of the highest scoring teams in the NCAA in terms of points, the Broncos rank No. 4 in Division I with a total of 1,762 points scored, behind only Iona (1,808), BYU (1,777) and Indiana (1,763). They reached 70 in a game for the 19th time this season in their 70-46 win over Portland on Jan. 31. Santa Clara has not gone an entire season without at least one game with fewer than 60 points since 1980-81 when its lowest point total was 63.

    The Broncos are led by a trio of scorers in double-digits this season with 1,000 career points each. Kevin Foster (19.0 ppg, 2,128 career points), Marc Trasolini (15.8 ppg, 1,475) and Evan Roquemore (12.7 ppg, 1,152) are the first 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 closing in on the 1,000 point mark needing 42 points to become the fourth member of the 1,000 point club.

Shining D

During their current five-game winning streak the Broncos have turned up the defensive pressure on opponents limiting the four teams to 34.5% field goal shooting (84-of-243) and 25.9% from beyond the arc (20-of-77) while holding them to an average of just 52.4 points a game. SCU has held four of the teams to under 40% shooting and opponents are shooting only 36.1% for the season. SCU held USF to 32% shooting (16-of-50) on Jan. 17, CS Bakersfield to 31.7% (13-of-41) on Jan. 23, San Diego to 37.5% (18-of-48) on Jan. 26 and Portland to 25.0% (13-of-52). The Broncos are 11-0 this season when limiting their opponent to below 40% shooting.

What If

Two of Santa Clara's six defeats this season came in overtime after the Broncos held a lead late in each game. Two other losses came at the hands of teams ranked in the top-10 at the time and one other came against a team that has 16 wins. During their two OT losses, which came in consecutive games, the Broncos allowed a late 3-point basket in each and lost both in the extra session. Utah State's Preston Medlin hit a game-tying three with 2.4 seconds left in regulation to send the game into OT and the Aggies handed Santa Clara its first loss of the season, 80-78, on Nov. 28. 

The Broncos endured a similar fate against UC Santa Barbara on Dec. 1, when Kyle Boswell hit a contested three at the regulation buzzer to tie the game, 71-71. The Gauchos would prevail 83-80. SCU lost at then No. 1 Duke, 90-77, on Dec. 29 and dropped an 81-74 decision to then No. 10 Gonzaga on Jan. 5. The Broncos' worst defeat of the season came on Jan. 12 when they fell 82-64 at home to BYU. 

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.  Bucknell and Loyola Maryland have since matched the Broncos.

  Kevin Foster (2,128) 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 fourth player in WCC history to score 2,100 career points vs. CSU Bakersfield on Jan. 23. Not even ranked in the top 25 career scorers in WCC history when the season began, Foster currently sits at No. 3 after passing Bill Cartwright (2,116) with his 15-point effort at San Diego on Jan. 26 and needs 74 points to move past LMU's Terrell Lowery, who scored 2,201 from 1988-92, for the No. 2 spot. 

Marc Trasolini became the 13th Bronco to score 1,400 career points when he tallied 23 in a win vs. Portland on Jan. 31 and now has 1,475. He scored 23 points at San Diego on Jan. 26 moving ahead of Bud Ogden (1,437) and Mike Stewart (1,446) into 11th on the school's career list. Next on the chart is Kyle Bailey at No. 10 who scored 1,571 points from 2001-05.

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 1,152 career points and sits at No. 24 all-time. He needs 31 to move past Nathan Fast (1996-00, 1,182) and into the 23rd spot.

Inching Up

Raymond Cowels III has played in all but one game during his four-year career (family funeral) and has started 53 straight times since the beginning of the 2011-12 season. RC3 is fourth on the team in scoring with 9.7 ppg and needs 42 points to become the fourth member of the current roster to score 1,000 career points. Cowels III was held scoreless at San Diego after a stretch of five straight double-digit scoring games, which equaled a single-season career-long streak. His last scoreless game came at Pacific on Dec. 15, 2012 and he followed that with 12 points in a win over Cal Poly on Dec. 17. He got back in the scoring column with 11 points vs. Portland on Jan. 31, including three threes. 

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 with 382 threes 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 15 points at San Diego on Jan. 26 and then 10 points vs. Portland on Jan. 31, his 20th double-digit scoring game of the seasons. He has made at least one 3-point basket in 111 of his 118 career games played with five or more 3s in a game 28 times. Foster sits in 16th place on the NCAA Division I all-time threes made list with 382. He needs six to tie Baylor's LaceDarius Dunn and crack the top 15 and is 18 away from becoming the 11th player in Division I to make 400 career threes.

Foster's 130 made threes in WCC games is No. 6 all-time in league history. He needs one to jump into the top five and he needs two 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.

With 1,055 attempted, Foster is the SCU and WCC leader and he ranks No. 7 in NCAA Division I history. He needs 137 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 118 game career.

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 1055 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

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.  

Dishes

A 2013 Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year Award nominee, Evan Roquemore is second in minutes played (714). Roquemore dished out six assists vs. Portland and has at least five assists in all but three games this season to rank No. 2 in the WCC with 6.2 per game.

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 142 assists for the season and is on pace to break John Woolery's 1993-94 single season school record of 190. With 439 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 14 to overtake Kyle Bailey (2001-05) for the fifth spot.

Bay Area Scorers

With 15 points in a win at San Diego on Jan. 26, Kevin Foster passed former USF great Bill Cartwright for No. 3 on the WCC and Bay Area career scoring list. Foster will now be chasing Terrell Lowery for the No. 2 spot on the WCC chart, needing 74 points to overtake the former LMU standout, who scored 2,201 points from 1988-92. To pass No. 1 all-time – LMU's Hank Gathers (1987-90) for the WCC's top spot (2,490) – Foster would need to score 363 points.  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.

Foster has reached double figures 20 times in 23 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. He is just the fourth player to score 2,100 points in WCC history.  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 vs. Gonzaga on Jan. 5. He scored his 1,900th career point on a 3-point basket at Pacific on Dec. 15 and added career point No. 1,800 on a three-pointer against Utah State on Nov. 28.

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). He needs 192 points to pass No. 2 Adam Keefe of Stanford.

Rank/Name School Years Total points

1.Todd Lichti Stanford 1986-89 2,336 

2.Adam Keefe Stanford 1989-92 2,319

3.Kevin Foster Santa Clara 2008-13 2,128

4.Bill Cartwright USF 1976-79 2,116

First On

Seniors Marc Trasolini (94), Raymond Cowels III (73) and Kevin Foster (110) have started all 23 games for the Broncos this season and have combined for 277 starts in their Santa Clara careers. Evan Roquemore has started 22 of 23 games this season and has 76 career starts under his belt.  The remaining nine players on the roster have a total of 117 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 game of the Cable Car Classic on Dec. 22 and his 110 starts are the third-most in school history. With six more starts he will tie Brian Jones (1996-01) for the school record. 

Heating Up The Microwave

Kevin Foster's 768 points in 2010-11 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 that year.  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 78 of 118 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)