Men's Basketball Hosts Portland Saturday at 7 pm

Men's Basketball Hosts Portland Saturday at 7 pm

Santa Clara Game Notes

Santa Clara (10-13, 3-6) hosts Portland (12-10, 4-5 WCC) on Sat., Feb. 1 at 7 pm in the Leavey Center.  The SCU-Portland game will be shown live TheW.tv and Rich Cellini and John Stege will make the call. The game will also be broadcast live on KDOW 1220 AM and SantaClaraBroncos.com as part of the Bronco Radio Network.  Anthony Passarelli is in his seventh season as the Broncos' play-by-play announcer. 

Santa Clara lost a heartbreaker on Wednesday night vs. No. 24 Gonzaga.  In front of a sold-out crowd at the Leavey Center, down 10 with five minutes left, the Broncos rallied back to take a one-point lead on a floater by Brandon Clark with 28.6 seconds left after a huge three by Evan Roquemore at 1:23. But Gonzaga's Sam Dower hit a three from the top of the key with 1.9 seconds left to dash Santa Clara's upset hopes and give the Zags the 54-52 win. 

Roquemore scored 15 points off the bench for the Broncos and Clark added 12 with five boards.  Jared Brownridge, who had back-to-back 30 point games vs. BYU and at USF, was held to just six points.  It was the first game this season Clark and Brownridge haven't scored a three between them as they were a combined 0-7 from beyond the arc.

Portland cut an 18-point first half deficit to five, but could not complete the comeback in an 84-71 loss at USF on Wednesday.  USF swept the season series vs. the Pilots after they opened league play in Portland on Dec. 28 with an 87-81 overtime victory. 

Saturday's Opponent

Santa Clara leads the all-time series with Portland 58-30.  SCU has won the last three after losing four straight. The Broncos are looking for their 18th regular season sweep over the Pilots after winning handily 76-68 at Portland on Dec. 30.  Santa Clara's three guards, Evan Roquemore, Brandon Clark and Jared Brownridge, scored 20 points each, including each hitting 5 of 6 from the free throw line in the win over the Pilots.  While a number of Bronco teams have featured 20+ points from two Bronco players in a single game, no trio has scored 20+ points in a single game dating back to 1991-92.  No guard trio is believed to have scored 20+ points each in a single game in school history.

Last season the Broncos swept the season series for the first time since 2007 and the 17th time overall. Santa Clara owns a 33-8 record in Santa Clara vs. the Pilots.  Looking back, the Broncos were 9-7 last season in league play, finishing fourth.  With the five Bronco seniors graduating in June of 2013, they took with them a huge chuck: 13,455 minutes played, 6,188 points scored, 2,149 rebounds, 705 assists and 492 steals.  

Against Portland, Evan Roquemore matched career-highs with 11 FTM and 12 FTA vs. UOP (2/29/12).  Yannick Atanga collected 13 rebounds vs. UOP (1/31/13) and then established a new career-high with 16 boards at UOP (2/23/13).

Leaders

Three Broncos average double figures: Brandon Clark, Jared Brownridge and Evan Roquemore.  

Clark leads the team with 17.2 ppg and 3.6 apg.  If he finishes the season at the top, he would be the first Bronco since Brandon Rohe in 2002-03 to do this (10.6 ppg, 2.4 apg).  He is averaging 18.9 ppg in league play, which is No. 2 behind Brownridge.  Clark highlights:

+ Clark scored zero points in the season opener vs. Bethesda, but has since scored double figures in 19 of the last 22 games.

+ Clark has scored almost 1/4 of his points at the free throw line this year, hitting 84.7 percent (94 of 111). 

+ Clark will most likely be the next Bronco to reach 1,000 career points as he has 880.  He would be the 31st Bronco with 1,000 plus points in his career and the seventh head coach Kerry Keating.

+ Clark has scored 20+ 12 times this year, including a career-high 32 points vs. N.D. State on Nov. 29. Clark has scored 20+ in seven of 10 WCC games this season.  During a four-game span (Nov. 12-29), he scored 21+ points in each game; and he was the fourth Bronco player since 2007-08 to accomplish this feat.  

+ Clark scored a WCC career-high with 26 points vs. LMU on Jan. 4 (career high is 32 vs. North Dakota State on Nov. 29).  Half of Clark's points vs. the Lions came at the free throw line, as the East Chicago, Ind. native went 13 of 14 from the free throw line.  Santa Clara's top three most-recent performances at the free throw line have all come vs. LMU. 

+ Scoring 30 points vs. Sacred Heart on Dec. 18, he was the 13th Bronco in school history to have multiple 30+ point games in a single season.  

Brownridge is second with 16.7 ppg as the top scoring freshman in the WCC.  He is averaging 19.4 ppg in WCC play which is No. 2 in the league and tops among the rookies.  Brownridge leads the Broncos in threes made (66) and attempted (147).  Brownridge highlights:

+ Brownridge is shooting a team-high 44.9 percent beyond the arc. That would break the Bronco freshman record set by Steve Nash in 1993 if the season ended today (40.8 percent).

+ He has scored 20+ 10 times already this season, including five times in WCC play; and just barely missed 20 vs. USD on Jan. 16 (19 points). 

+ He scored a career-high 30 points vs. BYU on Jan. 18, adding four threes and hitting 8 of 8 free throws.  He followed that performance up with 30 points at USF on Jan. 25, adding five threes and scoring 9 of 10 from the free throw line.  He is just the third Bronco in school history to score 30+ points in back-to-back WCC games, joining Dennis Awtrey (1969) and Kurt Rambis (1980).  He is the 17th Bronco in school history to have multiple 30+ point games and the 14th in school history to do it more than once in a single season.

Roquemore is third with 11.9 ppg and is second on the team with 3.4 apg.  Roquemore highlights:

+ Already the school record holder for a single season with assists (2012-13), he is also the career school record for assists with 554.  Without an assist vs. Gonzaga on Jan. 29, it is just the second time during his career that he hasn't picked up at least one assist in a game. The first was at Cal Poly on Dec. 7, 2013. 

+ He is just the third player in school history to collect 1,500+ points and 500+ assists.  The other two: Brian Jones (1,722 points, 517 assists, 1996-01) and Steve Nash (1,689 points, 510 assists, 1992-96).  

+ His 20 points and five threes were a season-high at Portland on Dec. 30.  

Jerry Brown, a graduate transfer from Fresno State, leads the team with 5.7 rpg and is fourth with 7.6 ppg.    Brown highlights:

+ He scored Santa Clara's lone double-double this year vs. SJSU (16 pts., 10 reb., Nov. 12, 2013).  

+ Brown is working on a Master's in Communication as he redshirted his sophomore year at Fresno State.  

+ He came off the bench the first four games, then started 12 straight.  He has come off the bench six of the last seven games, with his lone start vs. BYU on Jan. 18.

+ He has scored 705 career points with 485 rebounds, including 166 points and 127 rebounds with the Broncos. 

Three, Turnovers

Jared Brownridge is No. 13 nationally with 66 threes made this season. Brownridge (66) and Clark (41) have combined for the most three-pointers made by any teammates in the West Coast Conference with 107. Kevin Pangos (60) and Drew Barham (43) from Gonzaga are second with 103.

Nationally, Brownridge is the top freshman in the country with a 44.9 percentage beyond the arc, good enough for No. 16.  Brownridge leads the WCC in overall and WCC games with 2.9 threes per game.  Clark is third overall in the league in scoring and Brownridge and Clark are 2-3 in league games in scoring.

The Broncos are tops in the overall games in turnover margin at +2.2 and are No. 2 with 7.5 threes made per game.  Nationally, Santa Clara is No. 12 with 10.0 turnovers per game.  

30 for 30

Jared Brownridge scored 30 points in back-to-back WCC games vs. BYU on Jan. 18 and at USF on Jan. 25.  Only three Bronco player have had back-to-back 30+ point games: Dennis Awtrey (March 1 and 7, 1969); Kurt Rambis (Jan. 4 and 5, 1980) and Kevin Foster (March 25 and 27, 2013).  Awtrey and Rambis both scored 30+ in back-to-back WCC games as did Brownridge and Foster's came in SCU's CBI title run at Purdue and Wright State.

Brownridge and Brandon Clark are just the second set of Bronco teammates to have multiple 30 point games in the same season.  The only other set of SCU teammates to accomplish this: Rambis and Londale Theus did in the 1979-80 season.  Theus scored 30+ twice that season (Jan. 25, 1980 and March 2, 1980) and Rambis scored 30+ three times (Jan. 4, 1980, Jan. 5, 1980 and Jan. 25, 1980). 

Got a Minute?

Santa Clara is the only team with three players in the top 10 in minutes played per game in the league.  Brownridge is No. 6 at 33.2; Brandon Clark is No. 7 at 32.8 and Evan Roquemore is No. 9 at 32.3. 

20+ Club

Prior to this year, Brandon Clark hadn't scored 20+ points in a college or high school game since he scored 29 in an AAU game in eighth grade.  Clark has scored 20+ 12 times this season, including 20+ in seven of the nine WCC games this year.  His 12 20+ games are sixth-most since 2000-01.  Tops on the list since 2000-01 - Kevin Foster scored 20+ 20 times in 2012-13.

Jared Brownridge has scored 20+ points 10 times already this year - second best for a Bronco freshman since 1990-91.  Kevin Foster scored 20+ points 11 times his freshman season   Brownridge has led the Broncos in scoring 10 times this year and has scored double-digits in 17 games.  

With two 30+ point games this season already, Brownridge and Clark are just the second set of teammates to have multiple 30 point games in the same season.  The only other set of Bronco teammates to accomplish this: Rambis and Londale Theus did in the 1979-80 season.  Theus scored 30+ twice that season (Jan. 25, 1980 and March 2, 1980) and Rambis scored 30+ three times (Jan. 4, 1980, Jan. 5, 1980 and Jan. 25, 1980).

Roquemore

Evan Roquemore enters the Portland game with 554 career assists, a Bronco school record.  That total is tied with former Zag John Stockton at No. 9 all-time on the WCC list (554, 1980-84).  Roquemore broke the Bronco career assists record vs. Radford on Dec. 16 with a dandy dish to Jared Brownridge in the first half, topping Brian Jones (517, 1996-2001).  Last year Roquemore set the single season assists record with 196, topping John Woolery (190, 1993-94). 

Roquemore has collected an assist in 123 of 125 career games.  He was credited with no assists in SCU's 64-53 loss at Cal Poly on Dec. 7 and again with zero assists vs. Gonzaga on Jan. 29. Looking back, Jones missed an assist in just three games (Dec. 21, 1996 at Pacific, Jan. 22, 1997 at USF; and March 4, 2000 vs. USF).  Jones only had one game his final three years without an assist (USF, 2000).  Steve Nash had eight games his freshman year with no assists, but the final three years of his career he had at least one assist in every game he played in during his Bronco career.

With 455 career FT made, he needs to make 16 to break the school record set by Ken Sears (470, 1951-55). The career minutes played record was set last year by Kevin Foster (4,212) and entering the Pilots game, he is No. 2 in minutes played (4,006).  He has started in 106 career games (T-6) and played in 125 games (No. 7).  

The team's lone 1,000+ career point scorer, Roquemore missed the first four games with a back injury.  Roquemore sits at No. 12 with 1,536 career points.  He needs 36 points to pass No. 11 Kyle Bailey (1,571, 2001-05) and with 51 points he will pass No. 10 Ken Sears (1,586 points, 1951-55). 

Last year's Bronco team was the first team in WCC history to feature four 1,000 point career scorers. Along with Roquemore, the team had Foster (No. 1, 2,423 points), Trasolini (No. 5, 1,699 points) and Cowels III (No. 26, 1,090 points).  

Brownridge

Jared Brownridge has hit 66 threes this year, which is 17 more than Steve Nash hit his entire rookie season (49).  The 66 threes put him at No. 2 on the Bronco freshman records list.  The freshman school record was set by Kevin Foster in 2008-09 when he crushed 85.  

He didn't collect a three vs. Gonzaga on Jan. 29 when he scored six points, snapping a streak of three straight games with 19+ points. He has scored single digits just twice in WCC play this season (7 at Pacific, 6 vs. Gonzaga).  He has a three in every game this year with the exception of Gonzaga on Jan. 29 (0-1) and Sacred Heart on Dec. 18 (0 for 3).

If the season finished today, Brownridge would break the freshman school records for points per game, three point field goal percentage and free throw percentage.  Those records belong to Kurt Rambis and Nash.  

Bronco Freshman Records Chase

Scoring Average
Jared Brownridge (2013-14) 16.7
1. Kurt Rambis (1976-77)  5.3 

Three-Point FG Pct. (Minimum 20 made)
Jared Brownridge (2013-14) .449
1. Steve Nash (1992-93)  408

Free Throw Percentage (Minimum 30 made)
Jared Brownridge (2013-14) 843
1. Steve Nash (1992-93)  825

Brownridge collected seven three pointers on a night where he shot 8 of 15 from the field with a game-high seven assists in the win vs. La Sierra on Dec. 14. The seven threes by Brownridge broke the Bronco freshman record set by Nash back in 1993 (6 vs. CS Stanislaus, 1-5-93).  Brandon Rohe (6, vs. Mississippi State Valley, 12-27-02) and Calvin Johnson (6, vs. Cal Poly, 12-10-05) later matched it.  It is the most threes hit by a Bronco since WCC record holder Foster scored nine vs. Air Force on March 18, 2011.

Brownridge has started all 23 games this season and he has scored 18+ points in 12 games thus far, including 14 games with 3+ threes made and 17 double-figure games.  Much of his scoring has been beyond the arc as Brownridge has collected 5+ threes four times. Foster accomplished this feat three times in his 33-game rookie season (5 vs. Arizona, Nov. 25, 2008; at Saint Mary's, Jan. 9, 2009; and at LMU, Feb. 14, 2009).  All told, Foster scored seven threes twice, eight threes twice and nine threes once (the school record for a single game). 

In the final non-conference game vs. South Florida on Dec. 23, Santa Clara went on a 13-3 run as Brownridge hit a three with 53.8 seconds left to give SCU a one-point lead and then iced it with a pair of free throws with 10.8 ticks left to lead the Broncos to a 66-65 victory.  He also scored eight straight Bronco points late in the second half of the Portland win on Dec. 30 to help seal the victory and scored the game-winning three with 1.2 seconds left on the clock at Saint Mary's on Jan. 9.  He added a career-high 30 points vs. BYU on Jan. 18 and hit 30 again at USF on Jan. 25.

In his first three collegiate basketball games, Brownridge was in elite company at SCU. Only three players since the 1999-2000 season have scored more points in the first three games of the season and Brownridge is the only first-year player among them. In his junior year John Bryant collected 75 points in three games at the outset of the 2007-08 season and Travis Niesen tallied 68 points during the first three games of his 2005-06 senior campaign. Foster went for 65 in the first three games last season. Foster also scored 62 points in 2009 but it took him four team games after he missed the third contest of the season.