Santa Clara Hosts Senior Day Saturday vs. Saint Mary's

Santa Clara Hosts Senior Day Saturday vs. Saint Mary's

Santa Clara Game Notes

In its final home game of the 2014-15 season, Santa Clara will close out the regular season vs. Saint Mary's on Senior Night Sat., Feb. 28.  The 5 pm game with the Gaels will be televised live on Comcast Bay Area with Roxy Bernstein and Stan Simmons making the call.  It will also be broadcast live on KLIV 1590 AM and the Bronco website, SantaClaraBroncos.com, as part of the Bronco Radio Network.  Anthony Passarelli is in his eighth season as the Broncos' play-by-play announcer. 

Saturday is also Senior Night.  With a 5:06 pm tip - the ceremony will happen early so be here (4:50 pm)!  The five seniors who will be recognized include: Dominic Romeo, Andrew Papenfus, Yannick Atanga, Denzel Johnson and Brandon Clark.  SCU is expecting to start Romeo, Papenfus, Johnson, Clark and Jared Brownridge

Lately

SCU is 12-17 and 6-11 in the WCC.  Pacific defeated Santa Clara 64-57 on Thursday night.  Jared Brownridge led the Broncos with 18 points, including his 1000th career point in the first half (9:01, three-pointer).  Denzel Johnson scored 12 and Brandon Clark added 10.

Saint Mary's is 21-7, including 13-4 in WCC play.  SMC is led by three players who average double figures: Brad Waldow (19.6), Kerry Carter (12.4) and Aaron Bright (11.0).  Saint Mary's handled USF easily in the city on Thursday night, coming away with an 84-53 victory.  Garrett Jackson scored 28 for the Gaels and Waldow and Carter both added 18 each.

The two long-time rivals and original WCC members continue their series that began in 1910. They will be playing for the 218th time. Santa Clara has played Saint Mary's more than any other team in the school's 108-year basketball history and leads the series 132-85.   

33rd

With a three-pointer from the elbow at 9:01 in the first half vs. Pacific, Jared Brownridge is the 33rd Bronco to score 1,000 career points.  He has 1,011 career points.  He scored 567 his freshman year and 444 this year.  Brownridge is the first true sophomore in Santa Clara history and just the third player in WCC history to do so his first two years (no redshirt season).  The first was USF's Winford Boynes.  He scored 1,074 his first two seasons. He collected a USF freshman record 542 points in 1975-76 and added 532 points in 1976-77.  The second was the late Quintin Dailey, also of USF.  Dailey scored 393 points his rookie year (1979-80) and 693 his sophomore year when he was named the WCC Player of the Year (1980-81).  

Kevin Foster scored his 1,000th career point for the Broncos as a redshirt-sophomore on Jan. 22, 2011 vs. Portland (he played six games in 2009-10 before he broke his foot and was redshirted).  Foster closed out his Bronco career with 2,423 career points, second only in the WCC to Hank Gather's 2,490 career points.

Brownridge is the eighth Bronco to score his 1,000th career point under Kerry Keating.  The last to do so: Brandon Clark joined the 1,000+ list last season when he scored 18 points at Pepperdine on March 1, 2014.

Pugh, Starters

Jarvis Pugh has started the past three games in place of Matt Hubbard, who has started 24 games this season.  Pugh averaged 29.0 mpg during the two-game stretch in Southern California last weekend, collecting 8.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg and 3.5 apg. He was just a rebound away from his first career double-double when he scored a career-high 10 points and nine boards at LMU.  Pugh added five boards and four points vs. Pacific on Thursday.  Pugh has played in all 29 games this season, starting 13, and averages 18.4 mpg, 2.9 ppg and 3.3 rpg.

The Pacific starting line-up included (career starts): Brandon Clark (66), Jared Brownridge (62) Denzel Johnson (40), Nate Kratch (22) and Pugh (13). It was the third straight game SCU has used the line-up. Clark has jumped 16 spots on the career points scored list this season and sits at No. 13 with 1,486 career points.  He needs 86 points to pass No. 12 Kyle Bailey (1,571, 2001-05).  Clark is tied for top honors in the WCC with 15 free throws made vs. Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 14.  His 29 points vs. LMU on Jan. 22 are the third-highest total in WCC play this season.

Johnson's 31 threes this season are seven more than the previous three seasons combined (24).  Kratch has started 17 straight games for the Broncos and leads the team with 4.6 rpg in 20.9 mpg.  With 18 points vs. Pacific, Brownridge scored double figures in his 14th straight game and 51st career game.  

Clark and Brownridge Lead the Offense

Brandon Clark and Jared Brownridge have both scored 444 points this season.  Clark is averaging 15.3 ppg after scoring 16.9 ppg in 2013-14.  Brownridge is averaging 15.3 ppg after leading the team with 17.2 ppg last year.  Brownridge has scored in double figures 25 times year and Clark follows closely at 24 times.  Clark and Brownridge have led the team in scoring 14 times each this year, Matt Hubbard twice and Nate Kratch once.  Denzel Johnson and Jalen Richard both had a team-high 13 points at Portland to finish out the game scoring leaders.  

Clark is No. 5 on the career games played list with 130.  His next obstacle: Kevin Foster sits at No. 4 with 133 games played.  Clark has scored 20+ points in 10 games this year, including 21 at USF on Feb. 12.  Starting 66 career games, Clark has scored double figures 70 times in his career, including 23 games with 20 or more points the past two years.  Prior his junior year, Clark hadn't scored 20+ points in a college or high school game since he scored 29 in an AAU game in eighth grade.  He has also scored 30 or more three times during his career, including a season-high 31 points vs. CSU-Fullerton on Nov. 14. 

Brandon 

With 1,486 career points and 397 careers assists, Brandon Clark is the sixth player in school history to score 1,450+ points and dish out 390+ assists (joining Kevin Foster, Brian Jones, Steve Nash, Evan Roquemore and Kyle Bailey).  With 14 more points he will be the 13th player to score 1,500 career points.  He was the 15th Bronco to score 1,400 career points (Jan. 29) and the 20th Bronco to score 1,300 points (Jan. 13).  Clark joined the 1,000+ list last season when he scored 18 points at Pepperdine on March 1, 2014.  

Twice named the WCC Player of the Week this season (Nov. 17, Jan. 24), Clark is an 83.9 percent career free throw shooter.  He is No. 3 on the career list; and the record is held by Steve Nash (86.1 percent, 1991-96) with Russ Vrankovich sitting at No. 2 (85.8 percent, 1961-64).  Clark is No. 10 with 159 threes made; No. 9 in threes attempted with 470; and No. 10 with 397 assists. 

Clark had his streak of 25 straight games in double figures ruined on Nov. 19 at Utah State when he scored nine. The streak dated back to Dec. 13, 2013.  It was the longest streak for a Bronco since Travis Niesen scored double figures in 22 straight games (Feb. 5, 2005-Jan. 21, 2006).   

Jared 

Jared Brownridge scored double figures in the 14th straight game when he collected 18 vs. Pacific on Thursday.  Brownridge has scored 20+ points 20 times in his career, including three straight games this season (vs. Rider, at SJSU and vs. Washington State). The 2014 WCC Newcomer of the Year, he has started every game he has played in the past two years (62 straight).  He has scored double figures 51 times and has yet to be held scoreless.  He scored 30+ three times last season but has yet to do it this season.

Brownridge has made 5+ threes 10 times in his career, including seven threes twice last year (vs. La Sierra, 12/14/13 and at Pepperdine, 3/1/14).  He led the team with 95 triples a year ago and has hit 79 this season, giving him 174 in his career - good enough for No. 8 on the Bronco career list.  Hitting a three in 57 of his 62 career games, Brownridge passed No. 8 Brian Jones (165, 1996-01) at LMU.  He has hit 3+ threes in 32 games, 4+ in 22 games, 5+ in 10 games and 6+ in 5 games.  His five career games with no threes include: 0-8 at Pepperdine 2-19-15; 0-5 vs. San Diego 1-13-15; 0-6 at BYU 2-16-14; 0-1 vs. Gonzaga 1-29-14; and 0-3 vs. Sacred Heart 12-18-13.

A preseason All-WCC pick this season, he set seven SCU freshman season records and three single game records last year.  His 567 points scored last year shattered the freshman record and placed him at No. 2 all-time in points scored for a Bay Area freshman (list includes SCU, Stanford, Cal, Saint Mary's, USF and Pacific).  He finished his freshman year with 24 points vs. Gonzaga in the WCC quarters, as the Broncos fell 77-75 on a last second layup by the Zags' David Stockton.   

A Communication major, Brownridge works as an EyeBronco reporter for the SCU Media Relations office and hosts his own YouTube series: "Long Walks With Jared". With a couple cameras filming their conversation, Brownridge walks around the picturesque Mission campus chatting with his subject. He interviewed WCC Commissioner Lynn Holzman in January.  Brownridge has also interviewed Santa Clara University President, Father Michael Engh, and two of his teammates: Dominic Romeo and Brandon Clark.  Next up?  Former Bronco head coach Carroll Williams.  The Bronco head coach from 1970-92, Williams is the second-winningest coach in WCC history with 165 victories to his credit.  

Andrew Gets To Start

Andrew Papenfus, who was named to the All-WCC Academic team on Friday, saw his first action of the year at BYU on Jan. 31 after recovering from brain surgery Oct. 6, 2014 to remove a golf-ball sized tumor.  He played the final 3:58 of the game, collecting a rebound, a steal and shooting 0-2 from the field.  None of those were personal bests for him, but the fact he was on the court less than four months after brain surgery is remarkable. It was an emotional moment for both Papenfus and his teammates and coaches, some of which had tears in their eyes.

On the evening of Feb. 2, Papenfus had a setback and after having tests run and consulting with doctors, it was determined he should take a couple weeks off from practice and play.  The tests run all came back fine and he is healthy, but has not played since the BYU game.  He is expected to start Senior Night.

Looking back, Papenfus suffered a seizure in mid-June at Santa Clara during a Bronco Basketball camp drill.  Tests revealed he had a golf ball sized tumor in the left side of his brain.  He was given the choice to wait to have the surgery and play this season or have the surgery immediately.  Because they couldn't guarantee it wouldn't up regulate (grow), he decided to have brain surgery as soon as the surgeon could get it on the schedule.  "Why take the risk," he said. 

The five-hour surgery on Oct. 6, 2014 was done by Dr. Mitch Berger and his team at UCSF in San Francisco.  He has shocked doctors with how fast he has been able to recover - he was only in the hospital for four days.  He couldn't move his right foot after surgery, but Papenfus quickly graduated from basic physical therapy.