LAS VEGAS – Behind their most efficient shooting night of the season, Santa Clara men's basketball picked up a huge nonconference victory over Iona on Saturday night, knocking off the Gaels, 86-76, on neutral ground in the Orleans Arena.
The Broncos (5-2) were efficient in all facets of the game, tallying season-high percentages in shooting (52.0), 3-point shooting (50.0) and free throws (89.7), with seven of the eight players that saw the court finishing with at least seven points.
Once again, it was sophomore Brandin Podziemski that had the biggest scoring numbers of the night, finishing with a game-high 27 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including a 10-of-13 mark from the charity stripe and 3-for-3 mark from 3-point range. The Illinois transfer also finished just shy of his fourth double-double with a game-high nine rebounds to go with three steals and two assists.
Keshawn Justice also impressed in the victory, knocking down three triples of his own as part of a 6-for-10 shooting night for a season-best 19 points. The graduate forward has really found his stride as of late with at least 12 points and three or more 3-balls in his last three outings dating back to the loss against UCF.
Sophomore forward Jacob Holt enjoyed his best game as a Bronco, finishing with a career-best 12 points to go with three rebounds. The Ladner, British Columbia product was a perfect 4-for-4 from both the field and the free throw line, and secured 10 of his points in the first half to help the Broncos build an early lead.
Parker Braun had yet another efficient night with seven points, six rebounds, five assists, two blocks and a steal. Jaden Bediako pulled down five boards to go with his seven points, and point guards Carlos Stewart and Brenton Knapper each tallied seven points of their own.
Coming out of the locker room with a 39-35 advantage to start the second half, Santa Clara quickly built a 10-point lead at 49-39 with 16:48 remaining. The double-digit score didn't last for long as Iona (2-2) began to chip their way back into the contest and made it a one-point affair after the Gaels' Anton Brookshire converted a three-point play with 12:16 left to make it 55-54. Brookshire then gave Iona the lead outright just two minutes later on a step back triple.
Podziemski had an answer on the other end, knocking down a triple of his own, however Iona hit another 3-ball on their ensuing possession to take a 64-63 lead with 9:46 on the clock. After some more back-and-forth scoring efforts, it was Justice's turn to hit a key 3-ball as he knocked down an open look from the corner to tie the game at 70 with 4:41 to play.
The Gaels got the lead back one last time at 74-72, but it was all Broncos from there. Podziemski knocked down two freebies, Justice laid in another score and Braun knocked down both tries on a 1-and-1 to head start a 14-2 run to close out the final 1:48. The Broncos were a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line during the spree to close out the game.
Santa Clara finished the game with a 26-for-50 shooting clip from the floor, was 8-of-16 from 3-point range and hit 26-of-29 at the charity stripe. Iona was limited to 48.4 percent shooting (30-of-62) and a 9-for-21 mark from beyond the arc.
The Broncos, who checked into the contest as the nation's sixth-best rebounding team at 45.2 boards per game, pulled down 35 rebounds to the Gaels' 20.
SCU returns to action on Wednesday with another neutral site showdown, this time against Wyoming in Salt Lake City.
POSTGAME VIDEO
.@PassarelliVoice caught up with @HerbSendek to discuss the Broncos' big nonconference victory#StampedeAhead pic.twitter.com/BXJMfEEiMT
— Santa Clara Men's Basketball (@SantaClaraHoops) November 27, 2022
.@tiggo3justice (19 pts, 3-7 3PT) also joined the postgame show ��️#StampedeAhead pic.twitter.com/ONX2kjhdpL
— Santa Clara Men's Basketball (@SantaClaraHoops) November 27, 2022
GAME NOTES
- Podziemski now has four 20-plus point games on the year (out of seven games played).
- Santa Clara's 26-for-29 (89.7 percent) performance at the free throw line is their best since going 21-of-22 (95.5 percent) at the stripe on the road against LMU on Feb. 28, 2019. (minimum 20 attempts)
- 86 points is the highest scoring total of the year for the Broncos and the first 80-point game since the season-opener vs. Eastern Washington (84).
- Braun's six assists were a career high.
- Justice's 19 points give him 1,244 for his career. He's now just two points away from moving into 26th place on the school's all-time scoring list.
- The Broncos move to 3-0 all-time against Iona.
