Last Year: 27-8; West Coast Conference regular season Champions (14-2), lost in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament
Head Coach: Randy Bennett (23rd Year; 507-208 at Saint Mary’s, with nine NCAA Tournament appearances)
Projected Starting Lineup
| PG Augustus Marčiulionis – 6’4″, 195 – Junior |
| SG Aidan Mahaney – 6’3″, 180 – Sophomore |
| SF Alex Ducas – 6’7″, 220 – Senior (5th) |
| PF Mason Forbes – 6’9″, 230 – Senior |
| C Mitchell Saxen – 6’10”, 242 – Senior |
Projected Starters’ 2022-23 Stats
Augustus Marčiulionis: 5.9 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 1.6 apg, 0.5 spg – 41.4% FG
Aidan Mahaney: 13.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 2.0 apg, 0.9 spg – 40.0% 3FG
Alex Ducas: 12.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 1.0 apg, 0.9 spg – 41.4% 3FG
Mason Forbes: 8.0 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.2 apg, 0.8 bpg – 59.7% FG @ Harvard in 11 games played
Mitchell Saxen: 11.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.2 bpg – 55.7% FG
Experienced Reserves
| F Joshua Jefferson – 6’8″, 220 – Sophomore |
| W Chris Howell – 6’6″, 195 – Sophomore |
| C Harry Wessels – 7’1″, 255 – Sophomore |
| W Luke Barrett – 6’6″, 200 – Junior |
Experienced Reserves’ 2022-23 Stats
Joshua Jefferson: 2.2 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 0.5 apg, 0.5 spg – 43.4% FG
Chris Howell: 0.6 ppg, 0.4 rpg, 0.2 spg, 0.1 bpg – 43.4% FG
Harry Wessels: 2.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 0.3 apg, 0.1 bpg – 59.6% FG
Luke Barrett: 2.4 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 0.2 bpg, 0.2 spg – 46.8% FG
Freshmen
| G Jordan Ross – 6’3″, 195 – Freshman – Consensus Top 150 recruit |
| W Rory Hawke – 6’5″, 190 – Redshirt Freshman |
| F/C Jensen Bradtke – 6’10”, 220 – Freshman |
| C Andrew McKeever – 7’1″, 255 – Freshman |
Is another outstanding season upcoming for Saint Mary’s College? Well, why wouldn’t it be? After all, last season was the stated ‘rebuilding year’ for the Gaels. It both was and was not. Was, in that many younger, in some cases unproven players stepped into vital roles in the rotation.
Was not, in that Saint Mary’s won the West Coast Conference over the course of the regular season, notched 27 total victories, and won a game in the NCAA Tournament before falling victim to the buzzsaw that was Connecticut on their way to the national championship.
It was the sort of success, rebuilding or not, that many coaches and programs struggle to achieve with the best team they have over the course of a given decade.
That’s because Saint Mary’s under head coach Randy Bennett has established itself as simply one of the best and most consistent hoops programs anywhere in the country. And since, you know, they got past that pesky rebuilding year, they’re set up for another very successful season in 2023-24.
Since it can longer all start with now-graduated 3-time All-WCC star and last season’s West Coast Defensive Player of the Year Logan Johnson, it all starts with sophomore guard Aidan Mahaney. All that Mahaney did in his first collegiate season was score nearly 500 points, hit 40% of his triples, and make his own appearance on the All-WCC First Team. The proverbial torch that Johnson carried for the Gaels these past few years has been very well passed, and Saint Mary’s fans are excited to see what Mahaney can do for an encore. With a quick and smooth release off the dribble or receiving passes coming off of screens, Mahaney has already proven to be a dangerous marksman. He knocked down multiple three’s in a game 21 times in his rookie year, and has firmly established himself as a player opposing defenses must game-plan for every night. That should serve to allow him the space to develop his dribble-drive game and make defenses pay for getting right up on him when he catches on the perimeter.
Mahaney is generally composed and showed good instincts for making the smart, safe play as a freshman. Still, he is developing his handle off the bounce and when pressured, can get a bit unsettled. As a freshman, his turnovers tended to happen in clusters, and he had some freshman mistakes against the better teams Saint Mary’s faced. The opposition rarely rattled him too badly, though; even in Mahaney’s multi-turnover games as a freshman, he still managed to shoot 41% from deep and 44% overall. With Johnson as very much more the probing, drive-oriented lead guard a year ago, Mahaney was able to focus on his shooting. Now that he has taken the mantle as the team’s go-to guard, Mahaney will need to show a more developed overall game in order to take his much-anticipated next step.
One of the hallmarks of this program has been that younger players have consistently made significant leaps from first to second or second to third season under Bennett. With that in mind, the Gaels are expecting big things from not just Mahaney, but his backcourt running mate Augustus Marčiulionis. While Mahaney wrested the fifth starter’s role away from Marčiulionis a year ago, the junior-to-be has started 22 games and handed out 116 assists already in his Gaels career. A bigger point guard, Marčiulionis is a strong defender who can guard ball-handlers, off-guards and a decent number of wing players with equal effectiveness, which will allow Bennett to play around with matchups and not wear Mahaney out guarding bigger opponents.
While Marčiulionis is not the outside shooter that many Gaels guards have been, he enjoys driving towards the rim and can finish in traffic. He’s equally happy kicking out to open teammates if he can’t get a bucket, and makes smart decisions with the ball. The son of former International and NBA great Šarūnas Marčiulionis, the younger Marčiulionis is a creative passer who shows a good overall feel for running offense and confidence with the ball in his hands. If he can develop a reliable jump shot, Marčiulionis could well be the next young player to break out in Bennett’s backcourt. He’ll get a fight for minutes, though, from this year’s top recruit.
If he can handle the physical jump up to the WCC, Ross should be the first guard off of Bennett’s bench and play a lot of minutes
Jordan Ross, a freshman from Utah, has been rated a top 100 recruit by multiple services. He’s a true point guard capable of scoring and distributing who, like Mahaney, is expected to see the court early and often in his first year. A fearless player despite weighing in at barely 170 pounds, Ross is fresh off of helping Mokan Elite of the Nike EYBL win a Peach Jam Championship and is ready to go as a Gael. “They run everything through their point guards. They use a lot of ball screens a game and there is a great opportunity for me to come there and play early,” Ross said upon committing in the fall of 2022. “They are a great school that is a great fit for me.” If he can handle the physical jump up to the WCC, Ross should be the first guard off of Bennett’s bench and play a lot of minutes. Chris Howell is the only other experienced guard, and though he had a very small role as a redshirt freshman, he played in 28 games and will push for more than just mop-up minutes as a third-year sophomore. Chris Howell averaged just over four minutes per game last year, but the young wing participated in 28 of the Gaels’ games. Bennett likes his length and two-way ability, and Howell will have a chance to play a bit more this year.
Now that Drew Timme’s time at Gonzaga has ended, the WCC needs a new #1 big man. Why not Mitchell Saxen? If he can make another jump like he did last season, Saxen will be in line for a host of honors. A year ago, he emerged from the shadows of a nine-minute-per-game bench role to become the Gaels’ top big guy. Despite being nowhere near the top of anyone’s recruiting rankings a few years ago, Saxen has developed nicely. His face-up game is not yet a finished product, but he knows how to create space to operate near the rim and showed better footwork and a decisive attitude when given the ball down low. Even if he can’t get a shot off, Saxen knows to keep the ball high and out of trouble, and his footwork has cleaned up rather well. After not showing a lot his first two seasons, Saxen even made some nifty pases out of double-teams a year ago, and is aware of where his shooters are.
While Saxen doesn’t possess tremendous natural athleticism, he’s an effective defender and rim protector. It’s possible that Bennett needs Saxen to make his biggest strides this year defensively, though, because last season the young post player was routinely in foul trouble. If Saxen can move more cleanly and keep in better position to avoid whistles, his impact potential and ability to play with physicality should soar. He was under 60% on shot attempts right around the rim and at 63% from the foul line a year ago, and both figures should improve with a year’s experience and a summer of added strength. If he can bring a more refined offensive approach this season, combined with his expected defensive improvements, Saxen could emerge as one of the best bigs in the country.
Alex Ducas is back for one final season on the wing, and the fifth-year marksman has already had an outstanding career in Moraga. He is, quite simply, a winning basketball player. Last year, he set new career highs in virtually every statistical category, and is a career 40% shooter from three. Ducas doesn’t force anything and is wonderfully savvy on offense. He can distribute the ball but doesn’t need to have it in his hands much offensively: it really just needs to get to him so that he can let fly. He scored in double figures 27 times last year, and Bennett will need more of that same consistent production form his most veteran player in the year to come.
| Five Stats Which Tell The Tale (with national ranks) |
| 60.0 – Opponent Points Per Game (4th) |
| 69.3% – Team FT Percentage (280th) |
| .650 – Opponent Assists Per Turnover (1st) |
| .490 – Assists Per FG Made (222nd) |
| 80.2 – Defensive Rebound Percentage (3rd) |
Ducas is also one of the Gaels’ defensive leaders, and he uses his length very well against a variety of opponents. He isn’t explosive, but can hang with just about anybody. When his athleticism doesn’t do it, his positioning and intelligence will. And when all else fails, Ducas is tougher than most. He suffered a back injury towards the end of the first half against UConn in the NCAA Tournament, and Ducas didn’t return to the game. He’s sure to be highly-motivated to go out on his terms this last year – and to make it a good one. “They’ve seen what it looks like to play in the NCAA tournament two years in a row, win a game,” Bennett said of his returning core this fall. “All that stuff, I can’t explain how valuable that is for a coach. These guys have done what it takes and seen what it looks like when you get there.” For all of the wins that Saint Mary’s has racked up while Ducas has been on campus, they haven’t been past the Sweet Sixteen since 1959. What better way to cap off a winning player’s career than a program-best season?
Joining the rotation this year after redshirting his first season in order to become fully healthy is Harvard transfer Mason Forbes. He’s an experienced player with good size who had been working on a career-best season two years ago when he got hurt, and his years with the Crimson was interrupted by a few different injuries. Now he’s hoping to add versatility to Bennett’s frontcourt. So far in his career, Forbes has been largely a reserve, and hasn’t shown much of a jumper or full offensive arsenal. It will be interesting to see how his game has evolved with a year off to steep in the Gaels’ system. Forbes can guard a variety of frontcourt players, though, and is more than happy to rotate over and block a shot or jump a pass. And when he gets the ball, he goes straight to the rim. Those are skills that will translate to any team. Forbes will be mostly replacing the minutes of Kyle Bowen, and as Forbes has been, Bowen was not an outstanding scorer. He was tough as nails, however, a physical presence on the boards, defensively and setting screens for his buddies. Bennett will need those things from Forbes, as he asks from all of his bigs.
Harry Wessels, like Ducas and a great many memorable Gaels over the years, hails from Australia. Unlike many other people in general, he stands over seven feet tall. While Wessels didn’t play many minutes per game as a freshman, he did play in 34 of the Gaels’ 35 games and showed a good idea of how to score the ball in close when he got chunks of time. Bennett has developed some excellent bigs over the years, and Wessels has the unteachable size that coaches crave. He’s up against a good one in the fight for minutes at the 5, but having both Saxen and Wessels gives Saint Mary’s a great duo in the paint.
| Five Out-of-Conference Games to Keep an Eye on |
| N – San Diego State – November 17 |
| N – Xavier / Washington – November 19 |
| N – Boise State – December 1 |
| vs New Mexico – November 9 |
| @ Colorado State – December 9 |
There are young forwards looking to carve out roles of their own, and though Bennett usually keeps his bench fairly tight, roles can always be carved out if earned. Joshua Jefferson and Luke Barrett each made nine three-point shots last year, and both can play in either bigger or smaller lineups. Jefferson, like Wessels, had some tantalizing, if few and far between, flashes. He’s got good vision and passing instincts, and despite his limited/mop-up minutes, he completely overwhelmed some of the players he was sent in to guard. If Jefferson can keep it up, he could very well be playing 15+ minutes per game soon. Barrett is more of a wing player, and his greatest asset is his outside shooting. Both youngsters will get a challenge from two more newcomers, though one or both could potentially redshirt.
Jensen Bradtke is the Gaels’ most recent Australian signee, and should remind fans of Kyle Bowen for more than just that reason. He’s a tough, aggressive player who makes his living in the paint and on the boards. And sure to become an oft-repeated anecdote is that Bradtke comes from an outstanding athletic lineage: his mother, Nicole, won both Australian and US Open titles and an Olympic bronze medal during her tennis career; and his father, Mark, competed for Australia at four different Olympic games and has been inducted into the Australian Basketball Hall of Fame. Andrew McKeever is another seven-footer for Bennett and his excellent staff to develop. While he’s facing a fair log jam for minutes at center, McKeever has good hands and should make an impact down the line. There is also redshirt freshman Rory Hawke, another Aussie guard who joined the Gaels during last season and opted to take some time acclimating. Hawke can really shoot the ball, is strong on the glass, and has shown a willingness to create for his friends. He has quality experience from competing for Australia’s U-20 national team, and should get some run immediately when Bennett would like a bit more size in the backcourt.
Gonzaga, as ever, has reloaded. And yet, here Saint Mary’s remains, trading off the ‘1-A’ and ‘1-B’ roles that they’ve spent the past decade swapping. In this new era of not just relaxed transfer restrictions and NIL, small-time Saint Mary’s just keeps holding on to its place among the big boys. The success that Bennett and his tremendous assistants & staff over the years have both achieved and made the new standard is really nothing short of remarkable. There’s nothing flashy about doing all of the little things well or taking unheralded recruits and teaching them to play the game at a very high level. And yet, after you’ve done it this consistently for two decades, the cumulative product is a show piece all its own.
Saint Mary’s, as a basketball program, knows exactly who they are and what they’re about. There won’t be anything about this year’s team that hasn’t, in one way or another, been seen before. They will take good shots, defend smartly, and force other teams to play the game at the measured, steady pace of their choosing. And they will win. They will win lots and lots of games. The preseason WCC Coaches poll even has them winning the league.
“Sure, it’s cool to be picked to win the league but getting picked to win doesn’t guarantee you any wins,” Ducas told WCCSports.com this fall. “We’ve really got to try to keep the outside noise on the outside.” Just another standard season upcoming for Saint Mary’s. They’ll be in the Top 25 for most of the year and challenge for the WCC crown. Ho-hum. The difference with this veteran crew is that, if Saxen and Mahaney can each make a further improvement fit to compare with last season, this may be the best Saint Mary’s squad yet.
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