Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
#23 Saint Mary's
Wildcats hit the road at nationally-ranked Saint Mary's Sunday
11/11/2023 10:13:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Weber State and #23 Saint Mary's play Sunday at 5 p.m. Pacific time in Moraga, California. Game will be on ESPN+.
• After a season-opening home win, the Weber State men's basketball team hits the road to take on a nationally ranked team as the Wildcats play at Saint Mary's Sunday evening in Moraga, California.
• Sunday's game will tipoff at 5 p.m. Pacific time (6 p.m. Mountain) from the UCU Pavilion in Moraga. The game will be televised live on ESPN+ and on the ESPN app. The WSU radio broadcast with Steve Klauke will be on 103.1 FM "The Wave". Live stats will be available at WeberStateSports.com and the Weber State Wildcats app.
• Weber State has entered the 2023-24 season with high expectations as the Wildcats have all five starters returning and were picked first in the Big Sky Conference preseason media and coaches polls.
• WSU had two players named to the Big Sky preseason all-conference team. Dillon Jones was a unanimous selection as the Big Sky Preseason MVP and Steven Verplancken was also named to the all-conference preseason team.
• In addition to being named the Big Sky Preseason MVP, Dillon Jones has also been named to the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year watch list, one of 20 players in the country on the preseason list. Jones participated in the G League and NBA Draft combines this past summer before returning to Weber State. He earned first-team All-Big Sky and first-team All-District honors last year and led the Wildcats in points, rebounds, assists, and steals last season and recorded 20 double-doubles. He led the country in defensive rebounds and finished fifth in overall rebounding at 10.9 per game.
• Verplancken earned third-team All-Big Sky honors last season. Also returning as starters for the Wildcats are KJ Cunningham, Dyson Koehler, and Alex Tew. Other returners that played last season include Louie Jordan, Handje Tamba, and Cole Lake, as well as red shirt freshman Chris Dockery.
• The Wildcats have added several new players to this year's team, including transfers Blaise Threatt and Arnaud Revaz. The 'Cats also added three international freshmen in Viljami Vartiainen from Finland and cousins Marko Sarenac and Nemanja Sarenac from Serbia.
• The Wildcats are coached by Eric Duft who returns for his second season as head coach and his 18th season overall at Weber State. He spent 16 seasons as an assistant coach under Randy Rahe before becoming the 10th head coach in WSU history in May 2022. Weber State finished 18-15 overall last season and was third in the Big Sky at 12-6.
• WSU beat Adams State 90-51 in an exhibition game, then opened the regular season with a 96-62 win over Benedictine Mesa on Tuesday. Four Wildcats scored in double figures and WSU shot 51 percent from the field in the win and was 27 of 31 from the free throw line.
• Dillon Jones tied his career-high with 26 points in 27 minutes of action in Tuesday's win. He was 6 of 7 from the field and finished 13 of 13 from the free throw line, which is tied for the fifth-best free throw percentage in WSU history. He also grabbed 14 rebounds a double-double, the 39th of his career. He was third in the nation with 20 double-doubles last season.
• Steven Verplancken added 16 points with two 3-pointers and new Wildcat transfer point guard Blaise Threatt added 15 points with three assists. Threatt transferred to Weber State this summer after two seasons at Division II Colorado Mesa. He is the son of former NBA player Sedale Threatt.
• Saint Mary's is 2-0 early on this season and is ranked 23rd in the nation in the preseason media and coaches polls. The Gaels were 27-8 last season and tied for the conference championship at 14-2 in the West Coast Conference. They advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
• The Gaels are coached by longtime head coach Randy Bennett who is in his 23rd season at Saint Mary's. He has 509 career wins and has led the Gaels to the NCAA Tournament nine times.
• Saint Mary's set a school record with a 79-point win in the season opener, beating Stanislaus State 107-28 on Monday. They followed that up with a 72-58 win over New Mexico on Thursday. In the two games, the Gaels are averaging 89.5 points per game, 50 rebounds per game, and shooting 52 percent from the field.
• This will be Weber State's first game against a ranked opponent since playing Utah State in the season opener in the 2019-20 season. The Aggies were ranked 17th and 19th in the preseason polls that season.
• This will be the fifth ever meeting between the two schools and the first since 2011. The Gaels are 4-0 all-time against Weber State, including 3-0 in Moraga. SMC won the last game 87-70 on Nov. 28, 2011 in Moraga. That was the final season for NBA superstar Damian Lillard at Weber State. Lillard scored 36 points and was 12 of 15 from the free throw line in that game. Saint Mary's was led by Matthew Dellavedova with 25 points and 11 assists.
• The last football game in Saint Mary's history was against Weber State in 2003 in Moraga, a 35-15 Wildcat win.
• After Tuesday's opener, the Wildcats hit the road for their next four games, starting Sunday night at 23rd ranked Saint Mary's. The 'Cats will then play three games at the Atlantic Slam Tournament November 17-19 in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada.
