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Saint Mary’s Basketball: 2018-19 season preview for the Gaels

By Brayley Crowe

FULLERTON, CA - NOVEMBER 23: Head coach Randy Bennett of the St. Mary's Gaels talks to his team during a time out in the game against the Harvard Crimson at the Titan Gym on November 23, 2017 in Fullerton, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
FULLERTON, CA - NOVEMBER 23: Head coach Randy Bennett of the St. Mary's Gaels talks to his team during a time out in the game against the Harvard Crimson at the Titan Gym on November 23, 2017 in Fullerton, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) /
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Key Reserves

One of the key points for this Saint Mary’s squad to see success in 2018-19 is of course replacing the big names lost. The Gaels seem to have a strong starting five to base their season around, but now the next crucial step is the supporting cast coming off the bench. This squad does not seem to have nearly the depth like we have seen in some of Bennett’s previous noise-making teams.

However, Saint Mary’s seems to have the most depth at the center position. With Menzies leading the charge, the Gaels already have a solid starter and with Jordan Hunter and Jock Perry as the two coming off the bench, they will most likely revolve around the post most of their plays. Hunter, 6’10”, and Perry, 7’1″, certainly match the imposing height that the Gaels have in the frontcourt. While neither Perry nor Hunter saw significant amounts of playing time last season (3.1 mpg and 7.0 mpg, respectively), they did show respectable numbers. Perry averaged 2 ppg, shooting 51.7% from the floor in 2017-18. Hunter, who will most likely be the first-choice backup, showed a little more promise with a 2.8 ppg, along with 2.2 rpg and half a block per game.

For the forward rotation, Bennett does have a potential starter in Elijah Thomas. Thomas, a redshirt sophomore, showed quite a bit of promise in his first season in a Gael’s uniform last season. Appearing in 30 of 36 games last season, Thomas averaged 1.9 ppg, 0.8 rpg and 0.5 spg in just 6.4 minutes per game. A 46.5 field goal percentage, with 43.5% from three, highlights the 6-foot-5-inch forward’s abilities, but his 57.1% free-throw mark is certainly something to be improved.

To relieve Ford and Krebs at the guard positions, Bennett’s top choices will be redshirt sophomore Tommy Kuhse and redshirt freshman Kristers Zoriks. While Zoriks has yet to record a statistic for the Gaels, Kuhse has a little experience. In 25 appearances last season, Kuhse saw 56 minutes of playing time. Kuhse averaged 0.4 ppg in 2017-18, shooting 44.4% from the field and 50% from three. As for Zoriks, the 6-foot-4-inch Latvian has experience at the international level, representing his country at the 2016 FIBA U18 European Championships. In six games, Zoriks averaged 10.3 ppg, grabbed 3.5 rebounds and dished 5.2 apg.