Field Level Media
Nov 11, 2019
Chandler Vaudrin scored 19 points off the bench to help Winthrop stun No. 18 Saint Mary's 61-59 on Monday night at Moraga, Calif.
Josh Ferguson added 14 points and seven rebounds for the Eagles (2-1). D.J. Burns had 12 points off the bench.
Jordan Ford recorded 22 points and six rebounds for Saint Mary's (1-1), which committed 15 turnovers. Malik Fitts contributed 18 points and 13 rebounds, and Tanner Krebs added 15 points.
The Gaels had a chance to force overtime after Winthrop's Russell Jones missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with seven seconds left. Fitts grabbed the rebound and gave the ball to Ford, who drove the length of the court and missed the close-range runner with one second left as the Eagles survived.
The loss ended Saint Mary's streak of winning 18 straight home openers.
Winthrop shot 46.4 percent from the field and made 5 of 19 from 3-point range. The Eagles were just 4 of 10 from the free-throw line.
Saint Mary's made 41.2 percent from the floor. The Gaels were 5 of 17 from behind the arc and 12 of 18 from the line.
The contest was the second on the road in two days for Winthrop. The Eagles lost 77-74 to Fresno State on a final-second 3-pointer on Sunday and then made the approximate 175-mile bus ride to the Bay Area.
The Gaels recovered from a nine-point, second-half deficit to pull within 56-54 on a 3-pointer by Krebs with 1:26 left.
Winthrop answered 22 seconds later as Micheal Anumba buried a 3-pointer for his lone points of the game to increase the margin to five.
Jones missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 27.8 seconds left and teammate Chase Claxton was called for a foul on the rebound with 26.9 seconds left to keep the door open for the Gaels.
Krebs split two free throws, and Fitts and Ford scored baskets during a 5-2 run over the next 19 seconds to bring Saint Mary's within 61-59 with 7.9 seconds left.
Winthrop ran off eight straight points early in the second half to open up a 39-30 lead with 14:34 remaining. Burns scored four of the points, including a jumper to cap the run.
Saint Mary's made a run to move within 42-39 on Dan Fotu's basket with 9:39 left.
Vaudrin connected on a 3-pointer to give Winthrop a 52-44 advantage with 4:56 remaining.
Winthrop led 26-25 at halftime after Vaudrin's basket with three seconds remaining.
--Field Level Media