Saint Mary's @ Harvard preview

St. Mary's at Harvard

Last Meeting ( Dec 31, 2012 ) Harvard 69, St. Mary's 70

Saint Mary’s is hoping its third appearance in the Wooden Legacy tournament proves to be the proverbial charm. The 21st-ranked Gaels tip off the eight-team extended-weekend tournament Thanksgiving afternoon with a matchup against preseason Ivy League favorite Harvard at Titan Gym in Fullerton, Calif.

After losing in the opening round and going 2-1 in the 2008 Wooden Legacy tourney, Saint Mary’s returned four years later and won its opener before falling short in the semifinals and third-place game. Now, the 4-0 Gaels enter as the favorite to take home the title in the tournament, which also includes St. Joseph’s and Washington State in the top half of the bracket and Georgia, host Cal State Fullerton, San Diego State and Sacramento State in the bottom half. The semifinals will be played Friday, with the championship and the other three place games set for Sunday after an off day. The holiday tournament is in its 11th season with UCLA and Michigan State having won the last two titles.

TV: 4 p.m. ET, ESPNews

ABOUT SAINT MARY’S (4-0): A sixth seed in last season’s NCAA Tournament, coach Randy Bennett’s Gaels have won their first four contests by an average of 18 points, scoring at least 76 in each outing. Calvin Hermanson, a 6-foot-6 junior wing, leads the team in scoring at 19.0 points per game while 6-foot-11 center Jock Landale (17.5 points, team-best 8.0 rebounds) and guard Emmett Naar (12.8 points) are also averaging double figures. Naar also is averaging 9.5 assists – tied for fourth nationally – for the Gaels, who have 74 assists and only 27 turnovers on the season while their opponents have 47 of each.

ABOUT HARVARD (2-2): With coach Tommy Amaker in his 11th season and having already established himself as the winningest coach (195-104) in the program’s history, the Crimson have stumbled of late after a 2-0 start, falling at Holy Cross and Manhattan by identical 73-69 scores. Sophomore guard Bryce Aiken is pacing the squad with 16.8 points and 3.5 assists while forwards Seth Towns (16.5) and Chris Lewis (10.5) also are averaging double digits. Towns (6.3 boards) and guard Justin Bassey (5.5) are the leading rebounders for the Crimson, which has struggled with taking care of the ball, averaging 17.3 turnovers and only 11.3 assists per outing.

TIP-INS

1. This will be the second meeting between the two programs with Saint Mary’s winning 70-69 at home on New Year’s Eve in 2012.

2. The Gaels have been on target this season, shooting a sizzling 52.1 percent from the floor, 43.8 percent from 3-point range and 79.7 percent at the free throw line.

3. Harvard has enjoyed recent success in neutral-site tournaments, winning both the 2013 Great Alaska Shootout and 2011 Battle 4 Atlantis titles and finishing second in the 2015 Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii.

PREDICTION: Saint Mary’s 76, Harvard 65