St. Mary’s Ends Year for Toreros

St. Mary’s College, 4-9 when 30-year-old Dave Fehte took over his first head coaching assignment at the beginning of the West Coast Conference season, will play for the WCC tournament championship Monday night against Pepperdine.

The University of San Diego, the preseason pick to win the conference, will not.

St. Mary’s advanced with a typically exciting, come-from-behind 75-72 semifinal victory Sunday night over USD at Santa Clara’s Toso Pavilion.

Fehte is an interim coach, but that may soon change after the Gaels (12-16) went 9-7 under him and advanced to their first WCC final in the five-year history of the tournament.

USD Coach Hank Egan is the second-most experienced coach in the WCC. But after watching his team blow a 12-point lead and lose for the fifth time in six games, he was left trying to explain why the Toreros’ season is finished at 17-12.

“I don’t want to take anything away from them,” Egan said. “But we make some free throws down the stretch. . .

After USD (17-12) took a 12-point lead, 47-35, two minutes into the second half, St. Mary’s rallied behind the three-point shot and free throws.

Tied, 72-72, with 2:32 left, Allan Caveness (13 points) made three free throws, and USD missed its last three foul shots.

Keith Colvin missed the second of two with 2:32 left. Kelvin Woods, Saturday’s hero after scoring 23 in a 72-62 first-round victory over Gonzaga, missed the front end of a one-and-one with 2:17 left. Colvin then missed another one on the front end of a one-of-one with 20 seconds left.

St. Mary’s got there by canning five three-pointers in the second half.

Kevin Weatherby made one from the left baseline to give the Gaels a 7-0 run and to tie the game, 52-52, with 13:00 left.

After USD’s Michael Brown made a three, Weatherby made one from the right baseline to make it, 55-55, with 12:21 left.

St. Mary’s took its first lead since, 3-2, when Weatherby hit his third in a row with 11:27 left.

Weatherby was able to keep getting open shots because point guard Caveness (six assists) was effective driving the lane and then kicking the ball back out to him.

“That was spectacular,” Egan said. “I don’t think they missed any during that one stretch. Caveness penetrating really hurt us. He’s hurt everyone like that this season.”

Forward Thurman Watson also had three three-pointers, two in the second half. He led the Gaels with 21 points. Darrell Daniel added 18.

Woods scored 21, Michael Brown 18 and Anthony Thomas 14 for USD, which shot only 52.4% from the free-throw line. The Toreros made 53.8% from the floor, their highest shooting percentage in a loss this season.

USD led for almost the entire first half and took a 39-35 lead into the locker room.

Woods had 15, and Brown and Wayman Strickland eight each for the Toreros. Off the bench, point guard Daniel led the Gaels with 13, six coming on six free throws attempts.

Woods might have had more but missed five free throws, including two on the front end of one-and-ones. He did make five, though, giving him two more points than he had in Saturday’s first half.

Dondi Bell started out hot, going high above the rim to grab three big rebounds in the early going, but the senior center left the game for the remainder of the half after picking up his second foul at 12:40.

It was only the Toreros’ second foul. The next two, however, were charged to backup center Keith Colvin. There was 8:09 left when Colvin got his second, forcing USD to play most of the remainder of the half without a center.

For a minute, Egan had forwards Woods, Thomas and Watson in the game.

Thomas came outo at 7:01 after being whistled for a technical foul under the St. Mary’s basket. The incident went unnoticed by many, but apparently one official saw Thomas push Caveness.

Daniel made the free throws, slicing what had been USD’s biggest lead of the half to eight, 29-21.

“There was some exchange of words and some shoves,” Egan said. “Our words and shoves happened to get caught. And (Thomas) shouldn’t have done that.”

Strickland’s fast break layup 13 seconds earlier had made it 29-19. Thomas on a rebound, kicked it up to Strickland near the midstripe, and Strickland blew past Weatherby for his second fast break basket of the half. The other was similar, coming after a steal by a hustling Pat Holbert.

After sitting, Thomas left no doubt his presence was missed in the early moments of the second half.

To say he began came out of the locker room fired up, is a considerable understatement.

Fifteen seconds into the half, Thomas made a 15-foot jumper. Then a 3-foot bank. Then a 2-foot swish. Then a two-hand slam. In the first 1:44, Thomas had the only points in the game--eight--and USD had its biggest lead of the game, 47-35.

He also scored the Toreros’s first 10 of the half giving USD a 49-42 lead.

After Strickland made a three-pointer, giving USD a 52-45 lead, St. Mary’s began its run.