not to be confused with San Diego State.
going Santa Clara ML, +3 and +6 here
GAME NOTES: The first round of the West Coast Conference Tournament will wrap up tonight when the sixth-seeded San Diego Toreros clash with the seventh- seeded Santa Clara Broncos at Orleans Arena. The team that emerges with the victory will earn the right to face the University of Portland in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
San Diego, along with Pepperdine and SCU, finished last in the conference with a 3-11 ledger. After all the tie-breaker scenarios played out, the Toreros ended up with the sixth seed, which doesn't mean a whole lot since the bottom four teams all play first round games. The Toreros though, are the only team besides Gonzaga to win this event in the past 11 years, capturing titles in 2003 and 2008.
As for SCU, it dropped its last three games of the regular season for its worst finish in the WCC since the 1974-75 campaign. The Broncos are 24-21 all- time in this tournament and in search of their first championship since 1993.
The Broncos lead the head-to-head series with the Toreros, 37-30, and the two squads split a pair of encounters during the regular season.
SCU never really got going this season and it enters the postseason averaging just 64.2 ppg and 15.4 turnovers per game. Marc Trasolini is a player that gives the team hope for advancing, as he paces the Broncos with both 14.0 ppg and 6.2 rpg. Robert Smith chips in with 12.0 ppg and he has been in charge of setting up Trasolini, handing out a team-high 3.0 apg. However, Smith isn't much of shooter, connecting on just 33.8 percent of his attempts from the floor and only 27.0 percent from long range.
The Toreros found points tough to come by in WCC play, as they managed only 59.6 ppg during their league slate. One of the reasons for the low total was the loss of second-leading scorer De'Jon Jackson (12.0 ppg), who tore his ACL in early February. That leaves Brandon Johnson as the lone double-figure scorer on the club, as he nets 14.3 ppg. Johnson dishes out a team-best 3.4 apg and he is also the squad's top defender with 51 steals to his credit.
The Broncos appear to have a more potent attack and that should help keep their season going for at least one more night.
Read more:
http://www.thenewstribune.com/2010/0...#ixzz0hMnETsnb