St. Edward’s knocks off St. Mary’s for third straight time - Lone Star Conference Skip To Main Content
Trevor Fleeman

Men's Basketball

St. Edward’s knocks off St. Mary’s for third straight time

Championship Central
 
By NICK EATMAN
           
FRISCO, Texas –  No strangers to each other, St. Edward’s and St. Mary’s squared off Friday night for the 174th time in the series history, including the third time in 10 days.

But it was the first-ever meeting between the schools in the LSC Tournament. However, a change of venue didn’t change the recent history, as St. Edward’s found a way to beat the Rattlers, 84-74, for the third straight time – the last two games of the regular season and then Friday night in the final game of the quarterfinal round.

SEU, the fifth-seed in the tournament, not only improves to 19-11 on the season, but advances to Saturday night’s semifinal matchup with No. 1 DBU at 6:00 at Comerica Center.

The Rattlers drop to 19-10 and will now wait on seeding for next week’s regional tournament. St. Mary's is currently No. 5 in the South Central Region, despite losing five out of six games. SEU is ranked No. 6 in the region and could possibly pass StMU, especially if it keeps winning in the tournament.

St. Mary’s actually led for more than 24 minutes of the game and held a 41-32 halftime lead. But SEU clawed back to take the lead in a back-and-forth affair. SEU got a spark from Conor McManus to ignite a late run for the Hilltoppers. McManus didn’t score a point until the 8:49 mark of the game, hitting a 3-pointer to give SEU a 57-51 lead. But McManus then hit the next five baskets for his team, including another 3-pointer. He scored all 12 points in a crucial 12-5 run that gave SEU control of the game for good.

From there, Gavino Ramos and Lewis Rowe helped finish off the job. Rowe had 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Ramos had 19 points and seven assists. Mcmanus finished with 14 – all in the final nine minutes of the game. Mason Courtney had 12 points.

For the Rattlers, Lachlan Boffinger had 22 points and 10 rebounds. Damani Claxton scored 17 points, including 14 in the second half. Wayne Wiggins added 11 points off the bench.
          
 St. Edward’s Notes:
  • St. Edward’s went back over .500 at the LSC Tournament, improving to 6-5 with the win. SEU is seeking its first LSC final since a pair of runner-up finishes in 2020 and 2021.
  • Conor McManus led the LSC in 3-point percentage at .457. Against the Rattlers on Friday, he made 2-of-5, but those two triples occurred during his 12-point run that pushed the Hilltoppers over the top.
  • Gavino Ramos ranked second in assists with 4.5 and finished with a game-high seven assists.
  • Lewis Rowe is the eighth-leading rebounder in the LSC at 6.1 boards per game and had 11. He was also third in the conference with a .554 field goal percentage and hit 10-of-14 shots.
 
St. Mary’s Notes:
  • With the loss, St. Mary’s is now 0-3 in LSC Tournament play since joining the conference.
  • Lachlan Bofinger entered the game as the leading rebounder in the LSC, averaging 9.7 per game and just surpassed that mark with 10.
  • Daman Claxton, the LSC Newcomer of the Year, was the fourth-leading scorer in the LSC at 17.4 ppg. He had just three points in the first half before finishing right near his average with 17.
  • Despite losing the last four games in the series, including three in 10 days, St. Mary’s leads the overall series against SEU 110-64.