Broncos win in Davey's final home game
By Chris Furnari
Sean Denison and Scott Dougherty each had 18 points to lead Santa Clara to a 80-72 win over San Diego in Dick Davey's final home game as head coach of the Broncos. The team not only maintained sole possession of first place in the West Coast Conference, but also clinched one of the top two seeds in the conference tournament.
The Broncos exhibited great team basketball in the win, with four players in double figures. Brody Angley added 12 points and matched a career-high with nine assists to help give Santa Clara their 20th win of the season. The Broncos have now won six straight and nine of their last 10.
San Diego did not fall quietly as a standing-room-only crowd cheered on the Broncos in the final minutes of the game. After trailing by 14 points midway through the second half, the Toreros closed the gap to four on Nir Cohen's three-point play with 4:08 remaining in regulation.
"I give San Diego a lot of credit for the effort and energy they put into the game," said Davey. "They made us work hard out there, and we escaped, so to speak."
The Broncos settled down and Denison went to work down low, connecting on six straight free throws and scoring on a putback to bring the Bronco lead back to 11. It was all Santa Clara the rest of the way as the Broncos cruised to the victory on a memorable senior night.
Six seniors were recognized before the game for their hard work over the years at Santa Clara. Davey rewarded the seniors with a shot at the starting line-up. A starting five of seniors Denison, Danny Pariseau, Tristan Parham, Brandon Rohe and Dougherty took the floor and worked through final game jitters to build an early Bronco lead.
"A lot of time in senior games, the guys don't play as well because they let emotions get to them," said Davey. "I just tried to temper it a little bit before the game and not let that happen."
Santa Clara came out of the gates hot, shooting 58.6 percent in the first half and led 42-31 at the intermission. The second half was no different, as the Broncos shot 50 percent from the three point arc and 88 percent from the free throw line.
The Broncos reached the 20-win plateau for the fourth time in Davey's career, and can clinch a share of the conference championship with one win in their final two games.
Santa Clara will take on Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine to conclude the WCC regular season. The Broncos face Loyola Marymount on Saturday, Feb. 24 at 7:30 p.m. The Broncos will then wrap up the season on Monday, Feb. 26 at 7:00 p.m. at Pepperdine.
Contact Chris Furnari at (408) 551-1918 or cfurnari@scu.edu.