Offseason Review: A Look Into the Saint Mary's Gaels
The Saint Mary’s Gaels added key freshmen and transfers after major losses. Are they ready to challenge Gonzaga one last time?
The Saint Mary’s Gaels have been one of the most consistent programs in college basketball for two decades. The Gaels haven’t finished below .500 since 2002 and since, they’ve amassed 18 20+ win seasons, one 30 win season, eleven NCAA Tournament appearances, and one Sweet 16 appearance. Who’s been at the helm for this entire run? None other than Randy Bennett who took over during that last sub-.500 season and has put together a record of 562-222 overall.
Coming off four straight seasons of 26+ wins, the Gaels are losing three key seniors and a rising star sophomore. Bennett wasted no time, bringing in one of the best incoming freshman classes among the non-power conference ranks and adding two strong additions in the portal.
How will the Gaels line up in the West Coast Conference in the 2025-2026 season? Will they take down Gonzaga in the Zags’ final season in the WCC? Will the international pipeline that’s fueled the Gaels’ success prevail once more? Let’s take a look at how the Gaels are shaping up in Moraga this season.
Use the code “BracketBusters” when checking out at Crow’s Nest Coffee Roasters to receive 20% of your order! Want two bags of coffee shipped to your door every month? Sign up for a monthly subscription here and receive 25% off your monthly subscription!
Roster Turnover
Saint Mary’s lost the following players:
Jordan Ross (Junior) - Georgia
8.3 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists
Ashton Hardaway (Junior) - Memphis
2.1 points, 1.2 rebounds
Augustas Marciulionis (Ineligible)
14.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.3 steals
Mitchell Saxen (Ineligible)
10.8 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.3 steals, 1.3 blocks
Luke Barrett (Ineligible)
9.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists
The Gaels lost just two players, but they took some hits due to players running out of eligibility. The loss of Jordan Ross hurts, but with some of their additions coming in it’s not as bad as it could be. Ross shot just 38% overall and 29.3% from deep on 2.3 attempts from deep last year. He has a high ceiling, but I was disappointed with his shooting last season. Regardless, Ross was a strong ball handler that complimented Marciulionis which the Gaels will certainly miss in their rotation.
It was no surprise to me that Ashton Hardaway transferred out, especially to join his father in Memphis. After leaving Memphis following his freshman season, he couldn’t find his footing for the Gaels either. He did appear in 33 games, but averaged just 9.6 minutes while shooting 35.4% overall and 31% from deep.
Augustas Marciulionis was one of the top point guards in the country alongside Braden Smith from Purdue. Across four years at Saint Mary’s he continuously improved his shooting abilities where he shot just 18.3% from deep as a freshman to 34.7% last season no a career high 4.2 attempts per game. He was a floor general and I’m excited to see what he can do with his professional career.
Mitchell Saxon was a force in the paint as he averaged four offensive rebounds per game. Over five seasons with Saint Mary’s he become one of the most consistent big men on the west coast while taking a huge step forward on the offense. In his final season, he shot 54.6% from the floor and also managed to dish out 1.7 assists and rack up 1.3 blocks and 1.3 steals per game.
Luke Barrett was always very underrated as he become a crucial piece to the puzzle last year. He finished fourth on the team in points per game, while joining Saxon as a menace on the glass. He averaged 2.6 offensive rebounds per game, while also contributing to the ball movement with 1.4 assists per game. He shot 45.5% overall from the floor and 28% from three point on 3.8 attempts per game.
Returning Players
Paulius Murauskas
12.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists
Mikey Lewis
8.2 points, 1.7 rebounds
Harry Wessels
5.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1 block
Andrew McKeever
2.4 points, 2 rebounds
Kevin Gad
0.8 points, 0.3 rebounds, 0.3 assists (2.3 minutes/15 games)
Joshua Dent
0.6 points, 0.2 rebounds, 0.3 assists (3.5 minutes/24 games)
Cade Bennett
0.4 points, 0.3 rebounds, 0.7 assists (3.2 minutes/23 games)
Rory Hawke (DNP)
Oliver Faubert (DNP)
Liam Campbell (DNP)
While the Gaels lost four of their top five scoring options, they’ve retained some strong talent. Paulius Murauskas transferred in after spending his freshman season at Arizona and he immediately took flight. He shot 44.7% from the floor and 29.2% from three point on 3.2 attempts per game. The 6’8 forward was a monster on the boards, averaging 2.3 offensive rebounds per game, while controlling his fouls to just 2.5 per game. If he can take another step forward this season, the Gaels have a budding star on their roster.
Speaking of a budding star, WCC All-Freshman team member and Sixth Man of the Year Mikey Lewis is returning as well. In just 15.9 minutes per game, Lewis averaged 8.2 points per game while shooting 40.2% overall and 37.2% from deep. He had some monster games, including a 23 points performance while shooting 5-7 from three point against Nebraska. The 6’3 guard is a star in the making and he’s going to be one of the go-to players for Saint Mary’s this season.
Harry Wessels is coming back after serving an important roll as a back-up center. The 7’1 junior averaged 13.1 minutes per game while providing 5.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, and one block per game. He shot 54.6% from the floor and with Saxon gone he should see an up-tick in minutes this season. With his strong defensive abilities, I’d expect to see him slide into the starting lineup in the five spot.
Andrew McKeever was another 7’1 back-up center who should see some more playing time this season. He averaged 5.8 minutes across 20 games and still managed to average 2.4 points and two rebounds. His best overall game came against Boise State when the freshman finished with nine point and eight rebounds.
As for the remaining returning players, most played minimal roles on the team. Bennett and Gad were both walk-ons last season, while Dent was a freshman out of Australia. the 6’3 point guard has some nice size, but we haven’t seen enough to project what his ceiling could be. However, with Marciulionis gone, Lewis will act as the primary point guard, so there’s a good chance that we’ll get to see some more opportunities for Dent this season.
Campbell, Hawke, and Faubert all redshirt last season. Campbell was well regarded coming out of high school with offers from USC, Colorado State, Utah State, Drake, Stanford, Boise State, Washington State, and more. The 6’5 shooting guard was listed as a three star recruit. Faubert was also a three star recruit as a 6’9 forward. He held offers from Missouri, Arizona State, Ole Miss, and more. Hawke is a 6’5 guard out of Australia that actually played six games during the 2023-2024 season. He averaged 3.8 points and one rebound in those six games before going down with a serious back injury that kept him out last year as well. He’s got some nice size, so I’d expect to see some more of him this season as long as the injury hasn’t limited his playing potential.
Roster Additions
The Gaels have added the following players:
Tony Duckett (San Diego) - Sophomore
10.4 points, 2 rebounds, 1.9 assists
Jazz Gardner (Pacific) - Junior
4.6 points, 3.8 rebounds
Dillan Shaw - Freshman
Mantas Juzenas - Freshman
Trent MacLean - Freshman
Saint Mary’s is a rare team that’s added just two players in the portal, while also recruiting three incoming freshman. For programs of Saint Mary’s stature, it’s even more rare that you see multiple incoming freshman.
Looking at the two incoming players in the portal, both aren’t moving away from the West Coast Conference. Tony Duckett shined in his freshman season at San Diego. The 6’5 freshman showed skills as a combo guard scoring a season high 31 points against Loyola Marymount and dishing out seven assists against Portland. He took a lot of shots at 10.3 per game on average while finishing 38.6% overall and 33.8% from beyond the arc. While he was forced to be the secondary option as a young player on a team that won just six games, there’s a lot of potential for Bennett to develop.
Jazz Gardner is another intriguing young addition for the Gaels. He’s a 7’0 center who transferred into Pacific after spending his freshman season at Nevada. He appeared in 33 games, starting 27 for the Tigers last season. Notably, he shot 60.2% overall from the floor while attempting 3.6 shots per game. He cleans up the glass well, but he committed 1.8 fouls per game in just 17 minutes. There has yet to be official confirmation from the team, but the belief is that Gardner will be redshirting in his first year for the Gaels. His father mentioned so on Twitter, but we’ll wait for the final word from the Gaels.
Looking at the freshman, there is a lot of talent coming into Moraga. Dillan Shaw was listed as a four star prospect per 247 Sports and 89th nationally, in fact he is Saint Mary’s highest rated prospect to join the program straight out of high school. Shaw is a 6’7 wing that held offers from some strong programs including Stanford, California, San Francisco and others. Shaw is the type of freshman that can come in and contribute on day one. He’s quick, he can knock down mid-range and three-point jumpers while also slashing into the paint. Even if he doesn’t slide into the starting rotation at the beginning of the season, I believe he could become a starter very quickly.
The Gaels have yet another four-star freshman joining the squad in Trent MacLean. MacLean was ranked 138th in the nation and held offers from schools like West Virginia (committed initially, but decommitted after Darian Devries left for Indiana), Rutgers, St. Bonaventure, Arizona State, Colorado State, and more. He’s listed at 6’9, but he plays like he’s a 6’6 wing. He has a tremendous shooting ability, but he also plays strong defense. If he can put on some more muscle, he has the potential to bust onto the scene this season.
We’re still not done looking at the star freshmen coming into Moraga. Mantas Juzenas is a highly-regard international prospect out of Lithuania. The international pipeline for Saint Mary’s has always been strong and they’ve got yet another player that looks like he could have NBA potential. Juzenas is another 6’7 wing to add along with Shaw in the freshman class who has already been playing against professional talent in the Euro Leagues. Recognizer Isaiah Wong and Lonnie Walker? Wong played in 20 games for Charlotte this season, averaging six points, 1.6 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game. Walker has played in seven NBA seasons including appearing in 20 games for the 76ers this past year, averaging 12.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.5 assists. Juzenas was playing on the same team in Lithuania as both Walker and Wong. He’s done is circles around the FIBA U18 tournaments catching the eyes of many scouts and colleges.
What makes Juzenas a potential star is his shooting abilities. I’m linking his highlights below, but his ability to knock down baskets from beyond the arc and in quick transition are going to do wonders for the Gaels.
Want to support my writing, but don’t want to sign up for a monthly subscription? Consider “buying me a coffee” via the link below!
Sign up for Bracket Busters’ Discord to discuss all things Mid-Major Basketball!
Expectations
Saint Mary’s is unique for this day-and-age of college basketball as they have multiple highly regarded freshmen that are going to contribute in their first seasons of collegiate basketball. It’s also evident in these three additions that Randy Bennett is trying to fix one thing…the lack of three point shooting that plagued Saint Mary’s at times last season.
Last year, the Gaels finished 25th in KenPom and had strong metrics across the board. However, they ranked just 257th in three point percentage. In their three losses in 2025, they shot 3-23 against San Francisco, 1-15 against Gonzaga in the WCC Championship, and 3-14 against Alabama in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Now, they’ve brought in some elite perimeter shooters that can help cover the gap in a team that was already elite last year.
Looking at the potential starting line up, I’d imagine that you could see this coming in the first game:
Mikey Lewis
Tony Duckett
Dillan Shaw/Mantas Juzenas
Paulius Murauskas
Harry Wessels
Coming off the bench in the first round of rotations would be the opposite of either Shaw or Juzenas, then Andrew McKeever, Josh Dent, and a combo of Hawke/Campbell/McKeever that will have to be tested out during the summer practices and beginning of the season. For a team that’s finished in the top 25 of defensive efficiency for the past five seasons, we are going to see a different style of play.
I foresee a higher grade of offense compared to what we are used to seeing for Saint Mary’s. There’s a number of offensive weapons on this team and they doing have Mitchell Saxon and Marciulionis locking down the paint and the lanes. Bennett has always supported a strong defense, so Wessels has a good chance to take over Saxon’s ability to protect the rim. Wessels averaged one block per game in just 13.1 minutes per game, so now that he’ll step up in an expanded role, we could see those statistics jump even more.
My largest concern for the Gaels is, who’s going to run point when Mikey Lewis isn’t on the floor? He can’t play every minute of every game. Last year, they had one of the best floor generals in the entire country. Now, they have sophomore Lewis and Josh Dent who averaged 3.5 minutes per game last season. No other player on the roster is below 6’5, so they are running pretty thing coming into next year. However, I highlighted that Tony Duckett had some strong performances last season. From February 8th to the end of the season, he averaged 3.6 assists per game in an expanded role. He could be a legitimate secondary ball handler option to tag up with Lewis while Dent still provides some help as well.
However, despite being a little thin at point, they aren’t thin on offensive options. With Murauskas, Lewis, and the freshmen coming in, Saint Mary’s has a plethora of options to use to score. Tony Duckett played well at San Diego and should be a solid option at shooting guard. Harry Wessels and McKeever both can lock down the paint. At the three and four, they have more options than the majority of programs.
It’s worth calling out that this is an incredibly young team. Harry Wessels is going to be the lone senior, while there are ten players with just a year or less of playing experience. There will be some up and downs, but this is a highly talented team. If Bennett can help the team gel together and bring out the best talent in each player, we have a Saint Mary’s team that should be able to return to the NCAA Tournament and compete with Gonzaga and a strong San Francisco team at the top of the West Coast Conference.