LOS ANGELES (AP) Paulius Murauskas scored 18 points, including a pivotal 3-pointer with 30 seconds left, and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead No. 23 Saint Mary’s past Loyola Marymount 58-55 on Thursday night for its sixth straight victory.
The Gaels, making their first appearance in the AP Top 25 this season, took the lead for good on a putback by Murauskas with 6:08 to play in the first half amid a 16-2 run that made it 24-17 when Mikey Lewis hit a 3 about five minutes later.
Saint Mary’s (26-4, 16-1 West Coast Conference) clinched its second consecutive outright regular-season conference title with a 74-67 win at Gonzaga last time out.
Caleb Stone-Carrawell led Loyola Marymount (16-13, 8-9) with 17 points, and Will Johnston scored 12.
Mitchell Saxen played his program-record 151st career game for the Gaels, breaking the mark set by Alex Ducas (2019-24). Saxen fouled out with about five minutes left and finished with seven rebounds.
Harry Wessels, a 7-foot-1 junior, had nine points, eight rebounds and two blocks for Saint Mary’s.
Saint Mary’s: The Gaels showed grit and resilience, grinding out a win despite sporadic shooting (38% overall, 4 of 15 from 3-point range) and Saxen’s foul trouble.
Loyola Marymount: LMU showed it can play with the top team in the league and will be a tough out in the conference tournament.
Murauskas, a 31% shooter from 3-point range, hit a corner 3 as the shot clock expired that gave the Gaels a 57-51 lead.
Saint Mary’s outrebounded the Lions 43-26, including 12-2 on the offensive glass, and outscored Loyola Marymount 10-2 in second-chance points.
Saint Mary’s returns home to wrap up its regular season against Oregon State on Saturday. Loyola Marymount awaits the conference tournament, which begins March 6 in Paradise, Nevada.
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| TOP SCORERS | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
23
 |
P. Murauskas F | 18PTS | 12REB | 2AST | |
|
25
 |
C. Stone-Carrawell F | 17PTS | 0REB | 2AST | |
| STARTERS | PTS | REB | AST | PF |
| P. Murauskas | 18 | 12 | 2 | 3 |
| A. Marciulionis | 9 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| J. Ross | 7 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| L. Barrett | 5 | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| M. Saxen | 4 | 7 | 3 | 5 |
| BENCH | PTS | REB | AST | PF |
| H. Wessels | 9 | 8 | 2 | 2 |
| M. Lewis | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| A. Hardaway | – | – | – | – |
| K. Gad | – | – | – | – |
| C. Bennett | – | – | – | – |
| R. Hawke | – | – | – | – |
| A. McKeever | – | – | – | – |
| J. Dent | – | – | – | – |
| L. Campbell | – | – | – | – |
| O. Faubert | – | – | – | – |
| Total | 58 | 38 | 13 | 17 |
| STARTERS | PTS | REB | AST | PF |
| C. Stone-Carrawell | 17 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| W. Johnston | 12 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| R. Issanza | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| A. Merkviladze | 2 | 6 | 0 | 4 |
| L. Lewis | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| BENCH | PTS | REB | AST | PF |
| J. Porter | 9 | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| M. Amey Jr. | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| J. Vide | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| A. McBride | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| J. Ristic | – | – | – | – |
| M. Diop | – | – | – | – |
| K. Carney | – | – | – | – |
| G. Tupy | – | – | – | – |
| M. Zeller | – | – | – | – |
| J. Martin | – | – | – | – |
| Total | 55 | 24 | 8 | 16 |