Saints Cap 2023 Schedule With 76-56 Win at Caltech

PASADENA, Calif. – Saints men's basketball shot a season-high 56.4 percent on 31-of-55 shooting, finishing up the 2023 part of their schedule with a 76-56 victory over the Caltech Beavers on Saturday night at Braun Gymnasium.

The 31 made field goals were also a season-high for the Saints, who added 8-for-20 shooting from beyond the arc in the 20-point win. Surrendering just 56 points, Emmanuel finishes 2023 allowing the fewest points to an opponent this season.

The Saints lead was built in the opening minutes as a 17-2 run early in the game send Emmanuel off and running in the first half. Emmanuel led by as many as 17 in the opening half, shooting 17-of-30 from the floor in the first 20 minutes, as the Saints went to halftime with a 39-22 lead.

Emmanuel kept the Beavers at a comfortable distance for the second half, never leading by fewer than double digits at any point in the half.

The Saints opened up their largest lead of the evening after a layup by senior Donte Pope (Middletown, Conn.) put the visitors ahead 61-39. Emmanuel would take two other 22-point leads in the closing minutes, on their way to a 76-56 win in the last game of their California trip.

Pope finished the game with 26 points on 10-of-12 shooting, including a perfect 5-of-5 from three-point distance. The perfect shooting from beyond the arc makes Pope only the second player in program history to shoot 100 percent from three-point distance (min. 5 three-point FGMs).

The senior guard added eight rebounds and four steals. Sophomore Zaire Baines (Queens, N.Y.) chipped in with 14 points, shooting 6-of-11 in 23 minutes. Junior Teddy Kelly (Gaithersburg, Md.) had six points in six minutes off the bench.

Beavers sophomore Noah Hicks (Oxford, Ga.) finished with a team-high 16 points to go along with three assists and three steals. First-year Ryan Hu (Bellevue, Wash.) had 14 points in 21 minutes off the bench.

The Saints finish 2023 at 5-7 and return to action on Jan. 7, 2024, traveling to Tufts University for a 1:00 p.m. tip next Sunday. Caltech drops to 1-10 and preps for Claremont-Mudd-Scripts on Jan. 6, 2024, at 2:00 p.m.