The Spartans dropped the first of a three-game trip to Saint Mary's but found some mojo against one of the country's best teams and used it to beat the following two opponents.
The last time the two teams met was on Dec. 5, 2015. Santa Clara beat San Jose State 78-75 in a nail-biter inside the Leavy Center. The Spartans managed to hold Jared Brownridge to just four points, but allowed Nate Kratch to kill them down low in the process. Kratch finished with a career-high 29 points on 13-of-15 shooting. Cody Schwartz hit four threes for the Spartans.