Master's drops home non-conference game for first time since 2015

DJ Wilson buried a wide-open three-pointer.

Brock Gardner's trey barely moved the net.

Gardner stole a pass, dribbled behind his back and finished with an emphatic two-handed dunk in transition.

Early signs suggested The Master's University men's basketball team was headed for a commanding win inside the MacArthur Center on Monday night. But after the Mustangs scored the game's first 10 points, St. Katherine responded with a level of energy TMU didn't match, coming back to stun the Mustangs, 73-71.

St. Katherine is the first non-conference opponent to beat Master's at home since Dec. 30, 2015. 

Tim Soares scored 22 points to lead the No. 12-ranked Mustangs (20-7), who will host No. 4 Westmont (25-2) on Saturday for senior night. Gardner added 18 points, but it wasn't enough to overcome a Firebirds team that improved to 13-10 and has now won 10 straight games.

St. Katherine – which lost by 17 to Master's in November – outrebounded the Mustangs, 38-34, and made 10 three-pointers, marking the fifth straight home game in which the Mustangs have allowed their opponent to make double-digit threes.

"We didn't come in just expecting to win," Gardner said. "We expected to battle, but having another home loss like this against a team we feel we should have beaten is disappointing. It makes us hungrier for Westmont on Saturday. But it's tough to take right now."

Gabriel Knight scored 20 points for St. Katherine, which closed the first half on a 23-11 run to pull into halftime tied 35-35.

Soares carried the Mustangs with 12 points in the first half, looking every bit the player who was selected to the Bevo Francis Top 50 Watch List this week.

The award is given annually to the player who has had the "finest overall season" in the NAIA, NCAA Division 2, Division 3, USCAA and NCCAA, and Soares' string of dunks and blocks Monday supported his case for inclusion.  

It was the Firebirds, though, who controlled the beginning of the second half, pulling ahead by 12 with 11:01 remaining.

As they've often done in such situations this season, the Mustangs found a way to erase all of it, taking a one-point lead on a Soares jumper with 7:28 left.  But less than a minute later, St. Katherine reclaimed the lead for good on a Javonte Matthews three-pointer.

The Mustangs remained within striking distance, but the Firebirds salted the game away at the free throw line. Jordan Starr hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to set the final score. 

"We got outworked tonight, outcompeted," said Master's head coach Kelvin Starr. "There were a number of plays I could point to that weren't good, but at the end of the day we got out-played. It's really simple."

Starr ultimately took responsibility for TMU's fourth loss in its last five home games.  

"It's on me at the end of the day," Starr said. "It's embarrassing to me that we can't come out and compete any time we step on the floor. That's on me. It's my leadership. I'm responsible for it."

The Mustangs outscored St. Katherine 30-14 in the paint, but the Firebirds' bench contributed 14 points to only three for Master's.

Wilson and Jordan Starr each finished with 11 points.

Asked if there was a common theme in TMU's four recent losses inside the MacArthur Center, Gardner pointed to the Mustangs' inconsistency on defense.  

"When we're getting stops on defense, it opens things up on offense for us, and we're efficient on offense," he said. "But if we're slacking on defense, letting guys get straight line drives or knock down a couple threes, it's tough to stay in the game when we're letting those things happen. If we're right defensively, we're going to win. If we're a little off, it's going to be iffy."

The Mustangs hope to be at their best defensively on Saturday against first-place Westmont, a team Master's beat 70-69 in Santa Barbara last month.