The Santa Clara University (SCU) men’s basketball team received a hero’s send-off on Wednesday morning as the men boarded a bus bound for the airport and, ultimately, St. Louis. On Friday, the No. 10-seeded Broncos will play the No. 7-seeded Kentucky Wildcats in the first round of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. Tip-off is scheduled for 9:15 a.m.
The Broncos received an at-large bid to the tournament on Sunday, after finishing the season with a 26-8 record. A win in the West Coast Tournament would have guaranteed the Broncos a spot in the tournament, but SCU lost to nationally ranked Gonzaga in the finals.
Still, the team’s showing throughout the season against tough opponents like Gonzaga was enough to earn the team an at-large bid. Santa Clara has spent the season receiving performances from up and down the lineup.
Junior Christian Hammond leads the team in scoring, averaging 15.8 points per game. Senior Elijah Mahi is second on the team in scoring. Mahi is in his second season with SCU. He transferred to the university from West Valley Junior College.
Freshman Allen Graves was a surprise breakout player for the Broncos this season. Graves was selected for the First Team All-WCC and took home the WCC Freshman and Sixth Man of the Year honors. He’s averaging 11.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 0.9 blocks per game. Graves was also recently named one of the finalists for the 2025-26 Kyle Macy Award, given to the top freshman in Division I college basketball.
This is the first time that Santa Clara has received an invitation to the big dance since alumni Steve Nash attended the university in 1996.
SCU’s men’s basketball program has seen a resurgence under Head Coach Herb Sendek. In 2022, he brought the team back to the NIT for the first time since the 1980s. He also brought players into the program, such as recent NBA first-round picks Jalen Williams and Brandin Podziemski.
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