March 17, 2026
Scoring an upset in the first round of the NCAA Division II Tournament, the St. Mary’s University Men’s Basketball team’s dance ended with a second-round loss on Sunday to Black Hills State.
Playing at the Burg Center at Dallas Baptist University, the Rattlers (22-10) lost 78-60 to the Yellow Jackets (29-4) a day after a thrilling buzzer-beater win against second-seed Eastern New Mexico on March 14.
This was the second consecutive year the Men’s team reached the NCAA South Central Regional Semifinals.
Senior Sebastian Mendoza led the team with 16 points, while he and junior Justin Britt each had four steals. Britt also added 14 points.
With the 12 total steals on Sunday, the Rattlers cemented themselves in school history with 278, breaking the previous record of 262 steals by the 1993-94 team.
Senior Eddie McPhee led the game with six rebounds, and senior Wayne Wiggins had two of the team’s five assists.
Britt opened the scoring with a three-pointer from the corner on the first possession of the game, and the Rattlers held the lead until the 11:44 mark when Blake Volmer hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 10-10. It was again tied at 12-12 when the Yellow Jackets went on a 6-0 run, and stretched the lead to 11 at the half, 31-20.
BHSU came out of the locker room for the second half and kept the pressure up, hitting three consecutive three-pointers, with two by Cam Lowe, and they led by double digits throughout the second half. Twice, the Rattlers trimmed a 21-point deficit to 14, but they were unable to get any closer.