If you were lucky enough to see the game against Oregon on ESPN the commentators raved about Patrick. His firts two 3 point shots were out past the NBA circle range which was noted. Interesting comment was that being a small college they found it difficult to recruit high profile american players and that is why they recruited in Australia (four Aussies on the roster). Following is interesting article from San Francisco newspaper:
Gaels go Down Under to move up the ladder
Jake Curtis
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
(12-04) 20:23 PST -- St. Mary's is almost famous.
The Gaels remain unranked, which keeps them a mystery to most of America, but they are on the cusp of their first national ranking since 1989, already owning what would be the No. 26 slot in both Top 25 polls. In fact, they are a single point from being ranked in the USA Today poll.
If St. Mary's beats San Diego State (7-1) in Anaheim on Saturday, however, the Gaels could make that small but meaningful leap to No. 25. Then the country would start noticing that this team is scoring points by the bushel, that it easily handled two top-drawer teams and that it has a distinct Australian flavor accented by a standout freshman point guard with the less-than-intimidating name of Patty.
"The four of them start talking about stuff and no one else can understand them," said St. Mary's sophomore Omar Samhan, who lives with two of the team's four Aussies.
They communicate just fine on the court. Three of the Aussies are part of the Gaels' nine-man rotation that has produced the school's first 6-0 start in 19 years, and one of them, Patty Mills, is the chief reason St. Mary's has become a fast-breaking offensive machine almost overnight.
"Mills is instant transition," coach Randy Bennett said.
Bennett would not dare compare Mills with Jason Kidd, but the coach notes that putting the ball in Kidd's hands automatically begins a fast break and says Mills has that same effect.
The presence of Mills and three other quick guards - and not a change in Bennett's coaching style - is why the Gaels are averaging 86 points a game. St. Mary's averaged 61 points in Bennett's first season, 2001-02.
"This is kind of the way we wanted to play the past several years," fifth-year guard Todd Golden said.
Now, though, Bennett has the players to do it, thanks, in large part, to that Australian pipeline, although it's not really a pipeline so much as a domino effect begun by a stroke of luck.
Bennett had not even seen Adam Caporn play in high school, but Bennett needed a point guard, had a scholarship available and somebody said this kid from Australia was pretty good. So Caporn arrived in 2001, helped the Gaels, felt good about the school and had been teammates with another Aussie, Daniel Kickert, who figured St. Mary's might work for him, too. Kickert turned into an all-conference player who helped the Gaels get into the 2005 NCAA Tournament.
"Adam opened the door for Australia," Bennett said. "If it hadn't been for him, we wouldn't have gotten Kickert, and if hadn't been for Kickert, we wouldn't have gotten Mills."
So far, Bennett has had six Aussies play for him - and he's recruiting more.
As important as the Aussies is the improvement of Samhan, a 6-foot-11 center. Not a particularly nimble player last season, Samhan worked out on the track in the offseason, dropped 20 pounds and can keep up with the Gaels' fast-paced attack.
"Yeah, he can run on offense," Bennett said. "He likes to score."
It's a veiled reference to Samhan's defensive shortcomings, a concern because the Gaels have yet to play a team with a strong low-post presence. More significant is that the Gaels have yet to play a game anywhere but McKeon Pavilion, their 3,500-seat arena (the smallest among the 50 schools that received votes in either poll this week).
Saturday's game in Anaheim is their first game away from home, and Tuesday's game at Southern Illinois will be their first game on an opponent's court. Bennett knows teams prove their worth on the road, but he has been surprised at how well his team has played so far at home.
Beating then-No. 12 Oregon and previously unbeaten Seton Hall was not shocking, but dominating both teams the way St. Mary's did surprised almost everyone.
"Me too," Bennett said.
