Portland cruises past Santa Clara 74-54

Feb 7, 2015, 10:37 pm

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Thomas van der Mars scored 16 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and Portland coasted to a 74-54 win over Santa Clara on Saturday night.

Bryce Pressley and Kevin Bailey also scored 16 points apiece as Portland (14-10, 5-7 West Coast) shot 61.9 percent from the field on 42 attempts while controlling the glass 34-21. Four of Pressley's five buckets came from beyond the arc.

The Pilots, who never trailed, broke away late in the first half with a 10-0 burst fueled by seven points from Bailey to make it 39-20 with 2:09 to go before the break. Santa Clara's Jared Brownridge sank a 3-pointer midway through the second to make it 55-46 but Portland responded with a 9-0 run and the margin never tightened below double figures again.

Brandon Clark led Santa Clara (11-14, 5-8) with 18 points and Brownridge finished with 10.