MORAGA (AP) — Jock Landale had 16 points and 11 rebounds and No. 22 Saint Mary’s beat Loyola Marymount 81-48 on Thursday night.

Evan Fitzner had a season-high 13 points — all in the first half — and Calvin Hermanson added 11 to help the Gaels (23-3, 13-2 West Coast Conference) to their eighth win in nine games.

Playing for the first time since losing to No. 1 Gonzaga last week, Saint Mary’s showed no lingering effects and led by as many as 38 points while extending its winning streak to 11 straight against Loyola Marymount.

Brandon Brown scored 10 points for Loyola Marymount. The Lions (12-14, 5-10) have lost 22 of their last 23 against the Gaels.

Landale provided the bulk of the offense with his 12th double-double of the season on 6-of-7 shooting.

Unlike many games this season, the Gaels provided their big man with plenty of offensive support. Fitzner, who played just 2 minutes against the Lions when the teams played in December, and Hermanson made three 3-pointers each.

The win assures Saint Mary’s of finishing no worse than tied for second in the WCC. The Gaels can clinch the No. 2 seed for the conference tournament with a win over BYU on Saturday.

Saint Mary’s got off to a fast start behind Fitzner.

The Gaels’ sophomore forward made two early 3-pointers, teamed with Landale and Tanner Krebs for all of the scoring during a 17-2 run then made another shot beyond the arc with 51 seconds left to help push Saint Mary’s halftime lead to 46-25.

BIG PICTURE

Loyola Marymount: A mismatch in just about every way. The Lions shot just 38 percent, were outrebounded 37-19 and had only one player in double figures. They also went more than 10 minutes without a field goal in the second half.

Saint Mary’s: Save for a little sloppy patch near the end of the first half, this was a crisp game offensively for the Gaels. The key was getting steady scoring from someone other than Landale, and Fitzner provided just that to keep the Lions from collapsing the interior. . Joe Rahon had five rebounds and seven assists.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

The Gaels dropped two spots in the latest poll following their loss to No. 1 Gonzaga last week. The win over the Lions won’t garner much support but with No. 20 Creighton and No. 21 South Carolina losing earlier in the week, the door is open for Saint Mary’s to climb back into the top 20.

UP NEXT

Loyola Marymount: The Lions return home to host Pepperdine on Saturday.

Saint Mary’s: Travels to BYU on Saturday night.

___

More AP college basketball: www.collegebasketball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25.