Broncos Get Revenge Against Rival Dons

Bronco Elijah Mahi ’26 maneuvers through San Francisco defenders

Photo by Dylan Ryu

It was a tale of two halves on Saturday as the Santa Clara Broncos took down the San Francisco Dons 77-54 in a rematch between the two rivals. Both teams got off to sluggish starts, shooting less than 38% from the field. The Dons led 28-21 at the half after forcing 10 Bronco turnovers. The Bronco’s 21 points at the half were the least they’ve scored since Jan. 13, 2024, against St. Mary’s when they posted just 18 points in the first half.

In the second half, the Broncos put on a dominant display, outsourcing the Dons 56-26 in the second half—their largest scoring margin in any half this season. 

“We didn’t make any tactical adjustments at halftime,” Broncos head coach Herb Sendek said. “We simply reinforced the message we had given our team before the game.”

The Broncos shot over 67% from the field and 70% from the 3-point line in the second half. Carlos Stewart ’25 scored 25 points—a season-high—in the second half alone.

“We approached this game like any other game, ” Stewart said. “We know how we’re supposed to plan, so on to the next and we’re going to be better.”

Elijah Mahi ’26 had 17 points, his seventh game this season scoring over 15 points.

“I really wanted this win—we all wanted this win,” Mahi said. “We have a standard as a team, and we have to keep playing to that standard.”

Johnny O’Neil ’25 had 4 steals, a career-high, while also adding 5 rebounds. Christoph Tilly ’26 and Adama Alpha-Bal ’25 both chipped in 10 points apiece.

San Francisco’s Malik Thomas led the Dons with 19 points as the team was unable to match the Broncos momentum.

“I thought we let the lack of shot-making influence our defense in the second half,” Dons head coach Chris Gerlufsen said. “We didn’t respond in moments of adversity, credit to them, we need to get a lot better quickly.”

The Broncos look to extend their three-game win streak as they take on the Loyola Marymount Lions on Thursday.