Santa Clara did about what was expected under first-year coach Kerry Keating, but was so close to accomplishing so much more.

The Broncos lost a ton of close games, including two to Gonzaga, and had they won just half of them, they might have reached a postseason tournament. They were 3-12 in games decided by six points or fewer or went to overtime.

Being close in a number of games may be enough to push the program along a bit, and Santa Clara will have some important personnel additions next season, although one important one -- Desensae White -- will not be eligible to play until December after transferring from Texas Tech.

The Broncos will also add 7-foot center Scott Thompson, who redshirted his freshman season after having an appendectomy in the fall.

The Broncos already have a big man in the middle in John Bryant, who will return after a breakout junior season in which he became one of the conference's best scorers and rebounders.

Freshman Ben Dowdell showed he can play in the WCC and has enough intensity and skill to become an all-conference player and emotional leader.

The biggest issue next season will be point guard, because the Broncos lose Brody Angley, who was the driving force for the team all season. His importance was magnified when he sustained a concussion in the opening minutes of the game against Gonzaga and missed nearly the entire game.

The Broncos got blown out without him.

With Angley, the Broncos gave Gonzaga a scare twice, including one game Santa Clara had in its hip pocket before a loose-ball foul 70 feet from the basket with less than a second left gave the Bulldogs a chance to tie the game and win it in overtime. It was one of the many winnable games the Broncos did not win.

The only other senior on the roster this season was Mitch Henke, but he too was a stabilizing force who was also the team's third-leading scorer.

The Broncos' 3-6 record in their final nine games makes it look like they got worse, but that was not really the case. They did have a bad loss against Portland in that stretch, but four of the losses were to Gonzaga (twice), St. Mary's and San Diego.

The team adjusted pretty well to Keating, who showed he might be able to make some things happen at Santa Clara. It will take another year or two to determine what he'll be able to accomplish after working with players recruited by his predecessor, Dick Davey, this season.

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