A former walk-on to a starter at St. Mary's (California), Luke Barrett joins this week's episode of @Notevend2 . In the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, with no Division 1 offers, Barrett committed to the University of Pomona Pitzer (Division 3). Soon after his commitment, he heard from the St. Mary's coaching staff that a walk-on roster spot was available for him. Barrett ultimately decommitted from the D3 school and walked on to play for the Gaels.

Barrett held the walk-on role for his first two years of college basketball. After those two years, Luke worked his way up to be a scholarship basketball player. Barrett continued to work hard throughout the years and as St. Mary's continued their success, so did he. Barrett started for the Gaels every game during the 2024-25 season, and was the fourth leading scorer (9.8 ppg).St. Mary's has won the West Coast Conference regular season title three years in a row and made the NCAA tournament each of the last four years.

Hear about Luke's journey becoming a scholarship player, what it was like being coached by 6x WCC COTY, Randy Bennett, and what the future for Luke Barrett looks like.

This episode is available wherever you listen to podcasts. Make sure to subscribe to the podcasts YouTube channel @Notevend2 for more sports content.

Enjoy the episode!

Sneak Peek- 00:00-00:16

March Madness Recap- 00:16-06:23

Intro- 06:23-11:58

West Coast / California vs. East Coast Lifestyle- 11:58-14:15

Saint Mary's 2025 March Madness Run, SMC vs. Gonzaga Rivarlry- 14:15-21:11

Coach Bennett, Journey Walking On to SMC, Story from Walk-on to Scholarship Player- 21:11-31:41

Saint Mary's Development System & Rebounding Strategy, Relationship with Mitchell Saxen & Augustus Marčulionis- 31:41-39:19

Break- 39:19-39:27

Thoughts on Transfer Portal for HM Schools, St. Mary's Overseas Presence / Overseas Players in CBB- 39:27-44:27

Scouting Process @ SMC, Offseason Development over the Years, Future for Luke Barrett- 44:27-50:58

Rapid Fire (Musical Inspirations, Favorite Arenas, Funniest Teammates)- 50:58-55:01

Starting 5: Best WCC Players Played Against- 55:01-58:24

Outro- 58:24-59:16