Box Score
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The San Francisco women's basketball team evened its season slate at 3-3 after a 68-60 road loss at the hands of Sacramento State at The Nest on Wednesday night.
The Dons were plagued by a rash of turnovers and opportunistic offensive rebounds by the Hornets that led to 39 total points for Sacramento State and proved to be the deciding factor in the contest. All told, USF gave the ball up to the home team 34 times, a season high and the most turnovers committed by the team since a 35-turnover game at San Jose State on Nov. 13, 2011.
The Dons jumped into the lead early in the contest, and didn't relinquish its hold for good until there was two minutes to play and Kylie Kuhns' layup gave Sacramento State a 57-55 lead. The Hornets made 9-of-10 from the free throw line in the game's closing moments to come away with the win and move to 3-2 on the season. Kuhns, who is averaging a double-double on the season and holds the Sacramento State career rebounding record, finished with a game-high 21 points and 18 rebounds in the win.
USF capitalized on 42.9 percent first half shooting percentage from the field while disrupting the normally fast-paced Sacramento State offense into shooting a frenetic 26.3 percent in the opening 20 minutes. Despite committing 14 first-half turnovers, the effective 12-of-28 shooting and 25-20 rebounding edge held by the Dons in the half was good enough to jump out to a double-digit lead after the game was tied at 9-9 with 12:21 to play in the period.
USF nabbed a 10-point lead after
Alicia Scafidi drained three-consecutive buckets and
Mel Khlok added her second 3-pointer of the night to put the score at 26-16. The Hornets got the last four points of the half and nearly put in a buzzer-beating heave to close the period on a high, but USF maintained a 31-22 halftime advantage.
The Hornets came out buzzing in the second, forcing six turnovers and scoring nine points in the first two minutes of the period to make the Dons lead disappear. A
Taylor Proctor bucket stopped the Sacramento State run and put USF ahead 33-31 with 18 minutes to play. The Dons woes with ball control continued as Sacramento State continued to capitalize and take the 39-37 lead after a steal and layup by Mallorie Franco.
The lead went back and forth for the next 10 minutes when USF regrouped and again regained the upper hand. A
Zhané Dikes layup with 4:32 to play gave the Dons a 54-50 lead that proved to be short-lived, however. The Hornets scored the next five points to squelch the USF advantage and begin an 18-6 run that dashed USF's chance at the win.
The Dons outshot the Hornets 42.1 to 31.6 percent and owned the 48-44 overall advantage on the boards, but USF was outrebounded 19-11 on the offensive glass. Khlok, a senior playing in her hometown of Sacramento, Calif., for the final time in her collegiate career, finished with a team-high 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting for the Dons. Freshman
Denae Mary Wiliams finished as USF's leading rebounder with nine and Scafidi, a sophomore from Gresham, Ore., contributed season-highs of 10 points and seven rebounds in the loss.
This marks the beginning of a three-game road swing for the Dons, who next travel to Texas-San Antonio for a clash on Sunday at noon (PT).
