Dons Dual with Pepperdine as Both Look for First Conference Win

Thursday, January 10

Firestone Fieldhouse

7:00 PM

University of San Francisco

Pepperdine University

Zhane Dikes is second on the squad in scoring, posting 9.5 points per game.

Photo by: ISIPHOTOS

Dons Dual with Pepperdine as Both Look for First Conference Win

1/9/2013 12:58:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Complete game notes (PDF)

San Francisco Dons
7-8 overall; 0-2 West Coast Conference
vs.
Pepperdine Waves
3-9 overall; 0-1 West Coast Conference

Game 16
Saturday || Jan. 10, 2013 || 7 p.m.
Malibu, Calif.
Firestone Fieldhouse (3,104)
Listen: www.usfdons.com/live

Just the Facts, Ma'am

San Francisco (7-8, 0-2 WCC) looks to stop a four-game slide as it meets up with Pepperdine in Malibu, Calif. The Dons are coming off a loss to BYU in Provo, Utah last Saturday.
The Waves (3-9, 0-1 WCC) enter Thursday's contest also riding a four-game losing streak, with its latest coming at the hands of Loyola Marymount, a 65-47 defeat for Pepperdine in its first conference contest of the season.

In It to Win It

USF's 7-6 non-conference start is the best opening to a season since the Jennifer Azzi era began in 2010-11. The last time the Dons were above the .500 mark 13 games into the season was 2007-08, when the Dons entered conference action with a 9-6 non-conference record. That season, the team went on to finish 14-16 overall and notch its last double-digit win tally on the year.

Know the Foe

The Waves are led by two double-digit scorers in Shay Cooney-Williams (10.8 ppg) and Robie Mayberry (10.6 ppg), but Mayberry is out indefinitely due to a medical condition and has missed the last three contests for Pepperdine.
Along with missing Mayberry's scoring, her 5.4 rebounds per game leads the team, she's second in steals with 1.9 per game and the third-best assist-getter, averaging 2.0 per game.
Pepperdine's wins on the season have come at UC Davis, and against South Dakota and Seattle. In the coaches preseason poll, the Waves were slated to finish eighth, just head of the Dons.

USF and Pepperdine—The Series

The Waves hold a slight 33-31 advantage in the all-time series over the Dons, and have bested USF in eight of its last nine head-to-head contests. The series, which began in 1978, was marked by two AIAW regional games to kick off the long-standing matchup.

BYU Remix

The Dons were stalled by slow starts to both halves, where USF was outscored a combined 25-3 in the opening minutes of periods.
Denae Mary Williams led the team in scoring for the first time in her career, registering 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting and a perfect 4-for-4 outing at the line.
All nine USF players scored at least two points and provided at least one rebound—a first this season.

By the Numbers—The Highlights
The Dons dot the WCC leaderboard, in both team and individual categories:

Team—
(Rank/Category/Avg.)
2. Defensive rebounds—28.7
3. FG % defense—.371
3. Rebounding offense—42.1

Individual—
Scoring
3. Mel Khlok—15.9
19. Zhane Dikes—9.5
Rebounding
11. Taylor Proctor—6.7
12. Alicia Scafidi—6.6
15. Taj Winston—5.5

Minutes
1. Mel Khlok—35.4
Steals
4. Mel Khlok—2.3
3-PT FG Made
3. Mel Khlok—2.3
3-PT FG Percentage
7. Mel Khlok—.370

A Look Ahead

Up next, the Dons welcome the Portland Pilots to War Memorial Gym Saturday at 2 p.m., before heading to Loyola Marymount for a Thursday contest.

On the Air

Listen to longtime voice of the Dons, George Devine, call all the action from the USF women's basketball team all season long at www.usfdons.com.
Devine is in his 17th season as the play-by-play voice of the Dons. Listen to the call and follow along with live stats and video for all home contests at War Memorial Gym, in partnership with Stretch Internet. Hear the call for both home and away games by going to www.usfdons.com/live.

Follow the Dons

Fans can keep up on the latest in USF athletics through several ways.
Become a fan of the Dons on Facebook by going to www.facebook.com/DonsAthletics - and follow the women's basketball team specifically at www.facebook.com/SanFranciscoWBB.
Become a follower of USF on Twitter at www.twitter.com/DonsAthletics or follow coach @Jennifer Azzi.
Check out video of the Dons in action at www.youtube.com/USFDonsAthletics.