Game #7
San Francisco Dons (4-2, 0-0 WCC) vs. Colorado Buffaloes (4-1, 0-0 Pac-12)
Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2014 • 7:00 p.m. (PT)
Coors Event Center • Boulder, Colo.
Series Record: USF leads 3-1
Last Meeting: Nov.  20, 2010 (USF 83-81 OT)
Audio/Video Streaming: TheW.tv (Pat Olson, Play-by-Play; Jim Brovelli, Analyst)
Television: Pac-12 Network (Kevin Calabro, Play-by-Play; Matt Muehelbach, Analyst)

Complete USF Game Notes (PDF) | Complete Colorado Game Notes (PDF)

The Dandy Dons

• Off to a 4-2 start after Sunday's 76-57 win over Montana...opened the season with three straight wins before suffering losses to Florida Gulf Coast and Evansville in the Gulf Coast Classic.
• Play its first true road game on the season Wednesday at Colorado...were 7-5 in road games last year (1-1 on neutral courts) and are 13-11 on the road over the last two seasons.
• Lead the all-time series with Colorado, 3-1...two teams llast met in 2010-11 season with the Dons scoring a 83-81 overtime victory on the Hilltop...last trip to Boulder resulted in a 78-54 loss on Dec. 1, 2009.
• Scoring 76.7 points per game, which ranks fourth in the WCC and allowing just 61.5 ppg - second lowest in the conference.
• Lead the WCC in rebounding (44.7) and offensive rebounds (14.3) per game...four of five starters averaging between 6.7 and 5.8 boards per game, led by Kruize Pinkins and Matt Glover at 6.7.
• Shooting just 55.7 percent (88-for-158) from the line after six games...USF shot just 64.8 percent (523-for-807) from the line last season, which ranked last in the WCC.
• Have held the first five opponents to 36.9 percent shooting from the floor and own a 44.7 to 32.5 (+12.2) advantage on the boards.
• Senior Kruize Pinkins leads the team in scoring (17.0) and is tied for the team lead in rebounding (6.7)...he is also shooting 56.5 percent from the field.
• Junior Mark Tollefsen has scored in double figures in all six games this season, including a career high 23 points vs. Evansville...he averaged 16.3 ppg over his last four games, boosting his season average to its present 14.8 ppg mark.
• Senior Matt Glover has made 7-of-8 three-point attempts to start the season and leads the WCC in three-point field goal percentage at .778.
• Have used three different lineups in six games thus far this season...used three starting combos all of last season.
• The win over Montana was Rex Walters' 102nd coaching victory at USF...six other Don coaches have reached the 100-win milestone.
• Coming off a 21-12 record and an NIT appearance last season...21 wins were the highest total since the 1981-82 season...also tied for second in the WCC with a 13-5 record, posting its highest conference win total since 1976-77.
• Signed Dont'e Reynolds of Kinston, NC (Odessa College) to a national letter of intent on Monday...he joins Cedric Wright (Fort Lauderdale, FL / Dillard HS) in this year's recruiting class.
• Return home Sunday afternoon to face Houston Baptist at 2:00 p.m., marking the first of cour consecutive home games...last non-conference road game comes at Cleveland State on Dec. 21.

Opening Tip
USF (4-2, 0-0 WCC) plays its first true road game of the 2014-15 season Wednesday night when the Dons meet the Colorado Buffaloes (4-1, 0-0 Pac-12) at the Coors Events Center in Boulder. Both teams are coming off home wins on Sunday, as the Dons scored a 76-57 over Montana while the Buffaloes downed Lipscomb, 84-75.

Series History with Colorado
USF leads the all-time series with Colorado, 3-1. The two schools last met on Nov. 20, 2010, with the Dons scoring a 83-81 overtime win in San Francisco. USF last ventured to Boulder on Dec. 1, 2009, dropping a 78-54 decision to the Buffaloes. The two teams first met in the 1946-47 season, with the Dons scoring a 34-30 victory in Boulder. USF also defeated Colorado, 62-50 on March 18, 1955 in the Final Four held in Kansas City en route to its first of two straight national championships.

Last Meeting With Colorado
Guard Michael Williams made two technical free throws with 2.4 seconds remaining in overtime to lift USF to a 83-81 victory over Colorado at Memorial Gymnasium. Angelo Caloiaro scored a career-high 26 points while Rashad Green added 16 points to pace the Dons scoring. Green's putback of a Cody Doolin miss tied the game at 81 with 2.4 left. Colorado was judged by the officiating crew to have called timeout after Green's basket, but the Buffaloes had none remaining, so Williams was sent to the line, where he made both to win the game. Alec Burks and Cory Higgins had 29 and 28 points, respectively, for the Buffaloes.  Burks missed a running 30-footer as time expired. The Dons shot 63.2 percent from three-point range, with Caloiaro nailing 6-of-7.

Family Ties
The family of USF Athletic Director Scott Sidwell has deep ties to the University of Colorado. Scott's grandfather Don Sidwell played basketball for the Buffaloes from 1937-39 and played on Colorado's 1937 NIT team. Scott's father Steve and uncle Dave both played football at Colorado in the mid-60s. Steve was a first team All-Big 8 linebacker in 1965 and also was the co-recipient of the Zack Jordan Award as the team's most valuable player. Steve also earned CoSIDA Academic All-America honors and was a first team All-Big 8 academic selection, as well. Steve's college roommate was golf legend Hale Irwin, who also earned All-Big 8 honors as a defensive back. Scott Sidwell was born in Boulder when his father served as linebacker's coach at Colorado under Eddie Crowder.

Last Time Out
Kruize Pinkins matched his career-high for the second time this season with 26 points to lead USF to a 76-57 victory over Montana Sunday afternoon in Memorial Gymnasium. Pinkins made 9-of-11 shots from the field, including his only three-point attempt, and converted all seven of his free throws to finish with 26 points for the third time in his career. Junior Tim Derksen made 6-of-7 shots from the floor and finished with 17 points while Mark Tollefsen reached double figures for the sixth consecutive game, finishing with 15 points. The Dons, who never trailed in the game, shot a season-best 64.9 percent from the field while holding the Grizzlies to 33.3 percent shooting. USF also held a 36-25 advantage on the boards. The Dons led by as many as 25 points at 71-46 with 4:21 left after Tollefsen converted a pair of free thows before winning by the final count of 76-57.

The Road Record
USF was 7-5 in true road games last season and boast a 13-11 record on opponent's home courts over the last two campaigns.

The Defensive Numbers
The Dons rank second in the WCC in opponent scoring average, allowing a stingy 61.5 points per game through the first six contests.  Only two teams - Hawaii (73) and Evansville (72) - have managed to score more than 70 points vs. the Dons. USF also ranks second in field goal defense (36.9) and sixth in three-point field goal defense (32.6).

From the Line
USF is shooting just 55.7 percent (88-for-158) from the line at the six game mark of the season. USF shot just 64.8 percent (523-for-807) from the line last season, which ranked last in the WCC. The Dons free throw percentage was its lowest mark since the 1985-86 team shot 62.4 percent (328-for-526) from the line.

Beyond the Arc
The Dons rank fifth in the WCC in three-point field goal percentage, shooting at a 38.1 percent clip from long distance. Senior Matt Glover has hit 7-of-9 of his long distance attempts and is tied for first in the WCC with a .778 field goal percentage.

Board Work
USF is pulling down 44.7 rebounds per game, which ranks first in the WCC. USF also ranks third among WCC teams in rebound margin, outboarding its first six oponents on margin of 12.2 per game (47.7-32.5). The Dons also rank first in the conference in offensive rebounds with a 14.3 per game mark. Four of the five starters - Kruize Pinkins (6.7), Matt Glover (6.7), Mark Tollefsen (6.0) and Tim Derksen (5.8) - are averaging between 6.7 and 5.8 boards per game. Pinkins, Glover and Derksen have have pulled down 10+ rebounds in a game this season while Tollefsen grabbed nine boards vs. Evansville.

The Lineups
Head coach Rex Walters has employed three different starting lineups in the first five games. Derrell Roberston and Matt Christiansen alternated starts in the middle in the first two games of the season, while senior Chris Adams drew his first starting assignment of the year against Evansville. The Dons utilized three starting lineups all of last season.

Kruize-in
Senior forward Kruize Pinkins ranks among the top-10 in five WCC statistical categories, including scoring (6th; 17.0), rebounding (8th; 6.7), field goal percentage (56.5; 8th), 3-point percentage (4th; 54.5) and offensive rebounds (10th; 2.3)