Box Score
SAN FRANCISCO -
Rex Walters admitted USF didn't bring its "A" game to San Diego, but the Dons were certainly more than above average when it counted, earning a 74-67 victory over the Toreros at the Jenny Craig Pavilion on Thursday night.
The Dons rallied from a 10-point deficit with 9:22 left and outscored the Toreros 28-11 down the stretch toalf improve to 15-9 overall and 8-4 in the West Coast Conference.
San Diego drops to 13-12 overall and 4-8 in the WCC.
Four Dons finished in double figures, led by
Cole Dickerson's 21 points.
Avry Holmes finished with 15 while Kruize Pinkis notched a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Tim Derksen came off the bench to score 13 and haul down six rebounds.
Johnny Dee took team-high scoring honors for San Diego with 18 points.
USF shot 50 percent from the floor and outrebounded the Toreros, 38-35. The Dons mde just 6 of 24 of their three-point attempts and survived a 10-for-21 effort at the line to notch their fourth win in the last five games.
After a tightly contested first half, USF led 34-30 at intermission, but San Diego quickly seized control of the game early in the second period, outscoring the Dons 26-12 to take a 56-46 lead with 9:22 remaining.
A three-pointer by Derksen that cut the lead to 56-49 with 8:54 left ignited a 12-2 Dons' run that enable USF to tie the game at 58 on a driving layup by Holmes with 4:26 left.
With San Diego hanging onto a 61-58 lead, the Dons scored the next 10 points to take a 68-61 lead with just under a minute left. Dickerson and Holmes each scored four points in the decisive run.
After Pinkins brought the Dons to within one at 61-60, Dennis Kramer misfired on a three-point attempt and Holmes answered with a long jumper that gave USF a lead it would not relinqiush at 62-61. Dickerson then scored the next four points and after Holmes converted two f ree throws, the Dons lead was seven at 68-61 with :57 left.
Poor free throw shooting by USF kept things interesting in the final minute but with the Dons hanging onto a five point lead at 72-67, Holmes calmly sank a pair of free throws with :08 left to ice the game.
USF will travel to Provo to meet the BYU Cougars in a match-up between two teams tied for second place in the WCC standings. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m. PT and the game will be televised on BYUTV.
Rex Walters' Post-Game Comments
"I was really proud of our defensive effort, especially at the end of the game. We made some key stops when we needed to and that was the difference. We didn't bring out "A" game tonight but we found a way to win on the road."
"There weren't a lot of X's and O's down the stretch. We just made a committment to attack better on both ends of the floor."
"I though Kruize (Pinkins) really had some real timely offensive rebounds and he did a great job in defending (Dennis) Kramer down low. He played through a little fatigue tonight but he got it done in the end."
