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Game #25
USF Dons (15-9, 8-4 WCC) vs. BYU Cougars (16-9, 8-4 WCC)
Saturday, Feb. 8, 2014 • 6:00 p.m. PT
Marriott Center • Provo, Utah
Series Record: BYU leads, 9-7
Last Meeting: BYU 83-76 (Jan. 16, 2014 in San Francisco)
Audio Stream: USFDons.com (
Pat Olson, Play-by-Play; Jim Brovelli, Analyst)
Television: BYUtv (Spencer Linton, Play-by-Play; Blaine Fowler; Analyst)
Complete USF Game Notes (PDF)
The Dandy Dons
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Now 15-9 overall and 8-4 in the West Coast Conference after Thursday night's 74-67 win at San Diego...have won four of last five games heading into Saturday's game in Provo.
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Tied for second in the WCC standings with BYU, three games behind first place Gonzaga (21-3, 11-1) and a half a game in front of Saint Mary's (17-7, 7-4).
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The 15 wins matches the team's win total from last season (15-16)...have surpassed its conference win total from a year ago (7-9)...15 wins are the fourth highest total among conference teams.
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Will play four of its last six games on the road to wrap up the regular season...road games remain at Santa Clara (2/15), Pepperdine (2/27) and LMU (3/1).
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Are 4-4 on the road this season, including 3-2 vs. WCC foes...are 7-2 in last nine conference road games dating back to last season.
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Trail the all-time series with BYU, 7-9...Cougars claimed a 83-76 decision in the first meeting between the two schools on Jan. 16 in San Francisco.
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USF is 18-11 over the past four seasons in the month of February...went 5-2 in February last season.
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USF is 92-91 in six seasons under head coach Rex Walters...Dons are 69-54 (.560) under Walters since the start of the 2010-11 season.
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Rank fourth in the WCC in scoring with a 77.0 ppg mark...BYU ranks as conference's top scoring team at 87.4 ppg.
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Shot 50 percent from the field against San Diego...now shooting 48.1 percent from the floor on the season - second in the WCC and 22nd nationally.
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Have made just 25-of-83 (30.1) three-pointers over the last four games and are now shooting 37.1 percent from beyond the arc for the season - sixth best in the WCC...made 14-of-23 three's en route to a 99-87 win in Provo last season.
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Have made 73-of-104 (70.1) free throws over last four games but still rank last in the conference in free throw percentage at 65.3.
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Rank seventh in the WCC in defense (74.2), seventh in field goal defense (45.3) and ninth in three-point defense (37.7).
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Are 13-4 on the season when outrebounding the opponent...rank fifth in WCC rebounding at 35.3.
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Balanced scoring column sees the top six scorers averaging between 14.8 and 8.7 points per game...seven different players have taken team high-scoring honors this season.
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Sophomore Avry Holmes is shooting 52.9 percent (27-for-51) from three-point range over his last 13 games...career mark of 45.5 (81-for-178) ranks first on USF's all-time career list.
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Cole Dickerson ranks 24th on USF's all-time career scoring list with 1,110 points...also ranks 16th all-time in career rebounds with 664.
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Junior Kruize Pinkins is averaging 3.4 offensive rebounds a game - tops in the WCC
TIP-OFF: USF (15-9, 8-4 WCC) plays the second of three consecutive road games Saturday night when the Dons meet the BYU Cougars (16-9, 8-4 WCC) at the Marriott Center beginning at 6:00 p.m. PT. The game will be televised on BYUtv. Both teams are coming off wins on Thursday night. USF scored a 74-67 victory at San Diego while the Cougars downed Santa Clara, 89-76 in Provo. The two teams are tied for second place in the WCC standings, three games behind first place Gonzaga and a half a game in front of fourth place Saint Mary's.
SERIES HISTORY: BYU leads the all-time series with USF, 9-7. The Cougars won the first game of the season series, 83-76 in San Francisco. The two teams split last year's season series, with each winning on the other's home court. The Cougars claimed an 80-76 decision in San Francisco on Jan. 4 only to see USF bounce back to post a 99-87 win in Provo on Feb. 9. The teams have met once in NCAA Tournament play, with the Dons scoring a 86-63 victory in a second round game played in Tucson, Ariz. in 1979. Â The two schools have never met in WCC Tournament action.
FIRST MEETING WITH BYU: USF dropped a 83-76 decision to BYU on Jan. 16 inside Memorial Gymnasium.
Cole Dickerson had 26 points and a season-high 14 rebounds to pace four Dons in double-figures. However, USF committed 16 turnovers that led to 19 BYU points and watched as the Cougars knocked down 28-of-37 free throws. A tightly contested first half saw 10 lead changes before the Dons took a 37-34 decision into the break. Â BYU was nursing a 51-50 lead wit 12:28 left before going on a 12-4 run to seize control of the game. Kyle Collinsworth had 19 points to pace five Cougars in double-figures.
LAST TIME OUT: USF rallied from a 56-46 deficit with 9:22 remaining to defeat San Diego, 74-67 Thursday night at the Jenny Craig Pavilion. The Dons used a 12-2 run to tie the game at 58 with 4:26 left and later ripped off 10 straight points to take a 68-61 lead with :57 seconds remaining.
Cole Dickerson scored a game-high 21 points while
Avry Holmes added 15.
Kruize Pinkins recorded his fifth double-double of the year with 14 points and 11 rebounds while
Tim Derksen came off the bench to add 13. USF shot 50 percent from the floor, despite going 6-of-24 from 3-point range, and outrebounded the Toreros, 38-35..
THE RECORD: At 15-9 overall, USF is four games ahead of last year's pace when the Dons were 11-13 at the 24-game mark of the season. USF dropped games 25 and 26 last season to fall to 11-15 and 5-9 in conference play. USF's 15 wins matches the team's win total from a year ago while it has surpassed last season's conference win total (7-9). The 15 wins are tied for the third-best single season total under
Rex Walters behind his 2011-12 (20-14) and 2010-11 (19-15) teams. USF's 15 wins are fourth most in the conference behind Gonzaga (21-3) and Saint Mary's (17-7) and BYU (16-9).
USF BASKETBALL A WINNER UNDER WALTERS: With its 74-67 win at San Diego on Thursday, USF improved its overall mark to 92-91 in six seasons under head coach
Rex Walters. After going 23-37 over his first two seasons, Walters has guided the Dons to a 69-54 (.560) record over the last four seasons.
FABULOUS IN FEBRUARY: In the last four seasons dating back to the 2009-10 campaign, USF has posted a 18-11 record in the month of February, including a 5-2 mark last season.
THE SCHEDULE: After playing five consecutive games, the Dons will wrap up the regular season by playing five out of its last seven games on the road. Following road games this week at San Diego and BYU, USF will return to the Bay Area to face Santa Clara at the Leavey Center next Saturday night in a nationally televised game on ESPNU. The Dons will return to Memorial Gymnasium to close out its home schedule against Saint Mary' (2/20) and Pacific (2/22) before wrapping up the regular season at Pepperdine (2/27) and LMU (3/1).
ROAD REPORT: USF is 4-4 in eight road games this season, including a 3-2 mark against WCC foes. The Dons are 7-2 in their last nine WCC road games dating back to last season. USF is 11-5 at home this season after going 8-7 on its home floor last season, including 2-6 against WCC foes
