Game #19
San Francisco Dons (8-10, 2-4 WCC) vs. Santa Clara Broncos (8-10, 2-4 WCC)
Saturday,  Jan. 17, 2015 • 3:00 p.m.
Leavey Center • Santa Clara, Calif.
Series Record: Santa Clara 111-103
Last Meeting: USF 69-63 (Feb. 15, 2014)
Audio/Video Streaming: TheW.tv (Pat Olson, Play-by-Play; Jim Brovelli, Analyst)
Television: CSNCA (Glen Kuiper, Play-by-Play; Dan Belluomini, Analyst)

Complete USF Game Notes (PDF) 

The Dandy Dons

• Improved to 8-10 overall and 2-4 in the WCC with a 89-77 victory at Portland on Saturday...win snapped a four-game losing streak, which included back-to-back 31-point losses to BYU and Gonzaga.
• Were 11-7 at the 18-game mark last season...dropped game #19 to BYU before winning three straight to improve to 14-8...ultimately finished at 21-12 and 13-5 WCC (t-2nd).
• Looking to win back-to-back games for the first time since starting the season 3-0.
• Swept the season series with Santa Clara last year, winning 75-66 on the Hilltop and 69-63 in the South Bay...Dons are 4-1 in their last five games at the Leavey Center....SCU swept the season series in 2012-13.
• With Saturday's win at Portland, USF is 12-5 in last 17 WCC road games dating back to the 2012-13 season.
• The 89 points scored at Portland was the team's highest total since tallying 91 in the opener vs. South Carolina State.
• Have been outrebounded in four of its first six conference games after outboarding 10 of its first 12 opponents...were +9.7 on the boards vs. non-conference foes and are -4.0 vs. the first six conference opponents...rank fourth in the WCC in rebound average (36.7) and sixth in margin (+4.2)...however, are being outboarded 34.0 to 30.0 in six conference games.
• Three players - Matt Glover, (5.7), Kruize Pinkins (5.6) and Mark Tollefsen (5.3) - are averaging at least 5.0 rebounds per game while Tim Derksen is averagaing 4.7.
• Shooting 46.2 percent from the floor, fourth-best in the WCC...have shot 50 percent or better in four games this season, including a season-high 64.9 effort vs. Montana.
• WCC foes shooting 50.8 percent from the floor after six conference games and outscoring the Dons 76.8 to 67.2 (+9.7).
• Rank fourth in the WCC in three-point percentage at 38.4 percent...junior Tim Derksen ranks fourth in the WCC in 3-point field goal percentage at .456 (26-for-57).
• Made 28-of-32 free throws at Portland to boost the season free throw percentage to a season-high 60.2 percent, which ranks 10th in the WCC...shooting 71.3 percent from the line in conference games, which ranks seventh-best in the conference.
• Senior Kruize Pinkins scored a game high 20 points at Gonzaga and leads the team in scoring with a 15.4 ppg mark...Pinkins has scored 20+ points in five games this season.
• Freshman Devin Watson scored a career-high 21 points Saturday at Portland...he has started each of the last four games at the point and is averaging 12.2 ppg in his four starts.
• Senior Matt Glover has come off the bench each of the last two games after making 49 consecutive starts.

Notables

Opening Tip
USF's (8-10, 2-4 WCC) plays its third consecutive road game on Saturday when the Dons travel to Santa Clara to face the Broncos at the Leavey Center. The Dons gained a split of its Pacific Northwest road trip last week, defeating Portland 89-77 on Saturday after falling to No. 6 Gonzaga 88-57 two days earlier. Santa Clara dropped both its games last week at Portland (78-61) and Gonzaga (79-57) but returned home to post a 77-63 non-conference win over St. Katherine on Tuesday night.

Series History with Santa Clara
In a series that dates back to 1908-09, Santa Clara leads the all-time series with USF, 111-103. Santa Clara represents USF's oldest rival in terms of games played (214). USF swept the season series last year, winning 75-66 on the Hilltop on Jan. 25 and 69-63 at the Leavey Center on Feb. 15 and has won seven out of the last 10 and eight out of the last 12 in the series following a seven-game Santa Clara winning streak. USF is 4-1 vs. Santa Clara in the last five games played at the Leavey Center. The two schools have met seven times in WCC Championship play, with Santa Clara holding a 5-2 advantage.

Last Year's Games vs. Santa Clara
USF used 28 points from Cole Dickerson and a 41-24 advantage on the boards to defeat Santa Clara, 75-66 on Jan. 25 in Memorial Gymnasium. Dickerson made 12-of-17 shots from the floor and pulled down eight rebounds to pace all USF scorers. Kruize Pinkins added 14 and Mark Tollefsen finished with 12. Matt Glover pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds to go along with seven points. Jared Brownridge finished with a game-high 30 points for Santa Clara.

In the return game on Feb. 15 in Santa Clara, Kruize Pinkins scored a then career-high 26 points while Cole Dickerson notched a double-double with 13 points and 14 rebounds to lead USF to a 69-63 victory at the Leavey Center. Mark Tollefsen also added 13. The Dons closed the first half on an 11-1 run to take a 35-33 lead at the break and extended the lead to 41-33 four minutes into the second half. SCU battled back to take a 50-49 lead with 8:47 left but Tim Derksen layup on the Dons next possession gave USF a lead it would not relinquish. USF shot just 37.5 percent from the floor but outrebounded Santa Clara, 43-36.

Last Time Out
Freshman Devin Watson scored a career-high 21 points to help USF snap a four-game losing streak with a 89-77 victory at Portland. Kruize Pinkins made four three-pointers and finished with 18 while Mark Tollefsen and Tim Derksen added 15 each. The Dons led virtually wire-to-wire, trailing just once at 5-2. USF, which came into the game as the third-worst free throw shooting team in the country, made 28-of-32 shots from the line, with Watson (12-of-14) and Derksen (8-for-10) doing most of the damage. The win was USF's fifth straight at the Chiles Center.

The Record
At 8-10 overall, USF is three games off its pace from last season when the Dons were 11-7 at the 18-game mark. USF dropped game #19 to BYU before winning three straight to improve to 14-8. USF ultimately finished with a 21-12 overall mark and tied for second in the WCC with a 13-5 conference ledger.

The Wins
USF's eight wins this season have come by an average of 24.8 points (83.6 to 58.8). The Dons have posted four wins of 30 points or more against South Carolina State (91-52), Notre Dame de Namur (86-46), Houston Baptist (85-54) and Portland State (77-40) and also own double digit victories over Hawaii (88-73), Montana (76-57) and Portland (89-77).

WCC Road Record
After its 89-77 win at Portland on Saturday, USF is now 12-5 in its last 17 conference road games dating back to the 2012-13 season. The Dons finished the 2012-13 season with four straight conference road wins at Pepperdine, BYU, Loyola Marymount and San Diego and went 6-3 in conference road games last year, suffering setbacks at Gonzaga, BYU and Saint Mary's. The Dons are 2-2 in conference roadies this year, with wins at Pacific and Portland and losses at Saint Mary's and Gonzaga. USF is 16-15 in true road games dating back to the 2012-13 season.

The Point Total
After averaging just 59.2 ppg in its previous four games, USF scored 89 points in its win at Portland on Saturday. It was the Dons highest point total since tallying 91 in the season-opener vs. South Carolina State. The Dons are averaging 71.8 points a game this season, which ranks fourth in the WCC.

Dons Defensively
USF is being outscored by and average of 9.7 ppg (76.8-67.2) in its six conference games and now ranks seventh in the WCC in points allowed per game (68.0). After limiting 12 non-conference opponents to 38.9 percent shooting from the floor, the first six WCC foes have clipped the nets at 50.8 percent. USF ranks fourth overall in field goal defense at 46.2 percent.

Board Work
After outrebounding 10 of its 12 opponents by 8.3 boards a game, USF has been outrebounded in four of its first six conference games, 34.0 to 30.0. USF ranks fourth the WCC in rebound average at 36.7 per game and sixth in rebound margin (+4.2). The Dons also rank fifth in the conference in offensive rebounds with a 11.4 per game mark. Three players - Matt Glover, (5.7), Kruize Pinkins (5.6) and Mark Tollefsen (5.3) - are averaging at least 5.0 rebounds per game while Tim Derksen is averagaing 4.7. All four players have pulled down 10 or more rebounds in a game this season.

From the Field
USF is shooting 43.4 percent from the field over its first six conference games and rank fourth in the conference in season field goal percentage at 46.2. USF has shot 50 percent or better from the floor just four times this season, the last time against Houston Baptist on Dec. 7 (55.6). Mark Tollefsen ranks seventh in the WCC in field goal percentage at 53.8 while Kruize Pinkins ranks 10th (52.5).

From the Line
The Dons made 28-of-32 free throws in Saturday's 89-77 victory at Portland, improving the season percentage from 57.9 to its present mark of 60.2 percent. It is the first time USF has been above the 60 percent mark this season. USF's 405 free throw attempts is the 21st highest total in the nation. The Dons are shooting 71.3 percent from the stripe over the first six conference games. The Dons have made just 99-of-191 (51.8) of their free throws in 10 losses which have come by a total of 131 points.

Beyond the Arc
USF ranks fourth in the WCC in three-point field goal percentage at .384 (128-for-333). Junior Tim Derksen (45.6 26-for-57) ranks fourth in the WCC while Kruize Pinkins ranks sixth (43.8). Pinkins made eight 3's in two games last week at Gonzaga and Portland.

Lineups
USF employed its sixth lineup of the season vs. Gonzaga, with Matt Glover coming off the bench for the first time in his career. The Dons used three starting lineups all of last season. Devin Watson has started each of the last four games at the point and is averaging 12.2 points in his starting assignments, including a career high 21-point effort against Portland.