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DENTON, Texas – The San Francisco women's basketball team got a late-game scare in its season-opening victory over North Texas before hanging on for the 69-61 victory Friday evening at The Super Pit.

The Dons' offense was propelled by the starting five, who accounted for all but three of USF's points in the game. Senior Zhane Dikes led all scorers with 18 points, including a 9-of-11 outing from the free throw line and five steals. USF senior Taylor Proctor added 17 points and eight rebounds in the contest, going 7-for-12 from the floor. Junior Rachel Howard contributed 13 points and five rebounds.

"Overall, first game of the season to go this far on the road and get a win, it's big for us," said head coach Jennifer Azzi. "North Texas is a much improved team from a year ago. We started out very, very strong, had great momentum but I've got to give North Texas credit. They never gave into that, and they just kept playing. They play hard, they deny passing lanes, they're a solid team. We hit some big shots and made plays when we had to and were able to sustain the lead at the end."

The Dons opened the night with an 11-0 run, going 4-for-5 from the floor as the Mean Green missed its first six attempts from the field. The Dons continued to put the pressure on in the early-goings of the game, not allowing a North Texas a basket from the floor until 1:25 was left in the first quarter. At that point, the lead was 18-4 in favor of USF and the Dons enjoyed their largest lead of the evening.

North Texas battled to cut the lead back to single digits, trailing 24-18 after the 3-point swish for Candice Adams. USF extended the advantage to 35-24 in the closing minute of the half, after a scrum on the floor resulted in the steal and layup for Dikes off the assist for Howard.

USF held an eight-point lead at the break, but North Texas opened the second half strong and the Mean Green scored seven unanswered to knot the game at 40-40 with 5:42 to play in the third. The Home team took its first lead of the game at the free throw line as Bria Frierson connected on both of her attempts from the stripe to put the score at 42-41.

The game was locked in a back-and-forth battle for the remainder of the period with the teams exchanging baskets before Candice Adams' fourth three of the game gave North Texas the 50-48 advantage heading into the final 10 minutes of the game.

The Dons wore down the Mean Green in the final minutes of the night, as Howard's timely 3-pointer capped an 11-2 run for the Dons with USF ahead 61-54 with 4:17 remaining. North Texas continued to fight to the end, and made it a one-possession game after Terra Ellison's fast break layup made it 61-58 with 1:44 on the clock. USF went 6-for-6 from the line in the final minute of the contest to escape with the 69-61 victory and notch a season-opening win away from the Hilltop.

The Dons shot 43.4 percent in the game, and won the battle of the boards 36-30. USF outscored North Texas 28-16 in the paint, but the Dons could only muster thee points from its bench, compared to the Mean Green's 13. The Dons used the 18-8 advantage in the first quarter, and a 21-11 scoring differential in the fourth frame to earn the victory.

"I think our seniors, Z and Taylor, played extremely well today and just played hard," noted Azzi. "We're at a place now where our leadership is our two seniors and that gives a great core to build around. I thought Claudia Price also played good minutes. She's a very smart player and very skilled and gives us a good block presence. It's great to get a road win."

Next up, USF opens its home slate with a celebration of the 2014-15 WNIT squad on Tuesday against Holy Names. Tip off from War Memorial Gym is scheduled for 7 p.m.