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SAN FRANCISCO - Five games into the season might be too early to call anything a trend – good or bad. However, for the third consecutive game a slow-starting USF fell behind early and unlike its previous outing, was unable to climb out of sizeable hole and dropped a 68-61 decision to UC Santa Barbara in War Memorial at The Sobrato Center.
 
The Dons never led in the game and trailed by as many as 28 points in the first half before heading into the locker room down 25 at 45-20. USF made just five field goals and shot 22.7 percent from the floor over the first 20 minutes.
 
USF still trailed by 22 points at 60-38 with 9:40 left before the Dons found their first offensive rhythm of the game. A 13-0 USF run, highlighted by a pair of three-pointers by Devin Watson and one by Mladen Djordjevic cut the Gaucho lead to 60-51 with 6:32 remaining. The Dons whittled the lead to seven on a Tim Derksen layup with 2:12 left.
 
For a brief moment, the ending was taking on the same look as USF's previous game against UC Riverside, when the Dons managed to overcome a nine-point deficit with 7:45 remaining to win the game on a Derksen layup with 3.7 seconds remaining. However, a layup by John Green and a tip-in by Michael Bryson boosted the Gaucho lead back to double-digits at 66-55 with :56 seconds left, ending any hopes of a second straight miracle finish.
 
Derksen led all scorers with 21 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds while Watson finished with 17. Djordjevic came off the bench to add a season high eight points. Three Gauchos scored in double figures, led by Gabe Vincent's 18 points. Bryson added 15 while Mitch Brewe chipped in with 12.
 
After shooting just 22.7 percent in the first half, USF warmed up to 57.1 in the second frame and finished at 42.0 percent for the game. The Gauchos managed to shoot 42.5 percent from the floor and held a slight edge on the boards, 35-34.
 
The Dons were plagued by 13 turnovers which led to 16 Gaucho points and had only nine assists on the night.
 
"My concern is hitting the open man and defending the rebounding," said USF head coach Rex Walters after the game. "We tried to simplify some things offensively to start the game but were just unable to execute.
 
"UC Santa Barbara is a good team. They taught us a good lesson of who we are, where we are at and what we need to do to get better. It's early in the season and we still have a lot to learn. Tonight was a good lesson for us."
 
USF will return to action Sunday afternoon when they welcome the Delaware State Hornets to War Memorial at the Sobrato Center. Tip-off is slated for 3:00 p.m. Fans can receive a $5 general admission ticket in exchange for a pair of new socks or a canned food item benefiting St. Anthony Foundation and SF-Marin Food Bank.