Post-Game Comments and Highlights

SAN FRANCISCO – It wasn't always pretty but the Dons will gladly trade style points for a 69-62 overtime win against visiting Santa Clara Thursday night in Memorial Gymnasium, which snapped USF's five-game losing streak.
 
Tim Derksen scored a team-high 18 points while Devin Watson added 13 to pace USF scorers. Kruize Pinkins overcame a shaky start and finished with 12 points while Matt Christiansen added 10.
 
Matt Glover and Pinkins each pulled down 10 rebounds to help USF outrebound Santa Clara, 41-34. The Dons also made the most of their 14 offensive boards.
 
Brandon Clark scored a game-high 21 points for Santa Clara (11-15, 5-9 WCC) while Jared Brownridge finished with 14.

USF shot just 37.5 percent from the field for the game while Santa Clara was just a little better at 42.4. Both teams were icey from three-point range, where the Dons managed to make just 3-of-19 attempts while the Broncos converted just 5 of their 22 long distance tries.
 
After the game was tied at 58 at the end of regulation, USF (10-16, 4-10 WCC) outscored Santa Clara 11-4 in the overtime period to win for the first time in six games while the Broncos suffered their fifth loss in a row.
 
Points were hard to come by in the first half, as the game was tied at 11 with 8:49 before intermission. USF missed its first four shots from the floor and managed to shoot just 28 percent from the field in the first half and trailed 24-18 at the break.
 
The Broncos lead was nine at 49-40 with 8:02 left in the game when the Dons snapped out of their offensive malaise.
 
Despite a pair of late three-pointers by Chris Adams and Derksen, Santa Clara was still nursing a six point lead at 56-50 with 4:43 left in the game.
 
The Dons then scored the next eight points, half of them coming from Kruize Pinkins, whose tip-in tied the game at 56 with 2:04 remaining. Pinkins, who was held to just one point in the first half, scored nine of his 12 points over the last 6:52 of regulation and the overtime period.
 
A pair of free throws by Mark Tollefsen gave the Dons a 58-56 lead with 1:21 left, but Clark's jumper tied the game at 58 with :55 left.
 
USF had the two chances to win the game at the end of regulation, but Glover misfired on a three-pointer and Tollefsen missed an awkward shot just to the left of the foul line as time expired.
 
The Dons controlled the overtime period. With the game tied at 60, USF finished off the Broncos with a 9-2 run to salvage a season split with its longtime South Bay rival.
 
USF will be back in action next Thursday night when the Dons visit the Loyola Marymount Lions. Game time is set for 8:00 p.m. in Westchester.