HONOLULU – Though USF dropped a 62-48 decision to San Diego State in the championship game of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, there will be a time later tonight when head coach Kyle Smith will be ready to look back on this week in Honolulu with some satisfaction.

The Dons grew up a bit over these last four days, which began with an 89-86 victory over Utah followed by a grind-it-out victory over Illinois State that earned USF a spot in the championship game of a marquis holiday tournament. A loss to San Diego State, a program that has compiled the eighth-best winning percentage in the nation over the last seven seasons, won't subtract from the strides the Dons made this week on Oahu.

USF got plenty of defensive stops but never could get into an offensive rhythm against the Aztecs which entered the game allowing opponents a stingy 62.5 points a game – 25th best in the nation. San Diego State held the Dons to 33 points under their season scoring average and 37.3 shooting from the floor on their way to winning the Diamond Head Classic title. USF, which came into the game averaging a little over 11 three-pointers made per game, managed to connect on just six of 13 shots from distance.

Both teams got off to a sluggish start offensively as the game was tied 14-14 with 7:03 left in the first half. San Diego State opened up a 30-22 lead with 1:46 remaining but a pair of late first half three-pointers by Charles Minlend trimmed the Aztec lead to 32-28 at intermission. The score was tied four times in the first half with six lead changes.

The Dons were very much in this game with seven minutes to go before the Aztecs gained a little breathing room. With 10:10 remaining, a Ronnie Boyce layup cut San Diego State's lead to three at 44-41, but Matt Shrigley quickly answered with a three-pointer on the Aztecs next possession to make it 47-41.

San Diego State's lead was just four points at 49-45 with 6:56 remaining after Matt McCarthy connected from just inside the foul line. From there, the Aztecs went on a 8-2 run to open their first double digit lead of the night at 57-47 and outscored the Dons 13-3 down the stretch to claim a 62-48 victory.

Minlend, who was named to the Diamond Head Classic's all-tournament team, finished with a game-high 18 points. With the Dons offense sputtering, the freshman almost single-handedly kept USF in the game most of the evening. He was the only Don to score in double figures as no other USF player had more than eight points.

Diamond Head Classic MVP Zylan Cheatham paced the Aztecs with 16 points and 11 rebounds while leading scorer Jeremy Hemsley finished with 12, despite being plagued with foul trouble.

"I thought it would be really hard to score on them tonight," said USF head coach Kyle Smith after the game. "They have great length and strength and are so good defensively but I thought we competed and defended pretty well. We just couldn't score or get real good shots.

"All in all, I thought we showed the confidence we could play against some really good programs but we have to put it behind us and get back to work. We're very young but I think our confidence got a boost this week and hopefully we can take some momentum into conference play."

USF will open West Coast Conference play on Thursday night against the San Diego Toreros with tip-off scheduled for 7:00 p.m. in War Memorial at the Sobrato Center. The game will be carried live on TheW.tv and simulcast on 95.7 FM The Game. General admission tickets for Thursday night's game are priced at $20 for adults and $10 for seniors and children.

Reserved and general admission tickets for USF's upcoming games against Gonzaga (Jan. 5) and Saint Mary's (Jan. 7), along with all other WCC home games, are currently available for purchase on-line at USFDons.com/tickets or by calling (415) 422-2USF (2873).

Fans may also purchase the Box Out Big Three ticket package, which includes a general admission seat to all three games against Gonzaga, Saint Mary's and BYU, for $105 (adults) and $90 for seniors and children 12-under.



For information regarding USF Basketball tickets for the remainder of the 2016-17 season, please call the USF Athletic Ticket Office at (415) 422-2USF (2873) or go on-line to USFDons.com/tickets.