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USF (18-12, 11-7 WCC) vs. Gonzaga (24-6, 14-4 WCC)
Monday, Mar. 6 | 12 p.m.
Orleans Arena | Las Vegas, Nev.       
Series Record: Gonzaga leads, 38-26
Last Meeting: Feb. 16, 2017 (H), USF 77-72
Video: TheW.tv / BYUtv
Audio: Livestream.com/usf/wbbaudio (George Devine, PBP)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Complete Game Notes [PDF]
 
Opening Tip
No. 4 seed USF (18-12, 11-7 WCC) takes on No. 1 seed Gonzaga (24-6, 14-4 WCC) at noon on Monday in the WCC Tournament semifinals. The Dons advanced by way of an 80-67 win over No. 5 seed Loyola Marymount on Thursday, while the Zags cruised past Pacific, 91-59, in their quarterfinal matchup. Visit USFDons.com/DonsInVegas for more information on the WCC Tournament.  
 
The Dons At a Glance...                       
LAST TIME

• Defeated Loyola Marymount, 80-67, on Thursday night in the quarterfinals
• Kalyn Simon and Anna Seilund led the way with 19 points apiece, while Rachel Howard scored 17 and Michaela Rakova notched her fifth double-double of the year with 16 points and 11 rebounds
• The Dons shot just 35 percent from the field, but committed a season-low seven turnovers and went 24-of-29 from the free throw line
• LMU tied it with just over three minutes in the third quarter, but USF pulled away in the fourth quarter by limiting the Lions to just 26 percent from the field in the final period

 
USF IN THE WCC TOURNAMENT
The Dons are now 22-19 in the WCC Tournament all-time with four tournament crowns to their credit (1995, '96, '97, 2016). They shocked the conference by winning it as a No. 6 seed last year, defeating BYU 70-68 in the finals and becoming the lowest seed to win the conference tournament. USF also appeared in the finals in 2014-15 when they lost to BYU, 76-65. Their No. 4 seed is the Dons' highest since 2001-02 when they fell to San Diego, 66-54, in the opening round. Altogether, USF has won their first-round matchup in 13 of their 24 tournament appearances, including each of the last five years following Thursday's quarterfinal win over LMU.
 
DONS AND ZAGS
USF and Gonzaga are 2-2 against each other in the WCC Tournament. The last tournament meeting came in 2014 when the No. 1 seeded Zags topped the No. 8 seeded Dons, 81-68 in the quarterfinals.   
 
WHO'S HOT?
Senior guard Rachel Howard and junior guard Anna Seilund have had the hot hand from long distance of late. Over the last five games, Howard is shooting a team-best 50 percent (18-36) from the perimeter, while Seilund has connected at a 48.6 percent clip (17-35) from deep. Howard is pacing the offense at 25.2 points per game over the last five contests in which USF is 4-1. 
 
HOWARD IS THIS WEEK'S BEST...AGAIN
Senior Rachel Howard was named West Coast Conference Player of the Week for the second week in a row, joining LMU's Jackie Johnson as the only other back-to-back winner this season. Howard averaged 33 points over USF's two wins this past week against LMU and Pepperdine, shooting 47 percent from the perimeter and 96 percent from the free throw line, while pouring in a career-high 37 points on Senior Day against the Waves.
 
MAKING A GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION
Head coach Molly Goodenbour is just the third USF coach - among the program's eight all-time coaches - to post a winning record in her first year at the helm. The team's 17-12 overall record is the second-best in USF history for a first-year coach, trailing Jan Ternyik's 22-8 mark in 1980-81. In addition, Goodenbour has guided the Dons to their most conference wins (11) since Bill Nepfel and Mary Hile-Nepfel's 11-3 record in 1996-97.
 
POUR IT ON
Rachel Howard's career-high 37 points against Pepperdine this past Saturday was the third-highest single game total in USF history, matching Mary Hile (vs. Oregon, Feb. 25, 1979) and Brittany Lindhe (at Gonzaga, Jan. 14, 1995).
Teri Hunt owns the USF record of 42 points in a game, which she accomplished against San Diego on Jan. 31, 1987. Earlier this year, Howard scored a then-career high 30 points against Seattle on Nov. 15 that made her the 37th player in USF history to score at least 30 in a game. The last Don to do so was Taylor Proctor, who had 32 against UC Riverside on Dec. 4, 2015.
  
Scouting Report
 
About Gonzaga
The Zags defeated Pacific, 91-59, on Friday to advance to the semifinals. Gonzaga leads the conference in many statistical categories, including scoring offense (71.7 points per game) and scoring defense (57.6). First team All-WCC forward Jill Barta ranks fourth in the conference at 16.4 points per game. Kiara Kudron sits at fifth in the WCC grabbing 7.8 rebounds per contest, and has been one of the conference's top shooters, ranking third at 51.1 percent from the field.  
 
Series History with Gonzaga
Gonzaga owns a 38-26 lead in the all-time series, but it was USF who took the last meeting, 77-72 in San Francisco. The two teams split the season series, winning their respective home games. USF's win last year snapped a 21 game losing streak to the Zags that stretched back to the 2006-07 season, but Gonzaga has still won 22 of the last 23 matchups. USF and Gonzaga endured a four-overtime marathon on Feb. 7, 2015 in which the Zags claimed a 91-84 victory. USF's longest winning streak in the series was nine in a row between the 1994-95  and 1997-98 seasons. The Dons won 15 of 17 matchups between 1994-95 and 2001-02. Gonzaga won the first-ever meeting, 57-36, in 1987-88. USF is 15-14 against the Zags all-time at home.
 
Last Time They Met
The Dons were locked in from deep while Gonzaga controlled the paint, but in the end it was the Dons who came out on top of a 77-72 decision on Feb. 16 at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center. USF made up for being outscored 40-10 in the paint by hitting 11 three-pointers, one shy of their season high, as they handed the Zags their first loss in their last 13 contests. Senior guard Rachel Howard led the Dons with 23 points, including a 5-for-9 clip from the perimeter to go along with a game-high six assists. Howard scored 12 points in the fourth quarter alone where she hit a pair of threes and went 6-for-10 from the free throw line. Junior Anna Seilund added 21 points on a 7-of-11 shooting night that featured a 4-of-5 mark from long range. USF had to rally back from a seven-point deficit with just over nine minutes left in the fourth quarter when it looked like Gonzaga could start running away with it. Howard's free throw with 2:15 to go tied the game at 66-66, before Howard struck again with a three 30 seconds later that gave the Dons a one-point advantage and a lead they would ultimately hold onto for the win.

Last Time Out
It wasn't their prettiest performance of the year, but the Dons got a balanced attack that netted them their season-best fifth win in a row as the USF women's basketball team rolled to an 80-67 victory over Loyola Marymount in their WCC Tournament quarterfinal matchup on Thursday evening from the Orleans Arena. USF shot just 35 percent on the night, their lowest percentage in their last eight games, but made up for it by taking care of the ball with a season-low seven turnovers and by going 24-of-29 from the free throw line. Four players registered double-digit scoring nights, led by juniors Anna Seilund and Kalyn Simon with 19 apiece. Senior Rachel Howard endured an uncharacteristic 3-for-14 night from the field, but went 10-for-11 from the stripe to post 17 points, while junior Michaela Rakova tallied her fifth double-double of the year with 16 points and 11 rebounds. USF jumped out ahead and started to create distance early in the fourth quarter. This time it was LMU who went cold, going almost five minutes without a bucket midway through the period. The Dons defense limited LMU to just 26 percent from the field in the fourth quarter, keeping the Lions at arm's length by hitting 14 free throws in quarter. Seilund's jumper with just under three minutes remaining put the Dons up 11 and gave them all the momentum they would need to post their 10th straight win over LMU.
 
Up Next
If the Dons win on Monday, they will meet the winner between No. 2 seed BYU and No. 3 seed Saint Mary's in the championship game on Tuesday at 1 p.m. Visit USFDons.com/DonsInVegas for more information on the WCC Tournament.
 
   
Fan Guide
                                           
Promotions
Two hours prior to many men's and women's basketball game during the 2017 West Coast Conference Championships, USF will host a pre-game tailgate that is open to all Dons fans. There will be complimentary appetizers and a cash bar. Tailgates will take place in the parking lot south of the Orleans Arena.
  
Ticket Information
Fans looking for tickets can check out the inventory at the Orleans Arena website or the WCC Fan Exchange. USF students can get FREE game tickets by contacting the USF Box Office at usftickets@usfca.edu.
 
Parking Information
Parking at the Orleans Arena is free of charge.