The University of San Francisco men's basketball team returns to the road for a quick trip before the Holidays.  The Dons (10-3) will take on the Fresno Bulldogs (4-7/0-2 Mountain West) on Monday night.  The game is slated for a 7:00 p.m. tip off and will be streamed on the Mountain West Network with Ralph Wood and Matt Norville handling play-by-play duties, Julie Vella will be reporting from the sideline.  Pat Olson and Jim Brovelli will have the call courtside on the home of USF Dons basketball, KNBR 1050-AM.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Dec. 23, 2019 – 7:00 p.m.
Opponent: Fresno State Bulldogs (4-7, 0-2 Mountain West)
Site: Save Mart Center (Fresno, Calif.)
TV:  Mountain West Network
Talent: Ralph Wood (play-by-play) and Matt Norville (analyst), Julia Vella (sideline)
Radio:  KNBR 1050-AM
Talent: Pat Olson (play-by-play) and Jim Brovelli (analyst)
Live Stats: GoBulldogs.com
 
USF AT A GLANCE
•  USF is 10-3 on the year - they are one of six teams from the West Coast Conference that have already won at least 10 games.  For the third time in the last four years the Dons won their 10th game by the 13th game of the season. 
 
• The Dons are back on the road where they are 2-2 on the year.  USF has wins over Southern Illinois and Cal State Fullerton on the road, the losses are at Hawaii and Stanford. On the road the Dons are +5.0 in scoring margin averaging 74.5 ppg while allowing 69.5. 
 
• Scoring Abundance:  USF is 12th in the nation averaging 83.1 points per game - they are 54th in the nation with a +12.1 scoring margin.  Against the Aggies, the Dons had their eighth game scoring 80 or more – they are 8-0 in those contests.   
 
• From the Field:  USF is shooting .459 percent from the field - they have three games this season where they have shot .500 or better this season. The Dons shot .500 percent from the floor (31-62) in the win over UC Davis.
 
• Overcoming a slow start: In the win over the Aggies on Saturday the Dons didn't score their ninth point until the 10:39 mark - they finished with 93 points meaning USF scored 84 points in 29 minutes and 21 seconds. 
 
• The 10-3 start in Golden's first year is third-best start by a first year head coach through Dec. 21.  Golden trails Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman (10-1, .909), Saint John's head coach Mike Anderson (11-2, .846). 
 
• Dons For Three:  USF is one of the Nation's elite 3-point shooting teams.  The Dons are 8th in three point field goals per game at 10.5 — fifth in 3-point field goals made with 137.  USF has seven games this season making 10 or more 3-point field goals.  Against UC Davis, USF had six different players make a three.
 
THE SERIES VS. Fresno State
USF leads the all-time series with Fresno State, 13-8. The series dates back to the 1952-53 season when the Dons traveled to Fresno State.  The Dons won nine of the first 10 series - recent history has belonged to Fresno State having won three in a row and six of the last seven.  On the road the Dons and Bulldogs are split 6-6, however, USF is winless in its only two trips to the Save Mart Center, falling 52-43 on Dec. 27, 2003 and 65-60 on Dec. 29, 2005. USF's last win in Fresno came on Dec. 8, 1999, 69-59 at Selland Arena. Last time out, USF fell to the Bulldogs 78-71 at the Save Mart Center on Nov. 19, 2015.
 
About the Bulldogs
Fresno State enters Monday's contest with a 4-7 overall record.  They are currently riding a two-game winning streak after lopsided wins over Cal Poly (62-37) and IUPUI (95-64).  At home, the Bulldogs are 3-1 this season.  As a team, Fresno State is averaging 72.0 points per game and allowing 66.6.  They are shooting 41.8 percent from the field and 32.2 percent from beyond the arc.  Their opponents are shooting 39.6 percent from the field and 30.7 percent from 3-point range. Three players average double figures for the Bulldogs, leading the team in scoring is Nate Grimes who is averaging 13.3 points per contest, while shooting a team-best 51.9 percent from the field.
 
Last Time Out Versus Fresno
Fresno State senior guard Cezar Guerrero made 6-of-10 three-point attempts and scored 22 points while Marvelle Harris added 16 to lead Fresno State to a wire-to-wire victory over USF, which suffered its first setback of the season after two wins to open the year. Devin Watson finished with a career-high 24 points for the Dons while Tim Derksen (11) and Chase Foster (10) also reached double figures for USF. The Bulldogs scored the first eight points of the game and took a 37-27 lead into intermission, largely on the strength of Guerrero's four first-half 3-pointers and icy shooting by the Dons.
 
UP NEXT
The Dons return home for their final home game of 2019 when they host Harvard on Dec. 30 at 6:00 p.m. Monday's game against the Crimson will be their final non-conference game of the season and will be streamed on The WCC Network.