If the University of San Francisco men's basketball team rekindles its oldest rivalry on Thursday night when they travel south to the Leavey Center to take on Santa Clara at 6:00 p.m.  Thursday's contest between the Dons (16-10/5-6 WCC) and Broncos (18-7/5-5 WCC) will be televised on NBC Sports California with Rich Waltz and Ben Braun calling the action.  Pat Olson and Jim Brovelli will have the Dons' radio broadcast on the official home of USF Dons basketball, KNBR 1050-AM.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Feb. 13, 2020 – 6:00 p.m.
Opponent: Santa Clara Broncos (18-7/5-5 WCC)
Site: Leavey Center   
TV:  NBC Sports California
Talent: Rich Waltz (play-by-play) and Ben Braun (analyst)
Radio:  KNBR 1050-AM
Talent: Pat Olson (play-by-play) and Jim Brovelli (analyst)
Live Stats: SantaClaraBroncos.com
 
USF AT A GLANCE
• USF is 16-10 on the year and 5-6 in the WCC.  They are 5-5 over their last 10 games and 2-3 over the last five.  USF is currently mired in a 3-game losing streak - the second such streak of the season.
• Last time out: The Dons trailed by as much as 25 against BYU at the Marriott Center - the Dons managed to cut the deficit to seven, but a strong game by Yoeli Childs, who had 32 points, put the Dons away late for a 90-76 loss.  The loss at BYU ended a three-game winning streak against the Cougars.
• #31 to the Rafters:  The USF Athletics department announced last Monday that they will be retiring Hall of Famer Joe Ellis' (1964-'66) number 31.  The ceremony will take place on Feb. 22 against Pepperdine.
• 800 for Lull: In the loss at BYU last Saturday, senior center Jimbo Lull scored his 800th point, the native of Manhattan Beach, Calif. is averaging 11.8 ppg which is fourth on the team.
• 600: Jamaree Bouyea scored his 600th career point against the Bulldogs last Saturday.  He is one of four Dons (Minlend, Ratinho, Lull and Shabazz) with 600 career points.
• The NET:  In the latest update to the NCAA Evaluation Tool the Dons are 103 - they are fourth in WCC behind Gonzaga (2), BYU (22) and Saint Mary's (38).  Santa Clara is 110 as of Wednesday afternoon.
• The Dons are averaging 76.1 points per game which ranks 61st in the nation - they are +5.8 in scoring margin which is 88th in the nation.  The Dons are 57th in the nation in adjusted efficiency on offense at 108.9 according to KenPom.com
• From the Field:  USF is shooting .446 percent from the field which is 125th in the nation - they have seven games this season where they have shot .500 or better. USF is 15-5 when shooting .400 or better, the five losses came at Hawaii, Harvard, Portland, Gonzaga and at BYU.  When the Dons outshoot their opponent they are 11-0, when they shoot worse than their opponent they are 4-10.
• Power Outage From Deep: The Dons who average 9.1 3's per game are struggling from beyond the arc.  Over the last three contests, USF is 15-for-76 from long range a 19.7 3-point percentage.  USF is 12-6 when shooting more 3-point field goals than their opponent.
• Dons For Three:  USF is one of the Nation's elite 3-point shooting teams.  The Dons are 35th in 3-point field goals per game, averaging 9.1 - they are 13th in the nation in 3-point field goals made with 237. USF is 6-10 when they make nine or fewer 3-point field goals this season. They are 10-0 when making 10 or more a contest. Five different players have made 20 or more 3-point field goals this year.
• On the Glass:  The Dons were plus-seven in rebounds against BYU last Saturday.  Jimbo Lull led the Dons with a game-high seven rebounds. The Dons are 12-3 when out-rebounding their opponent and 3-7 when their opponents out-rebound them.
• Lull leads the Dons, averaging 6.9 rebounds per game - he grabbed his 500th career rebound against Gonzaga last Saturday. The 500 rebounds is 170th most among active players. He had boasts 47 career games with five or more rebounds.
• Getting Second Chances:  USF is averaging 10.6 second chance points per game -they are holding their opponents to just 7.2.  USF is 11-4 when getting 10 or more second chance points.  Against the Cougars the Dons were tied 9-9 in second chance points. 
• Up Tempo Ball:  Through 26 games this season the Dons love to push the tempo.  USF is averaging 11.3 fastbreak points per contest.  Against the Cougars the Dons finished with 18 fastbreak points - their most since they scored 19 in the win over UC Davis.  USF outscored BYU 18-1 in fastbreak points last Saturday.  The Dons are 12-3 on the year when scoring 10 or more fastbreak points.
• From the Charity Stripe: The Dons rank 117th in the nation in free throw percentage at 72.7 (347-477)).  The Dons have eight players shooting north of .700. Freshman Josh Kunen's .903 (28-for-31) leads the Dons. Dzmitry Ryuny is 12-for-12 on the year, and 19-for-20 for his career. If the season ended today it would be the Dons best free throw shooting percentage since the 1992-93 season.  Since that time, USF has shot north of 70% only seven times.
 
VS. SANTA CLARA
Series
Thursday night the Dons square off against Santa Clara for the 227th time.  It is the oldest rivalry in USF history.  All-time SCU owns a 116-110 advantage in the series that began in 1908 when USF was still St. Ignatius Academy and the team nickname for the school was "The Grey Fog".  Since 1949-50 the series is remarkably even with the Broncos owning a slim 81-79 advantage during that span.  At Leavey Center, the Dons are 41-58 all-time.  Since the renovated Toso Pavilion became Leavey Center the Dons are 9-12. In the last four years the Dons are 6-4 against the Broncos - USF went 5-4 against SCU under Kyle Smith and are 1-0 under first year head coach Todd Golden.  Earlier this year, USF defeated Santa Clara 80-61 in a route at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center on Jan. 11.
 
About the Broncos
Since starting the year 14-2 the Broncos have gone 4-5.  Over their last five games they are 2-3 which includes a pair of losses to Pepperdine and a loss at home against Gonzaga.  At home, SCU is an impressive 15-2.  As a team, the Broncos are averaging 77.4 points per game and shooting 46.9 percent from the field.  Four players are averaging in double figures for Santa Clara - leading the charge is Trey Wertz at 12.3 points per game, right behind him is Josip Vrankic at 12.0 ppg.  Four players are averaging 5.0 or more rebounds per game for Santa Clara.
 
Last Time Out Versus SCU
Midway through the second half freshman Josh Kunen heaved up a prayer from the top of the arc to beat the expiring shot clock - the resulting 3-point field goal gave the Dons a 15 point advantage and was Kunen's first collegiate 3-point field goal.  The big lead was enough for the Dons, who cruised to a 80-61 win over SCU - ending a season-worst three-game skid by the Dons.  Kunen finished the game with 13 points and 12 rebounds for his first career double-double.  He was one of four players in double figures.  Charles Minlend had 25 that game - a career-high.  USF outrebounded the Broncos 45-26.
 
UP NEXT
The Dons will be off on Saturday, they will return to action on Thursday the 20^th when they travel to Spokane to take on the second ranked Bulldogs at the McCarthy Center.  The game between the Dons and Bulldogs is slated for a 6:00 p.m. tipoff and will be televised on ESPNU.
 

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The Dons will stay at home, hosting Pepperdine on Saturday, Feb. 22 at 3:00 p.m.. It will be part of a Saturday doubleheader with the women who take on BYU at Noon.  Tickets for next Thursday's game at available at USFDons.com/mbbtix  

Please mark your calendars for the Hall of Fame Dinner on February 21st at 6:30 PM in the McClaren Conference Center on USF's campus. We will honor our Dons of the Year, Kevin and Susan Hanley, as well as our inductees that include Dior Lowhorn (men's basketball, 2010), Joy Boyenga (women's basketball, 1992), and Kyle Zimmer (baseball, 2012). Tickets are available now at usfdons.com/halloffame.