PORTLAND, Ore. – Traveling to the Pacific Northwest for their first match up with the Pilots this season, the University of San Francisco men's basketball team (12-8, 1-4 WCC) dropped a back-and-forth affair at Chiles Center on Thursday night as Portland (9-10, 1-4 WCC) topped USF, 92-87.

With four made threes in the contest, Khalil Shabazz passed former teammate Jordan Ratinho (2016-20) for the most made three-pointers in program history. Shabazz now stands alone atop the leaderboard at USF with 252 made threes and counting.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• Trading baskets out of the gates, USF maintained an early 11-10 lead following a three-pointer from Isaiah Hawthorne at 17:29. 
• Shortly thereafter, Portland responded with a 9-4 run across the next few minutes to jump in front, 19-14, following a jumper in the paint from Moses Wood at 14:19.
• Continuing to fight, a layup from Josh Kunen at 11:55 in the first half kept the Dons within one, 19-18. Using the home crowd to their advantage, the Pilots rallied with a 21-8 stretch over the next eight plus minutes to extend their lead to double digits, 38-27, at 3:47.
• Following a pair of free throws from Tyrell Roberts with 1:00 left, neither side could score again in the final sixty seconds of the first half as Portland remained in control by ten, 48-38, heading into the locker room.
• Answering back to begin the second half, USF reeled off an 11-4 run of their own, which was highlighted by two triples from Roberts and two dunks from Zane Meeks, to draw back within three, 52-49, at the 16:30 mark.
• Following additional baskets from Meeks and Roberts as well as a steal and fast break layup from Khalil Shabazz, the Dons jumped back in front, 56-52, at 14:33. With just over eleven minutes remaining in regulation, Shabazz knocked down a trio of free throws to keep the green and gold in command, 63-59.
• Down the stretch, Portland showed their grit by climbing back in front, 67-65, after a made three from Wood at 7:12. 
• Delivering in the clutch yet again, Roberts nailed back-to-back triples at 6:01 and 5:24 to catapult USF back on top, 76-71.
• In the minutes to follow, the Pilots dug deep by piecing together a 7-1 that gave the Pilots the lead back, 78-77, with 3:45 left on the game clock.
• At the 1:35 mark, Shabazz tied Ratinho (2016-20) with his 251^st made three as a Don, which also gave the Dons a one-point advantage, 81-80.
• Defending their home court, Portland once again took the lead, 83-81, following a three at 1:17. Doing what they have done best all year, the Pilots then went a perfect 9-of-9 from the free-throw line to close the contest.
• As the clock wound down, Shabazz nailed his fourth triple of the night, pushing him past Ratinho to become USF's new all-time leader in made three-pointers with 252 across his career on the Hilltop.
• Securing their first conference win of the season, Portland hung on to take down the Dons, 92-87. 

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Finishing with a game-high 25 points, Shabazz tallied his seventh 20+ point performance of the year and third in the last five games as the Seattle native also added seven rebounds, three assists and three steals in 37 minutes played.
• Leaving it all on the hardwood, Roberts impressed by tying his season-high of 24 points, including a season-high six threes (6-10 3PT), to go along with two steals, two assists and one rebound in 29 minutes played.
• As a team, USF led Portland in points in the paint (26-22), points off turnovers (14-12), bench points (17-12) and field goal percentage (45.9-44.6). 

UP NEXT:
USF will return home to San Francisco as the Dons will welcome Bay Area rival Saint Mary's to War Memorial at the Sobrato Center for an 8:00 pm battle this Saturday, Jan. 14. With the USF and Saint Mary's women set to match up at 2:00 pm that same day, the men's game will serve as the second game of USF's Defend the Hilltop doubleheader. The game will air live on NBC Sports Bay Area and KNBR 1050 at game time as live streaming, radio and live statistics links are available via the team's schedule page. Tickets to both of Saturday's games against Saint Mary's are also available via the team's schedule page or usfdons.com/tickets.
 
FOLLOW US:
For updates and more information on the USF men's basketball program, follow the Dons @USFDonsMBB on Twitter, @USFDonsMBB on Instagram and @USFDonsMBB on Facebook.
 
MERCHANDISE:
Want to dress like the Dons? Rep USF today by visiting the all-new USF Dons online store at www.usfdons.com/shop.
 
SPONSOR THE DONS: 
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our primary sponsor - Provident Credit Union - for their continued support of USF Athletics. Interested in sponsoring the Dons? Please contact Frank Allocco, the Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director of External Relations, at fallocco@usfca.edu or at (415) 422-4561.