SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - Protecting home court before the holiday break, the University of San Francisco men's basketball team (10-3) held on late to pick up their tenth win of the season on Saturday afternoon as the Dons defeated Montana (7-6), 71-67, at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• After Montana scored the first four points of the afternoon, San Francisco got on the scoreboard on a three-pointer from Malik Thomas at 17:36. Just a few minutes later, the Dons took their first lead of the game when Marcus Williams nailed a jumper at 15:19 to put the green and gold on top, 7-6.
• Finding its footing as the minutes moved along, San Francisco used a 12-2 run at the midway mark of the first half to extend their advantage to double digits, 22-12.
• Continuing to find separation offensively, a pair of free throws from Thomas with 5:48 left in the first half made it 28-14 in favor of the Dons.
• Cutting into the lead in the final minutes of the opening half, Montana made it a seven-point game, 33-26, following a fastbreak layup from Joe Pridgen with 39 seconds remaining. However, the green and gold responded once more as a three-pointer from Ryan Beasley with six seconds left helped San Francisco jump back in front by double figures, 36-26, at the halftime break.
• Coming out of the locker room, three straight triples from Williams, Tyrone Riley IV and Thomas kept the Dons in control through the first few minutes of the second half.
• Exploiting openings in the Grizzly defense, Williams poured it on with another jumper at 14:44 as the basket put San Francisco up fourteen points, 51-37.
• Fighting back with each possession, Montana went down swinging as the Grizzlies trimmed their deficit to single digits, 56-47, after a three-pointer from Te'Jon Sawyer with 8:59 remaining in regulation.
• Over the next five plus minutes, Montana got as close as three points, 65-62, when Pridgen dropped in a layup with 3:07 left. Although they were not perfect at the free throw line, San Francisco answered by knocking down important shots at the charity stripe to close out the contest.
• With Pridgen keeping the Grizzlies alive following a dunk with eleven seconds left, Saba Gigiberia secured a defensive rebound with under eight seconds remaining on the game clock, but the center went on to miss a pair of free throws following the rebound.
• Dialing up one last stop, San Francisco held off any final comeback efforts as the Dons went on to secure a 71-67 victory over Montana on Saturday afternoon.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Driving the ship offensively, Williams was named Player of the Game after finishing with a season-high 25 points on 8-of-11 from the field and 8-of-11 from the free throw line. Additionally, the guard added five rebounds and three assists while tying his season-high with 36 minutes played.
• Finishing in double figures alongside Williams, Riley IV and Thomas both finished with 17 points on Saturday as the duo shot a combined 10-of-22 from the floor and 7-of-11 from beyond-the-arc. Notably, Riley IV added a team-high seven rebounds while Thomas was one of three Dons to record a steal in the win.
• As a unit, San Francisco led Montana in points off turnovers (8-6) and second chance points (10-6) while holding the Grizzlies to 23.5 percent (4-17) from distance. Overall, this is the seventh time this season the Dons have held their opponents to under 30.0 percent from three-point range.

POSTGAME WITH THE DONS:

• To view the full highlights of today's contest, please click here.
• To view the full postgame interview with head coach Chris Gerlufsen, please click here.
• To view the full postgame interview with Tyrone Riley IV and Malik Thomas, please click here. 

UP NEXT:
San Francisco will use the holiday break to rest and recover as the Dons will return to the hardwood to begin West Coast Conference play on Saturday, Dec. 28 when they welcome LMU to the Hilltop. Tipoff from War Memorial at the Sobrato Center is set for 7:00 pm as Ben Ross and Ben Braun will have the call on ESPN+ while Pat Olson and Jim Brovelli will have the call on KNBR 1050. Live streaming, radio, live statistics and ticket links are available via the team's schedule page.
 
FOLLOW US:
For updates and more information on the San Francisco men's basketball program, follow the Dons @USFDonsMBB on Twitter, @USFDonsMBB on Instagram and @USFDonsMBB on Facebook.
 
MERCHANDISE:
Want to dress like the Dons? Get your official San Francisco Dons gear from the University of San Francisco bookstore today! Click here to purchase.
 
SPONSOR THE DONS:
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our sponsor - Twenty Five Ventures - for their continued support of San Francisco 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.