LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Closing out a 2-0 week in Southern California, the University of San Francisco men's basketball team (20-6), 10-3 WCC) picked up its fourth straight victory on Saturday night as the Dons held on late to take down LMU (14-10, 6-6 WCC), 72-66, at Gersten Pavilion.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• LMU would net the first point of the evening on a free throw from Alex Merkviladze just 15 seconds into play, but Malik Thomas quickly responded with five straight points to give San Francisco an early 5-1 at 18:21. Less than two minutes later, Marcus Williams intercepted a pass from Rick Issanza on the wing before driving the length of the court to lay it home and put the Dons up 7-1 at 16:32.
• Shortly thereafter, LMU found its footing as the Lions reeled off a 9-0 run to grab the lead back, 10-7, following a hook shot in the paint from Merkviladze at 13:11. However, the advantage would prove to be short-lived as back-to-back baskets from Ryan Beasley and Thomas pushed the green and gold back in front, 12-10, at 11:59, which also began an 11-0 stretch for USF.
• Following a pair at the charity stripe from Thomas, San Francisco remained in the driver's seat, 18-10. Doing his part from beyond-the-arc, Williams cashed in on a three-pointer at 9:40 to give the Dons their first double digit advantage of the night, 24-14.
• Punching back on their home floor, LMU didn't waver as the Lions answered back with another 7-0 run to trim their deficit to three points, 24-21, after a layup from Jevon Porter at 7:15.
• In what proved to be a game of runs, San Francisco then gathered themselves before firing off ten straight points, which was capped off by a spot up jumper from Carlton Linguard Jr. at 3:48. With 3:08 remaining in the opening period, Thomas picked off another LMU pass before finding a wide-open Tyrone Riley IV for a breakaway slam as the Dons took their largest lead of the half (12 points), 35-23.
• Wrapping up the first half with a 5-1 run, the Lions finished the period strong, but San Francisco was still in charge by eight points, 36-28, heading into the locker room.
• Coming out of the halftime break, the two teams traded blows as a triple from Junjie Wang at 18:29 kept the Dons up seven, 41-34. Although LMU would come within four points, 41-37, two straight layups from Wang and Williams grew the lead back to eight, 45-37, for the Dons at 16:05. Just over three minutes later, a pair of free throws from Williams helped USF keep its distance, 51-45, at 12:53.
• As the midway mark of the second half approached, the Lions continued to fight back with each possession. Driving down the lane on the break, Jan Vide converted a three-point play with under nine minutes remaining to draw within one point, 57-56. Subsequently, Caleb Stone-Carrawell knocked down a jumper out of a timeout to give LMU their first lead of the second half, 58-57, at 7:38.
• Regrouping in the huddle, San Francisco followed suit by firing off an 8-0 run that catapulted the green and gold back in front, 65-58, after two more free throws from Williams at 4:55.
• Aiming for a comeback, LMU netted four straight points with just around two minutes remaining to climb within two, 68-66.
• Stepping up when it mattered most, Beasley then delivered by drawing a charge on Jevon Porter with 20 seconds left in regulation to give the Dons the ball back. Tapping into his clutch gene, Beasley proceeded to sink all four free throws to wrap up the game as San Francisco held on to take down LMU, 72-66. 

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Finishing with a season-high 18 points, Beasley was named Player of the Game after shooting 4-of-7 from the field, 2-of-4 from distance and a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line. Notably, the guard also added three rebounds, one assist and one steal in the win.
• Alongside Beasley, Williams (19 points) and Thomas (14 points) also finished in double figures. Overall, the trio of guards combined to score 51 of USF's 72 points on Saturday night.
• As a team, San Francisco led LMU in points off turnovers (21-8) and bench points (26-21). 

POSTGAME WITH THE DONS:

• To view the full postgame interview with head coach Chris Gerlufsen, please click here.
• To view the full postgame interview with Ryan Beasley, please click here.

UP NEXT:
San Francisco will continue its three-game road swing next week as the Dons will head north to Spokane for a matchup at Gonzaga on Thursday, Feb. 13. Tipoff from MCarthey Athletic Center is scheduled for 6:00 pm as the contest will air live on ESPN and KNBR 1050 at gametime. Live streaming, radio and live statistics 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 - ABM - 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.