University of San Francisco
2-0,0-0WCC
North Dakota State
1-2,0-0Summit League
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Dakota St. | 31 | 39 | 70 |
| San Francisco | 45 | 34 | 79 |
11/6/2026 11:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball
SAN FRANCISCO – Forward Ben Oosterbaan, playing in his second game for the San Francisco Men's Basketball team, and guard Andrew Hilman, playing in simply his second collegiate game, each scored 22 points Friday night to lead the San Francisco Dons to their second straight win, a 79-70 decision over North Dakota State from War Memorial Gym at Sobrato Center.
A junior who spent the past two seasons at St. Thomas, Oosterbaan had 15 points at the break. He suffered a sprained ankle in the final seconds of the first half, but managed to play 18 minutes after the intermission.
For the game, Oosterbaan went 9-for-13 from the floor (including 4-for-7 from beyond the arc) and added seven rebounds, two assists and two steals.
A native of Cameroon who came to USF by way of San Francisco's Archbishop Riordan High, Hilman scored 17 points in the second half. For the game, he hit both of his 3-point attempts, went 10-for-11 at the line and pulled down a game-high eight rebounds.
In the Dons' 76-62 win over Radford in their opener Monday evening, Hilman had three points, going 1-for-5 from the floor (including 0-for-4 from long range) and 1-for-5 at the line.
Hilman "was a little bit of a deer in the headlights" against the Highlanders, USF head coach Chris Gerlufsen said, adding that Hilman "didn't play anywhere near close to how we expect him to play.
"He was extremely hard on himself over the last couple of days. For him just to respond the way that he did says a lot about him as a young man. He's built the right way."
Said Oosterbaan: "I think Andrew plays well beyond his years. … He just has a natural intuition for basketball, and I think you'll keep seeing performances like this out of Andrew."
Oosterbaan's scoring output was one point shy of his career high of 23 that he had with the Tommies against South Dakota State on March 5.
"I'm proud of Ben," Gerlufsen said. "He went down with an ankle sprain right before the end of the first half and kind of gutted that game out. Again, that's a credit to him, but I'm not surprised. That's how he's wired."
Hilman likened Oosterbaan to an older brother. "I think Ben is important every single day," Hilman said. "He always brings the juice at practice."
In both of its games, USF has built an 11-2 lead. The Dons have not trailed at any point in the first 80 minutes of the season.
Still, it hasn't been all smooth sailing for San Francisco. USF was up 45-31 at the break, but the Bison had cut the Dons' lead to four (63-59) with 5-1/2 minutes remaining. In the next minute and a half, Dylan Bordon made cross-court passes that led to 3-pointers by Gustav Knudsen and Hilman that gave the Dons breathing room.
"We have faced some adversity in the first two games," Gerlufsen said. "I think we've learned a lot. I think we have so much left to learn as a group. …
"We're going to get to the point where we're solid in all three areas of the game and this team wants to do that. I think we have a chance to be as good as we want to be."
The Dons play the third game of their five-game, season-opening homestand Tuesday night when Montana (1-1) comes to the Hilltop at 7 p.m.Â
In honor of Veterans Day on Nov. 11, USF is offering $23 tickets at the door for all active duty, retired, and first responders and family members.Â
