Box Score MORAGA, Calif. - Suiting up for a late night national showdown, the University of San Francisco (USF) men's basketball team (14-12, 6-7 WCC) battled to the final buzzer, but Saint Mary's (21-4, 10-2 WCC) defended home court on Saturday, securing a 79-54 victory over the Dons at University Credit Union Pavilion.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
- Junjie Wang got the scoring started on an assist from Legend Smiley to begin the ballgame, giving San Francisco a 3-0 lead to open the contest. Saint Mary's (SMC) countered with a 10-2 run courtesy of Mikey Lewis and Paulius Murauskas, but David Fuchs responded with an early three-pointer to keep the Gaels' lead at two, 10-8, with 15:25 to go in the first half.
- Keeping the Dons at bay, SMC increased its lead throughout the first half with four Gaels logging eight-plus points in the period. Heading into the locker room, Saint Mary's remained in front, 40-29.
- Coming out of the break, SMC fired away with a 9-0 spurt to start the second half, forcing USF to use a timeout as the Gaels led 49-29 with 16 minutes remaining in regulation.
- Rounding out the night, San Francisco was unable to trim its deficit through the rest of regulation as Saint Mary's fended off the Dons for a 79-54 win on Saturday night.
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
- Leading USF in scoring for the third time in the last eight games, Wang scored a team-high 14 points, shooting 7-of-8 from the foul line in 28 minutes of action.
- Big on the boards once again, Fuchs logged his sixth double-double of the season with 11 points and a team-high 10 rebounds.
- Filling the stat sheet, Mookie Cook had his highest scoring game of conference play with 10 points in 22 minutes off the bench, to go along with five rebounds, two blocks, one assist, and one steal.
- As a unit, San Francisco shot a season-high 93.8 percent from the free throw line, hitting 15 of its 16 shots from the stripe. The Dons also turned the ball over only six times, their lowest turnover total since Dec. 17 vs. Loyola Chicago (4).
POSTGAME WITH THE DONS:
UP NEXT:
San Francisco will return home to the Hilltop this upcoming Thursday, Feb. 12, to host Oregon State in the first annual Bill Russell Impact Classic. Tipoff from War Memorial at the Sobrato Center is scheduled for 6:00 pm, with the game airing live on ESPN2 and KNBR 1050. 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 US:
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our sponsor -
Provident Credit Union - for their continued support of University 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.
