Box Score
STOCKTON, Calif. – The San Francisco women's basketball team was outmuscled and outhustled as the Pacific Tigers kept its unblemished home-court record intact in a 75-59 win at the Alex G. Spanos Center in Stockton, Calif.
Despite the loss, the Dons will enter West Coast Conference play with a 7-6 overall record, its first over-.500 season in non-conference action since 2007-08. Coach
Jennifer Azzi's takeaway from the game and the non-conference schedule is one of continued improvement as the season progresses.
“I was really proud of the way we played defense and stayed with them in the first half,” Azzi said. “But Pacific is a really good team. I think overall their depth and experience was just too much for us. We made some youthful mistakes, but we are definitely getting better.”
The Dons jumped out to an early lead, grabbing a 2-0 advantage before the clock lost a tick as Pacific was assessed with an administrative technical for a backboard light malfunction.
Mel Khlok's pair from the strip gave USF the early lead and four more from the hand of the senior put the score at 6-2 before Pacific was sparked by an 8-1 run.
The contest was tied at 21-all with 4:52 to play when Kendall Rodriguez sunk the back end of a trip to the line. On the inbounds play, a turnover by USF's
Alicia Scafidi gave the Tigers the chance for the lead, which would never be relinquished.
Rodriguez got her 1,000th career point for Pacific with 4:33 to play in the first half to break the tie. Her 3-pointer was followed by another long-range shot from the senior from La Habra, Calif., to bump the Tigers' lead to six, the largest by either side in the half. At the break the score was 31-26 in favor of the home team.
Rodriguez finished with a season-high 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting and Kendall Kenyon's 16 rebounds set a new high water mark on her career. The fast pace and physicality led to a combined 47 turnovers in the disjointed game flow. The Tigers benefitted from 22 points off USF's 25 turnovers.
Pacific dominated the boards, crashing the glass at every opportunity and on both sides of the floor. The Tigers capitalized on its 25 offensive rebounds to earn 22 second-chance points. Overall, the Dons managed 25 total rebounds, with a new season low of seven off the offensive glass.
The Dons were led by a 22-point outing by Khlok, who was 6-of-12 from the field with three 3-pointers and 7-of-8 from the line.
Zhané Dikes, the Dons' only other double-digit scorer, finished with 12 points and a team-high six rebounds and four assists.
The Tigers, soon-to-be members of the WCC, move to 9-2 on the season and have notched wins over future foes Santa Clara and Saint Mary's while putting together its best non-conference record since the 1999-2000 season. Pacific's only losses on the year have been away from home, at Florida and Stanford.
Up next, USF opens WCC play on the Hilltop as it welcomes Saint Mary's to War Memorial Gym Thursday at 7 p.m.
