SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – The San Francisco men's basketball team will host Holy Cross on December 18 in its final non-conference home game of the 2012-2013 season.
The matchup will mark the fifth time the two schools have faced each other, with the first ever meeting coming on December 28, 1955 in a 67-57 Dons victory. The inaugural win over Holy Cross was the 35th win in a row for San Francisco and part of a historic 60-game win streak, which carried the Dons to two NCAA titles.
San Francisco bested Holy Cross again in 1998, before dropping consecutive contests against the Crusaders in 2007 and 2008.
The last meeting against the Crusaders came in Rex Walters' first season on the Hilltop on December 27, 2008 as the Dons dropped a close fought contest, 88-97.
San Francisco (20-14, 8-8 WCC) is coming off its first 20-win campaign since finishing 25-6 in the 1981-82 season under head coach Pete Berry. The Dons advanced to the postseason for the second straight season, falling to Washington State in the opening round of the CBI. San Francisco has improved its record every season under fifth-year head coach Rex Walters.
USF series history against Holy Cross:
1955-56 – Win, 67-51
1998-99 – Win, 58-42
2007-08 – Loss, 63-67 (OT)
2008-09 – Loss, 88-97
Notes: The 60-game win streak, which spanned exactly two calendar years from December 17, 1954 to December 17, 1956, is still the second longest win streak in NCAA basketball history…. Bill Russell scored a game-high 24 points in the inaugural matchup against Holy Cross… junior forward Dior Lowhorn added a team-high 27 points for USF in the most recent 2008 matchup, while senior guard Manny Quezada added 26 points.
