Game #12
San Francisco Dons (6-5, 0-0 WCC) vs. Cleveland State (5-6, 0-0 Horizon League)
Sunday,  Dec. 21, 2014 • 1:00 p.m. (ET)
The Wolstein Center - Goodman Arena • Cleveland, OH
Series Record: USF 1-0
Last Meeting: USF 91-82 (Nov. 13, 2013)
Audio/Video Streaming: TheW.tv (Pat Olson, Play-by-Play; Jim Brovelli, Analyst); ESPN3
Television: Sports Time Ohio (Al Pawlowski, Play-by-Play; Pat Vyancich, Analyst)

Complete USF Game Notes (PDF)

The Dandy Dons

• Now 6-5 on the season after Thursday night's 77-40 home win over Portland State...win snapped a two-game losing streak...Kruize Pinkins and Mark Tollefsen each scored 23 points to lead all scorers.
• Were also 6-5 at the 11-game mark of last season...won games 12 and 13 to improve to 8-5 overall.
• The win over Portland State was the Dons fourth victory this season by 30-points or more...have won six games this season by an average of 30.1 points.
• Wrap up the non-conference schedule this afternoon at Cleveland State...Dons won the first-ever meeting between the two schools last year in San Francisco, 91-82.
• Have played just one true road game this season, losing at Colorado, 72-55 on Dec. 3...are 1-2 in neutral court games, all coming at the Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla.
• Are 5-2 at home this season and are 18-7 on the Memorial Gym hardwood over the last two seasons...averaging 80.8 ppg and shooting 52.8 percent from the floor in six home games this season.
• Have outrebounded nine of 11 opponents this season...were even vs. Florida Gulf Coast and were outrebounded by Cal Poly...lead the WCC in rebound average at 41.0 and are third in rebound margin (+8.9).
• Three players - Pinkins (7.0), Tollefsen (6.0) and Matt Glover (5.7) - are averaging at least 5.0 rebounds per game while Tim Derksen is averagaing 4.9.
• Shooting 47.7 percent from the floor, third-best in the WCC...have shot 50 percent or better in four games this season, including a season-high 66.7 percent effort vs. Montana.
• Shooting just 55.8 percent (150-for-269) from the line after 11 games, last in the WCC...free throw percentage is the second-lowest among 345 Division I teams.
• Have made just 45.8 percent (49-for-107) of their free throws in five losses which have come by an average of 10.2 points...have missed 34 free throws in losing last three games.
• Lead the WCC in field goal defense (.380) but are 8th in three-point defense (.343)....allowing just 63.1 points per game, third lowest average in the league.
• Senior Kruize Pinkins continues to lead the team in scoring (17.2) and rebounding (7.0)...he ranks in the top-10 in five WCC statistical categories, including scoring (7th), rebounding (4th), field goal percentage (4th; 57.1), three-point percentage (3rd; .478) and offensive rebounds (2nd; 3.2).
• Junior Mark Tollefsen has scored in double figures in all 11 games this season, including a pair of 23-point games against Evansville and Portland State...he now ranks second behind Pinkins in scoring average at 15.0 ppg...he has started 49 consecutive games dating back to the 2012-13 season, the longest streak on the team.
• Have used four different lineups in 10 games thus far this season...used three starting combos all of last season.

Notables

Opening Tip
USF (6-5, 0-0 WCC) plays its final non-conference game Sunday afternoon at Cleveland State (5-6, 0-0 Horizon League). Tip-of is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET at The Wolstein Center-Goodman Arena. The Dons are coming off a 77-40 victory over Portland State on Thursday, while the Vikings fell at Virginia, 70-54.

Series History with Cleveland State
USF and Cleveland State have met just once previously, with the Dons posting a 91-82 victory in San Francisco last season. Mark Tollefsen led five Dons in double-figures with 18 points while Tim Derksen added 17 off the bench. USF trailed by nine at 66-57 with 8:40 left before going on a 17-1 run to take a 74-67 lead with 5:30 remaining. The Dons shot 56.9 percent from the field and scored 56 second half points en route to their second victory of the season. Charlie Lee and Sebastian Douglas each scored 15 points to lead five Vikings in double-figures.

Last Time Out
USF snapped a two-game losing streak Thursday night with a 77-40 victory over Portland State in Memorial Gymnasium. The Dons limited the Vikings to just 20 percent shooting from the floor, including 10 percent in the second half, in the 37-point victory. Kruize Pinkins and Mark Tollefsen each scored 23 points for USF, while Tim Derksen added 10. Tollefsen also grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.

The Start
At 6-5, USF has the same record after 11-games as it did last season. The Dons won games 12 and 13 last year over American and Portland to improve to 8-5 overall before suffering a 69-41 setback at Gonzaga in game No. 14. The Dons finished the season with a 21-12 overall record and tied for second in the WCC with a 13-5 mark.

The Wins
USF's six wins this season have come by an average of 30.1 points (83.8 to 53.7). The Dons have posted four wins of 30 points or more against South Carolina State (91-52), Notre Dame de Namur (86-46), Houston Baptist (85-54) and Portland State (77-40) and also own decisive victories over Hawaii (88-73) and Montana (76-57).

The Road Record
USF has played just one true road game this season, falling 77-52 at Colorado on Dec. 3. The Dons are 1-2 in neutral court games this year, defeating Hawaii before suffering losses to Florida Gulf Coast and Evansville at the Gulf Coast Showcase. USF was 7-5 in road games last season and are 13-12 in road games dating back to the 2012-13 season.

The Defensive Numbers
USF allowed a season-low 40 points aganst Portland State, which was the lowest point total by an opponent since the Dons defeated Cal State-East Bay, 80-40 on Jan. 3, 2009. USF ranks third in the WCC in points allowed per game (63.1) and first in field goal defense (.380). The Dons also rank third in steals per game (6.8) and are seventh in blocks (2.5).

Board Work
The Dons have outrebounded nine of 11 opponents this season and lead the WCC in rebound average at 41.0 per game. USF also ranks third among WCC teams in rebound margin, outboarding its first 11  oponents on margin of 8.9 per game. The Dons also rank first in the conference in offensive rebounds with a 13.1 per game mark. Three of the five starters - Kruize Pinkins (7.0), Mark Tollefsen (6.0) and Matt Glover (5.7) - are averaging at least 5.0 boards per game, while Tim Derksen is at 4.9. Pinkins, Tollefsen, Glover and Derksen have all pulled down 10+ rebounds in a game this season.

From the Field
The Dons are shooting 47.7 percent from the field this season which is the third best mark in the WCC. USF shot 55.6 percent from the field vs. Houston Baptist, marking the fourth time this season USF has shot 50 percent or better from the floor. Kruize Pinkins (4th; 57.1) and Mark Tollefsen (6th; 56.0) both rank in the top-10 among WCC playes in field goal percentage.

Free Throw Woes
USF is shooting just 55.8 percent (150-269) from the line at the 11 game mark of the season, which ranks last in the WCC and is the second worst mark in the naton among 345 Division I teams. Only Savannah State (54.1) has a lower percentage. The Dons have shot just 45.8 percent (49-for-107) from the line in its five losses which have come by an average of 10.2 points. USF's 269 free throw attempts are tied for the 19th highest total in the nation. USF shot just 64.8 percent (523-for-807) from the line last season, which was the lowest percentage in the WCC. Last year's free throw percentage was the lowest mark since the 1985-86 team shot 62.4 percent (328-for-526) from the line.

Beyond the Arc
The Dons made 10-of-24 three-pointers against Portland State, its second game this season with 10 or more three-pointers (12 vs. South Carolina State). The Dons rank fourth in the WCC in three-point field goal percentage at 39.6 percent (80-202). Senior Kruize Pinkins ranks third in the WCC in three-point field goal percentage at .478 (11-23) but does not have enough attempts to rank among the national leaders.

The Lineups
Head coach Rex Walters employed his fourth different starting lineup of the season Thursday night vs. Portland State, with senior Corey Hilliard drawing his first career start at the point. Derrell Roberston (5) and Matt Christiansen (4) have combined to start nine games in the middle, while senior Chris Adams drew his first starting assignment of the year against Evansville. The Dons utilized three starting lineups all of last season.

Kruize-in
Senior forward Kruize Pinkins ranks among the top-10 in five WCC statistical categories, including scoring scoring (7th; 17.2), rebounding (4th; 7.0), field goal percentage (4th; 57.1), three-point percentage (3rd; .478) and offensive rebounds (2nd; 3.2). He scored a career-high 30 points against Eastern Washington and has scored 20 or more points in three other games vs. Notre Dame de Namur (26), Montana (26) and Portlan d State (23).

Tollefsen Terrific
Junior forward Mark Tollefsen has scored in double-figures in all 11 games this season, including a pair of career high 23-point efforts against Evansville and Portland State. He now ranks as the team's second leading scorer at 15.0 ppg. Tollefsen also pulled down a season-high 10 rebounds against Portland State and is now averaging 6.0 boards per game, second-best on the team behind Pinkins. He ranks sixth in the WCC in field goal percentage (56.0) and three-point field goal percentage (47.2). Tollefsen has made 49 consecutive starts dating back to the 2012-13 season, the longest streak among all USF players.