Game 6
San Francisco Dons (3-2, 0-0 WCC) vs. Delaware State Hornets (0-6, 0-0 MEAC)
Sunday,  Nov. 29, 2015 • 3:00 p.m.
War Memorial at The Sobrato Center • San Francisco, Calif.
Series Record: USF 1-0
Last Meeting: Nov. 27, 1993 (USF 123-75)
Audio/Video Streaming: TheW.tv (Pat Olson, Play-by-Play; Jim Brovelli, Analyst)
Television: None

Complete USF Game Notes (PDF) | Complete Delaware State Game Notes (PDF)

USF at a Glance

• Now 3-2 on the season after dropping a 68-61 home decision Wednesday night to UC Santa Barbara...Tim Derksen had a game-high 21 points while Devin Watson added 17 for the Dons.
• Meet Delaware State Sunday afternoon in War Memorial at the Sobrato Center...Dons are 4-0 all-time against teams currently aligned in the MEAC.
• Delaware State has dropped six straight games to open the season with the latest loss coming Friday night at Fresno State, 80-59.
• Today's game begins a stretch that will see USF play four games in eight days.
• Will play six of its last seven non-conference games at home prior to opening WCC play on Dec. 21 at Saint Mary's...last non-conference road game is slated for Dec. 4 at Montana.
• Two of the Dons three wins this season have come by a combined total of four points (78-75 at Illinois-Chicago; 58-57 vs. UC Riverside)...also own a 26-point win over Rice (80-54)...were 1-4 in games decided by five points or fewer last season.
• Shooting 25.3 percent (19-for-75) in the first half of its last three games but have warmed up to shoot 50.6 percent (41-for-81) in the second half.
• Have scored 56 of its 76 second half points (73.6 percent) in a span of 17:54 over its last two games.
• Sophomore point guard Devin Watson leads the Dons and ranks second in the WCC in scoring average at 19.0 ppg...also ranks fifth in assist average at 5.4.
• Senior guard Tim Derksen is averaging 14.2 ppg and a team-best 8.4 boards a game five contests into the season...he ranks sixth in the WCC in rebounding from his two-guard position.
• Both Watson and Derksen have scored in double-figures in each of the first five games of the year and are averaging 33.2 ppg this season.
• After scoring just 12 points in the previous two games, USF's reserves chipped in 19 points vs. UC Santa Barbara...bench is averaging 20.6 points per game this season.
• After going 22-of-39 from the free throw line in the opener at Illinois-Chicago, USF is 62-for-83 (74.6) over its last four games...shooting 68.9 percent from the line this season - third best in the WCC.
• Have outrebounded three of its first five opponents, narrowly losing the battle of the boards to Fresno State (35-38) and UC Santa Barbara (35-34)...are +25 in the rebound column and rank fifth in the WCC in rebound margin (+5.0).
• With 115 wins in seven-plus seasons on the Hilltop, Rex Walters is tied for sixth place with Pete Peletta (1960-66) on USF's all-time career win list among coaches.
• Were picked seventh along with Pacific in the WCC's Preseason Coaches Poll...both teams received 32 points.
• Will return to action Tuesday night against Eastern Washington in War Memorial at The Sobrato Center before traveling to Missoula, Mt. to meet Montana on Friday night.

Notables

Opening Tip
USF (3-2, 0-0 WCC) plays the third of four consecutive home games on Sunday against Delaware State (0-6, 0-0 MEAC). Tip-off is at 3:00 p.m. in War Memorial at The Sobrato Center. USF is coming off a 68-61 loss to UC Santa Barbara on Wednesday night while the Hornets suffered a 80-59 setback at Fresno State on Friday.

USF-Delaware State Series History
Sunday's game marks just the second meeting between USF and Delaware State.  The Dons defeated the Hornets 123-75 on Nov. 27, 1993 in the MetLife Classic in San Francisco. USF is 4-0 against current MEAC teams, including a 91-52 victory in last year's season-opener against South Carolina State. Dons also own wins over Hampton (69-57; 2010) and Morgan State (87-74; 2011).

Last Time Out
USF dropped to 3-2 on the season after suffering a 68-61 loss to UC Santa Barbara Wednesday night on the Hilltop. The Dons never led in the game and trailed by as many as 28 points in the first half before heading into the locker room down 15 at 45-20. USF made just five field goals and shot 22.7 percent from the floor over the first 20 minutes. USF still trailed by 22 points at 60-38 with 9:40 left before the Dons found their first offensive rhythm of the game. A 13-0 USF run, highlighted by a pair of three-pointers by Devin Watson and one by Mladen Djordjevic cut the Gaucho lead to 60-51 with 6:32 remaining. The Dons whittled the lead to seven on a Tim Derksen layup with 2:12 left. However, a layup by John Green and a tip-in by Michael Bryson boosted the Gaucho lead back to double-digits at 66-55 with :56 seconds left, ending any hopes of a second straight miracle finish. Derksen led all scorers with 21 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds while Watson finished with 17. The Dons were plagued by 13 turnovers which led to 16 Gaucho points and had only nine assists on the night.

Slow Starts
USF has been plagued by slow starts in each of its last three games. The Dons have scored just 70 first half points over its last three games (23.3) against Fresno State (27), UC Riverside (23) and UC Santa Barbara (20) and are shooting just 25.3 percent (19-for-75) over the first 20 minutes in those contests. The Dons never led in losses to Fresno State and UC Santa Barbara and used a last second layup by Tim Derksen to defeat UC Riverside. 

Close Calls
USF has won two of its three games this season by a combined total of four points, winning 78-75 at Illinois-Chicago and 58-57 vs. UC Riverside. The Dons also own a 26-point, 80-54 victory over Rice. USF played just five games last season which were decided by five points or fewer and were 1-4 in those contests.

Home for Awhile
This afternoon's game against Delaware State continues a stretch that will see the Dons play four straight and six of their next seven non-conference games at home leading up to the WCC opener at Saint Mary's on Dec. 21. The Dons final non-conference road game will take place on Dec. 4 at Montana.

The Dons Backcourt
USF's starting guard combination of sophomore Devin Watson and Tim Derksen is shaping up to be one of the best guard tandems in the WCC.  The two players have combined to score 33.2 ppg (166 total) and have led the team in scoring in all five games this season. Watson leads the team and ranks third in the WCC with a 19.0 ppg average while Derksen is scoring at a 14.2 ppg clip. Watson also ranks fifth in the conference in assist average (5.8) while Derksen is ranks sixth in the conference in rebound average (8.4) from his two-guard position.

Watson Tops Scoring Charts
Five games into the season sophomore point guard Devin Watson leads the Dons and ranks third in the WCC in scoring with a 19.0 point per game average. He bettered his career high in back-to-back games against Fresno State (24) and UC Riverside (27). His previous career high was 21, scored last season at Portland.  He is also averaging 5.4 assists per game and has made 77.1 percent (27-for-35) of his free throws on the year.

Derksen's Doubles
Senior guard Tim Derksen recorded his second double-double of the season and third of his career against UC Riverside, finishing with 11 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. He also had a double-double in the season-opener at Illinois-Chicago (17-12). He has recorded three double-doubles in his last five game dating back to last season after finishing the 2014-15 campaign with a 21-point, 10-rebound performance against Gonzaga in the quarterfinals of the WCC Tournament.

From the Line
After making just 22-of-39 (56.4) of its free throws at Illinois-Chicago, USF has knocked down 62-of-83 (74.6) of its free throws over its last four games and is now shooting 68.9 percent from the line this season -- third best in the WCC. Last season, USF ranked last in the WCC with a 62.9 free throw percentage, which was the lowest mark since the 1985-86 season (62.4).

From the Floor
The Dons have shot 50 percent in one game this season (Rice; 50.8) and are shooting 41.1 percent from the field at the five-game mark of the season, which ranks sixth in the WCC. USF shot 50 percent or better from the field just eight times all last season and finished fourth in the WCC in field goal percentage at 45.1 percent.

Board Work
USF has outrebounded three of its first five opponents and is +25 in the rebound column after five games.  USF narrowly lost the battle of the boards to Fresno State (35-38) and UC Santa Barbara (35-34). The Dons outrebounded 10 of its 12 non-conference opponents last year but were outrebounded in 15 of its last 20 games of the year against WCC foes.

The Bench
USF's bench scored a combined 72 points over the first two games of the season vs. Illinois-Chicago (35) and vs. Rice (37), but have scored just 31 points in its last three contests at Fresno State (12), UC Riverside (0) and UC Santa Barbara (19). USF's reserves are averaging 20.6 ppg this season (103 in 5 games), compared to the opponent's at 22.2 (111).

Walters on USF's All-Time Coaching Charts
With 115 wins in seven seasons on the Hilltop, Rex Walters is one of seven coaches in USF history to win a 100 games. With one more victory, Walters will move past Pete Peletta's (1960-66) into fifth place on the Dons' all-time career win list.

Scouting Report

About Delaware State
Have dropped six straight games to open the season…wrap up a three-game California road swing today which has seen the Hornets play at UC Riverside (55-81) and Fresno State (59-80)…trailed Fresno State by just four points at 48-44 with 14:30 left before the Bulldogs went on a 16-0 run to seize control of the game…Aric Dickerson and Kavon Walker led the Hornets with 10 points each…DeAndre Hayward leads the team in scoring with a 9.6 point per game average…freshman Devin Morgan ranks second in scoring at 8.6 ppg…team is averaging 58.3 points per game through its first six contests…reached the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship game last season before falling to Hampton in the championship game…picked to finish ninth in the 13-team MEAC this season after losing all five starters off last year's team, including 2014-15 MEAC Player of the Year Kendall Gray, Defensive Player of the Year Amere May and the conference's top scorer in Tyshawn Bell.


Fan Information

Ticket Information
Individual game tickets for all USF home games this season are available on line at USFDons.com or by calling (415) 422-2USF. General admission tickets are available for as low as $10.
 
SF-Marin Food Bank and St. Anthony Foundation Donation Game
For Wednesday night's game against UC Santa Barbara and Sunday's game against Delaware State, fans can donate a new pair of socks or a non-perishable canned food item for a discounted general admission ticket of $5. Non-perishable food items include but are not limited to canned fruits and vegetables, canned tuna or meat, soup, chili, beans, cereal and granola bars. No glass or perishable items, please. All donations will be distributed to over 450 community partners of the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank and will be used to prepare meals for those in need or to supplement larger deliveries. For those people who live on the street, access to shoes and socks is often limited. Wet feet, poor fitting shoes and constant standing can quickly take its toll on the less fortunate citizens of San Francisco. With the cold and wet winter months approaching, new socks make a big difference to people living on the streets. All socks that are collected will be donated to the St. Anthony Foundation in support of the organization's Socks in the City initiative.
 
Parking Information
Parking is available free of charge two hours prior to tip-off until one hour after the conclusion of the game in any campus lot, with the exception of designated green parking spots and the top of Hayes-Healy garage on Golden Gate Avenue adjacent to the gymnasium.
 
The Hilltop Club Level
Fans 21 and older can enjoy beverages and catered food options before and during designated games during the season in the Hilltop Club Level. Located in the upper mezzanine level on the south side of Memorial Gymnasium, The Hilltop Club Level will open one hour before tipoff and will remain accessible throughout the game. Beer, wine, soft drinks and catered food options will be available to all fans 21 years of age and older. Admission to the The Hilltop is priced at $25 per game. Season passes for all games with the exception of designated premium games may also be purchased for $250. Food and drink options are extra. The cost does not include a game ticket.