Game at a Glance
San Francisco Dons (7-5, 1-1 WCC) vs. Portland Pilots (8-7, 2-0 WCC)
Thursday,  Dec. 31, 2015 • 5:00 p.m. 
War Memorial at The Sobrato Center • San Francisco, Calif.
Series Record: USF leads 54-27
Last Meeting: Feb. 5, 2015 (Portland 69-57)
Audio and Video Stream: TheW.tv (Pat Olson, Play-by-Play; Jim Brovelli, Analyst)
Television: None
Live Stats: USFDons.com

Complete USF Game Notes (PDF)

Opening Tip
USF (7-5, 1-1 WCC) plays host to the Portland Pilots (8-7, 2-0 WCC) in a New Year's Eve affair that tips off at 5:00 p.m. in War Memorial at The Sobrato Center. The Dons are coming off a 89-76 victory over Pacific last Wednesday while the Pilots are unbeaten in conference play after a pair of home wins last week over Loyola Marymount (87-60) and Pepperdine (87-79).

What to Watch For

• Thursday's game features two of the top point guards in the WCC in USF's Devin Watson and Portland's Alec Wintering…Watson is the WCC's third leading scorer at 19.1 ppg while Wintering ranks sixth at 16.2…Wintering is fourth in assist average at 5.9 while Watson ranks sixth at 5.2.
• The Pilots are the second-best three-point shooting team in the conference at 38.9 percent while the Dons rank ninth in the WCC in guarding the three.
• Tim Derksen needs just 17 more points to tie Hall of Famer Joe Ellis for 24th place on USF's all-time scoring list.
• USF has won nine of the last 11 games in the series and is 24-7 vs. the Pilots dating back to the 2000-01 season.

USF at a Glance

• Improved to 7-5 overall and 1-1 in the WCC with a 89-76 win over Pacific last Wednesday...made a season-high 13 three-pointers to rally from a 19-point first half deficit...four Dons scored in double-figures led by Devin Watson's 23 points and Ronnie Boyce's 20 points.
• Split the season series with Portland last year, with each team winning on the other's homecourt...Dons have won nine of the last 11 games in the series dating back to 2010-11.
• Were 6-6 at the 12-game mark last season...a win over Portland would boost the Dons to a three games over .500 for the first time since the team won its first three contests of last season.
• Of the Dons seven wins this season, four have been by a combined total of 11 points (78-75 at Illinois-Chicago; 58-57 vs. UC Riverside; 65-61 vs. CSUN; 96-93 vs. Coppin State) while two others have been by a combined total of 60 points (80-54 vs. Rice; 67-47 vs. Delaware State; 89-76 vs. Pacific)...were 1-4 in games decided by five points or fewer last season.
• Have not led in four of its five losses and led for only a combined :32 seconds in a loss to Eastern Washington.
• Are 6-2 at home this season and are 14-10 over its last 23 home games...averaging 74.1 ppg and shooting 46.8 percent in eight home games this season.
• Have trailed at halftime in nine of its 12 games this season and are 4-5 in those contests...averaging 29.4 points (353 total) and shooting 35.7 percent (119-for-333) in the first half this season compared to 39.9 and and 49.4 percent (161-for-326) after intermission.
• Shuffled the lineup for the fourth time this season vs. Pacific, with Ronnie Boyce drawing his first career start.
• Outrebounded Pacific 42-23 and now averaging 39.3 rebounds per game - third best in the WCC...have four players averaging at least 4.0 rpg.
• Junior guard Uche Ofoegbu has scored in double figures in four straight games and is averaging 13.8 ppg and shooting 59.4 percent from the field during that stretch.
• Sophomore point guard Devin Watson is now averaging 19.1 this season, which ranks third in the WCC...he has been in double-figures in all 11 of 12 games this season including five  20-point games.
• Senior guard Tim Derksen is averaging 14.4 ppg and 6.9 boards a game...he ranks ninth in the WCC in scoring and eighth in rebounding from his two-guard position.
• The duo of Watson and Derksen is averaging 33.5 ppg to rank as form WCC's highest-scoring backcourt...they account for 47.6 percent of USF's season point total (402 of 844).
• USF's bench is averaging 18.3 points per game this season (220 total).
• With 119 wins in seven-plus seasons on the Hilltop, Rex Walters is ranks sixth on USF's all-time career win list among coaches...he has coached 236 games, which ranks third all-time behind only Jim Brovelli (286) and Phil Mathews (262).

The Matchup

Series History with Portland
In a series that dates back to the 1952-53 season, USF leads the all-time series with Portland, 54-27. The Dons are 24-7 vs. the Pilots dating back to the 2000-01 season and have won nine out of the last 11 in the series. The two schools split including a 89-77 victory on Jan. last year's season series, with USF claiming an 89-77 victory on Jan. 10 at the Chiles Center and Portland coming out on top 69-57 on the Hilltop.

About Portland
Pilots will bring a 8-7 overall mark and a 2-0 WCC ledger into Thursday night's game…swept Loyola Marymount (87-60) and Pepperdine (87-79) at home last week…point guard Alec Wintering was named the WCC Player of the Week for his performances in the wins over the Lions and Waves…he scored a career-high 34 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists in the 87-79 victory over Pepperdine…finished with eight points, three rebounds and six assists in 19 minutes of action vs. LMU…Wintering ranks as the WCC's sixth-leading scorer with a 16.2 average…he also ranks fourth in assists per game at 5.9 and is second in steals at 1.8…senior Bryce Pressley ranks fifth in the WCC in three-point field goal percentage at .488 (42-for-86) while Jazz Johnson is connecting at a 42.9 clip…as a team, the Pilots rank second only to Saint Mary's in three-point accuracy (38.9) and three's made (150)…WCC's third-highest scoring team at 78.7 but are also allowing 74.4 points a game to the opposition (9th WCC)…deep team which features 12 players averaging at least 10 minutes per game…return seven letterwinners from last year's team that finished 17-16 overall and earned an invitation to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament…were picked fifth in the WCC Preseason Poll.

Last Year's Meetings With Portland
Freshman Devin Watson scored a career-high 21 points to help USF snap a four-game losing streak with a 89-77 victory on Jan. 10 at the Chiles Center. Kruize Pinkins made four three-pointers and finished with 18 while Mark Tollefsen and Tim Derksen added 15 each. The Dons led virtually wire-to-wire, trailing just once at 5-2. USF, which came into the game as the third-worst free throw shooting team in the country, made 28-of-32 shots from the line, with Watson (12-of-14) and Derksen (8-for-10) doing most of the damage. The win was USF's fifth straight on The Bluff.
 
In the return game in San Francisco, USF fell to Portland 69-57 on Feb. 5. The Pilots raced out to a 10-0 lead only to see the Dons regroup and lead at halftime, 36-33. Portland outscored the Dons 11-2 to start the second period and built a 44-38 lead with 13:20 left. The Dons whittled the lead down to four at 54-50 with 6:12 left only to see the Pilots ice the game with a 8-0 run which boosted the lead back to 12 at 62-50. The Pilots made 9-of-18 three-point attempts and outrebounded USF, 39-28. The Dons shot just 22.7 percent in the second half and 36.4 percent for the game. Tim Derksen (17) and Mark Tollefsen (10) scored in double figures for the Dons, while Kevin Bailey and Alec Wintering each had 20 points to pace the Pilots.

Dons' Notebook

The Record
At 7-5, USF is one game ahead of its pace of last season, when the Dons were 6-6 at the 12-game mark. The Dons won their 13th game last season to improve to 7-6 but then dropped four in a row to fall to 7-10. A win over Portland would push the Dons to three games over .500 for the first time since the start of last season.

The Home Record
USF is 6-2 at home this season and is 14-10 over its last 24 home games. However, the Dons were just 3-6 in nine home conference games last season, defeating Pepperdine, Santa Clara and Pacific. USF is averging 74.1 ppg and shooting 46.8 percent from the floor in eight home games this season.

Lineups
USF employed its fourth starting lineup of the season vs. Pacific, as Ronnie Boyce replaced Nate Renfro, giving the Dons four players no taller than 6-foot-4 in the starting five. Boyce responded by scoring a career high 20 points. A total of eight players have drawn starts this season with Devin Watson, Tim Derksen and Dont'e Reynolds holding their sports of all 12 games. Nate Renfro (10), Chase Foster (9) and Montray Clemons (1) have also drawn starts this season.

The Wins and Losses
Of the seven victories, four have been by a combined total of 11 points (78-75 at Illinois-Chicago; 58-57 vs. UC Riverside; 65-61 CSUN; 96-93 vs. Coppin State) while three others have been by a combined total of 60 points (80-54; Rice; 67-47 vs. Delaware State; 89-76 vs. Pacific). The Dons never led in losses to Fresno State, UC Santa Barbara, Montana or Saint Mary's and led for only :32 seconds in a loss to Eastern Washington.

The Half of It
USF has trailed at haftime in nine of 12 games and is 4-5 in those contests. The Dons are averaging 29.4 points (353 total) while shooting 35.7 (119-for-333) from the floor over the first 20 minutes of games this season compared to after intermission when USF is scoring at a 39.9 clip (491 total) and shooting 49.4 percent (161-for-326) from the floor.

Offensively
USF is averaging 70.3 ppg, which ranks eighth in the WCC. The Dons have enjoyed two of their highest scoring outputs of the season in the last three games vs. Coppin State (6) and Pacific (89), sandwiched between a season-low 52-point effort against St. Mary's. Four players scored in double-figures vs. Pacific, which had not happened since the second game of the season vs. Rice.

Dons Defensively
USF has allowed 77.8 points (467 total) a game in its last six games against Eastern Washington (81), Montana (82), CSUN (61), Coppin State (93), Saint Mary's (74) and Pacific (76). The Dons are allowing 70.5 ppg this season, which ranks sixth in the WCC. Opponents are shooting 42.1 percent, including 38.0 percent from long distance, against the Dons this season.

From the Floor
USF bunced back from a season-low 28.3 shooting effort at Saint Mary' to shooting 47.3 percent against Pacific, including 53.3 percent in the second half. The Dons are now shooting 42.6 from the floor on the season, which ranks sixth in the WCC. The Dons have shot 50 percent of better in three games this season (50.8 vs. Rice; 55.8 vs. Montana; 55.0 vs. Coppin State). USF shot 50 percent or better from the field just eight times all last season but finished fourth in the WCC in field goal percentage at 45.1 percent.

Toeing the Line
After making just 22-of-39 (56.4) of its free throws at Illinois-Chicago, USF has knocked down 167-of-236 (70.7) of its free throws over its last 11 games and is now shooting 68.7 percent from the line this season -- fifth best in the WCC. After 12 games last season, USF was converting just 55.9 percent (162-of-290) of its free throw attempts. Devin Watson (80.3) and Tim Derksen (78.9) rank seventh and eighth respectively among all WCC players in free throw percentage. 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 Distance
USF canned a season-high 13 three-pointers in an 89-76 win over Pacific last Wednesday, with Devin Watson (5) and Ronnie Boyce (4) combining for nine of the 13 treys in the game. It marked the first time USF has made at least 10 three-pointers in a game since nailing 11 at Portland last season. The 13 threes were also the most in a singlegame since the Dons drilled a school-record 17 treys against Idaho State in 2013-14. The Dons are now shooting 34.3 percent from three-point range on the year, which ranks sixth in the WCC. Sophomore Devin Watson tops the team in 3's made (24) while Uche Ofoegbu (41.7) leads the team in three-point accurary.

Board Work
USF has outrebounded seven of its first 12 opponents and is +65 in the rebound column on the year. The Dons are averaging 39.3 boards a game, which ranks third in the WCC and are fourth in rebound margin (+5.4). USF ranks second in the WCC in offensive rebounds per game at 12.5. Three players - Dont'e Reynolds (6.5), Tim Derksen (6.9) and Uche Ofoegbu (4.3) - are averaging at least 4.0 boards per game. Derksen's 14 rebounds vs. Pacific were the most by a USF player since Kruize Pinkins also pulled down 14 boards last season vs. Eastern Washington.

Assists, Turnovers and Steals
USF has turned the ball over at least 15 times in six of the 12 games this season and are averaging 14.1 turnovers a game, compared to the opponents at 10.8 per game. USF ranks 10th in the WCC in turnover margin (3.25) and assist-turnover ratio (0.9). Of the Dons 284 total field goals, 132 (51.7) have come via an assist. USF is also averaging 4.7 steals a game to rank 10th in the WCC.

The Bench
USF's reserves are averaging 18.3 ppg this season (220 total), compared to the opponent's at 23.6 (284). The bench scored a season-high 37 points against Rice and has scored 25 or more points in two of its last three games.

WCC's Highest-Scoring Backcourt
USF's starting guard combination of sophomore Devin Watson and senior Tim Derksen has combined to average 33.5 ppg (402 total) points a game this season to rank as the WCC's highest-scoring backcourt., nearly 6.0 ppg higher than BYU's duo of Nick Emery-Kyle Collinsworth (28.7; 374 total). Either Watson or Derksen have led the team in scoring 11 of 12 games this season.  Watson and Derksen account for 47.6 percent (402 of 844) of USF's total point production.

Watson Ranks Third in WCC Scoring
Sophomore point guard Devin Watson is averaging 19.1 points a game, which ranks third in the WCC behind Santa Clara's Gonzaga's Kyle Wiltjer (20.2) and Santa Clara's Jared Brownridge (19.9). Watson has been in double-figures in 11 of 12 games this season, including five 20-point contests (24 at Fresno State; 27 vs. UC Riverside; 25 vs. Eastern Washington; 31 vs. Coppin State; 23 vs. Pacific). He is also averaging 5.2 assists per game to rank sixth in the WCC.

Derksen's Doubles
With 16 points and a career-high 14 rebounds vs. Pacific, senior guard Tim Derksen recorded his third double-double of the season and fourth of his career. Derksen also posted double-doubles earlier this season against Illinois-Chicago (17-12) and UC Riverside (11-13). He also closed the 2014-15 season with a double-double vs. Gonzaga (21-10). He ranks in the WCC's top-10 in both scoring (9th; 14.4) the rebounding (8th; 6.9) from his two-guard position.

Uche's Last Four
Junior guard Uche Ofoegbu has scored in double figures in four straight games and is averaging 13.8 ppg, 7.0 rpg and is shooting 59.4 percent (19-for-32), including 7-of-13 from distance, during that span. He has scored in double figures in five games this season, including a career-high 17 point effort vs. Coppin State.

No Rest for the Weary
Devin Watson (7th; 33.7) and Tim Derksen (9th; 31.9) both rank in the top-10 among all WCC players in minutes played. Derksen has logged 2,759 minutes over his career, which ranks 10th on USF's all-time career list. At his present rate, Derksen will move into USF's top-5 for minutes played at year's end.

Fan Experience

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.
 
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 War Memorial at The Sobrato Center, 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.