Game at a Glance
San Francisco Dons (19-11, 9-8 WCC) vs. Pepperdine Waves (9-20, 5-12 WCC)
Saturday,  Feb. 25, 2017 • 1:00 p.m.
Firestone Fieldhouse • Malibu, Calif.
Series Record: USF 76-52
Last Meeting: Feb. 2, 2017 (USF 77-56)
Television: CSNBA (Barry Tompkins, Play-by-Play; Casey Jacobsen; Analyst; Kelli Tennant; Sideline)
USF Audio Only: TheW.TV (Pat Olson, Play-by-Play; Jim Brovelli, Analyst)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast.com

Complete USF Game Notes (PDF)

Opening Tip
USF (19-11, 9-8 WCC) meets the the Pepperdine Waves (9-20, 5-12 WCC) on Saturday in Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu in the WCC's Game of the Week. The Dons are coming off a 53-51 loss Thursday night at Loyola Maryount while the Waves fell at home to Saint Mary's, 77-56. Saturday's game will televised across the WCC's family of networks, including CSNBA in the Bay Area. Barry Tompkins and Casey Jacobsen will have the call from courtside while Kelli Tennant will handle sideline duties.

USF at a Glance

• Now 19-11 overall and 9-8 in the WCC after suffering a 53-51 setback at Loyola Marymount on Thursday...the Dons have dropped three of its last four games following a four-game winning streak.
• Have secured the fifth-seed in the upcoming WCC Championships in Las Vegas and will play either BYU or Santa Clara in a quarterfinal matchup next Saturday at 3:00 p.m.
• Looking for its first 20-win season since 2013-14 (21-12)...this marks the eighth time since 1985-86 USF has posted at least 19 wins in a season.
• The 19 wins under Kyle Smith are also the fourth most by a first-year head coach in USF history...last head coach to post 20+ wins in their first season at the helm was Pete Barry (24-7) in 1980-81.
• At 19-11, USF has its best 30-game start since the 2013-14 season when the Dons were 20-10 at the same mark of the season before finishing at 21-11...the Dons are also four games ahead of last year's pace when the team was 15-15 at the 30-game mark of the season.
• Face Pepperdine for the second time this season on Saturday...won the first meeting with the Waves, 77-56 on Feb. 2 in San Francisco and have won nine of the last 11 in the series, including four straight in Malibu.
• Have held 11 of the last 12 opponents under 70 points and are allowing just 59.6 ppg (716) total during that stretch...are allowing 66.5 ppg this season after yielding 78.7 ppg a year ago.
• Of USF's 19 wins this season, 16 have been decided by 10 points or more, including seven wins by 20+ points.
• USF has compiled a 34-21 (.618) record in the month of February over the last six seasons dating back to the 2009-10 campaign.
• USF is 21-18 (.552) in its last 39 WCC road games dating back to its last five conference road games of the 2012-13 season...over the last five seasons, the Dons are 22-21 in WCC road games...during that stretch, USF is a combined 1-15 at Gonzaga, Saint Mary's, BYU and 21-7 (.750) in all other conference road venues.
• Over the last five seasons, the Dons are 44-43 in WCC games...during that time, USF is 2-28 against Gonzaga, St. Mary's and BYU and 42-15 (.736) against the six other conference teams.
• Shooting just 32.7 (81-for-247) over the last four games but rank fourth in the WCC in field goal percentage at 45.5...have shot over 50 percent from the floor in 11 games this season after shooting 50 percent or better in just six contests last year...are 10-1 this season when shooting at least 50 percent from the floor with the only loss coming at Eastern Washington.
• Rank second in the WCC and t-37th nationally in three's made per game (9.2)...have made a school-record 275 threes on the year (t-23rd NCAA) and have made 10 or more three's in 11 games this season, including a school-record 18 against Eastern Washington and 16 vs. Utah...rank seventh in the WCC in three-point field goal percentage at 35.6...shooting 31.2 from distance vs. conference opponents (9th WCC).
• The Dons bench has combined to score 743 points over the last 21 games (35.3) and have outscored the opponent's bench 1024-505 (+519) on the season...bench has accounted for 48.2 percent (1024 of 2120) total points this year.

Scouting Report

About Pepperdine
Waves are 9-20 on the season and 5-12 in the WCC…dropped a 78-49 decision to St. Mary's Thursday night and have lost three straight after a three-game winning streak…have been decimated by injuries this season…have lost four players to season-ending injuries, most recently senior forward Chris Reyes, who was averaging 13.4 points and 7.9 rebounds…Lamond Murray Jr. leads the WCC and ranks 28th nationally in scoring with a 20.3 per game average…he has scored 20 or more points in 15 games this season…senior guard Jeremy Major is the Pepperdine's all-time career assist leader…he will make his 122nd start Saturday vs. USF, which will establish a new Pepperdine record.

USF-Pepperdine Series History
In a series that dates back to the 1955-56 season, USF leads the all-time series with Pepperdine, 76-52. The Dons took the first meeting between the two schools, 77-56 in San Francisco on Feb. 2. The Dons have won nine of 11, 11 out of 14 and 12 of the last 16 meetings with the Waves dating back to the 2009-10 season. The Dons have also won four straight in Firestone Fieldhouse dating back to the 2012-13 season. USF and Pepperdine split last year's regular season meetings, with each winning on the other's homecourt. Pepperdine claimed a 98-84 decision on Jan. 16 in San Francisco but the Dons bounced back to claim a 82-72 victory in Malibu on Feb. 18. The teams met for a third time in the WCC Championships, with the Waves coming out on top, 90-86. The two schools have met eight times in the WCC Championship tournament, with the Pepperdine holding a 7-1 advantage. USF's only win in WCC Tournament action came in the 2011 event when the Dons posted a 76-59 victory in a quarterfinal game.

First Meeting With Pepperdine
Ronnie Boyce scored a team-high 21 points while Chase Foster added 13 to lead USF to a 77-56 victory over Pepperdine on Feb. 2 in War Memorial at the Sobrato Center. The Dons never trailed in the game and maintained a double-digit lead after taking a 24-13 lead with 8:56 left in the first half after a Charles Minlend layup. USF took a 20-point lead into intermission at 41-21. A total of 11 Dons got into the scoring column as USF's bench scored over 50 points for the second time in as many games.The Dons also dominated the Waves down low, outscoring Pepperdine 42-20 in the paint.

Last Time Out

Loyola Marymount 53, USF 51 
Despite holding LMU to 29.1 percent shooting, USF failed to hold a 10-point second half lead and fell to the Lions, 53-51 in a defensive struggle Thursday night at Gersten Pavilion. The Dons led 44-34 early in the second half and enjoyed a 39-33 advantage with 11:47 remaining. LMU then went on a 12-0 run to take a 45-39 lead with 7:22 left and never trailed the rest of the way. The Dons shot just 35.7 percent for the game, including 21.4 percent from long distance. USF had a slight edge on the boards, 43-38, but were harassed into 15 turnovers which led to 19 points for the Lions. LMU also knocked down 17-of-28 free throws, while USF made just five of its 11 charity tries. Jordan Ratinho led all USF scorers with 13 points while Nate Renfo had five blocks, six assists and two steals to go along with seven points. Steven Haney led all Lion scorers with 18 points.