MALIBU, Calif. – The trio of Jordan Ratinho, Nate Renfro, and Matt McCarthy proved to be too much for Pepperdine to handle.  As the University of San Francisco men's basketball team defeated the Waves, 80-67, Saturday afternoon at Firestone Fieldhouse.
 
USF (10-7, 2-2 WCC) started slow, trailing the Waves for the first nine minutes of the contest.  The Dons came back, taking advantage of strong interior play, scoring 20 points in the paint.  From 3-point range the Dons started cold, going 2-for-13 before the intermission.  Still, they went into the locker room leading 36-32.  
 
After the break, Pepperdine (3-13, 0-4 WCC) began the half on a 7-0 run to take the lead for the final time.  After a timeout called by the Dons, USF took control.  Ratinho heated up from 3-point range, as did Renfro.  Ratinho finished the night going 7-for-12 from the field and 3-for-7 from long range.  His 20 points ties a career-high. 
 
Renfro was all over the place for the Dons.  Running the floor finishing with emphatic dunks on fast breaks, scoring with his back to the hoop and going 3-for-5 from 3-point range.  Renfro finished the night with a career-high 16 points, to go along with his five rebounds and three assists.  
 
McCarthy tallied five assists on the night, passing beautifully out of the high post.  He also finished with 16 points, going 7-for-9 from the field.  The Dons had a few stretches where they couldn't score, but strong defense kept the Waves from cutting into the lead.  USF forced 14 turnovers that led to 17 points for the Dons.   
 
GAME NOTES

• The Dons have won six-straight at Firestone Fieldhouse, and 11 of the last 13 contests overall.
• USF was outrebounded 33-29 on the evening, they improve to 1-5 when being outrebounded.
• The Dons bench was very active today, outscoring the Waves 42-4 on the evening.  Ratinho and Renfro were a big reason for that, scoring 36 of the reserves 42 points.
• USF shot 50.0 percent from the field tonight, it is the third time they have shot 50.0 percent or better.  They are 3-0 when making half their baskets, the other wins came against Sonoma State and UC Davis.
• The Dons finished with a season-low seven turnovers on the evening.  In a weird coincidence, the Dons are just 3-4 when winning the turnover battle this season.

 
NEXT UP
The Dons will make a quick return trip to Southern California on Thursday when USF travels to Gersten Pavilion to take on Loyola Marymount at 7:30 p.m.