PORTLAND, Ore. — Saturday's West Coast Conference first half finale between San Francisco and Portland saw both teams go on big runs to erase deficits and grab leads, but it was the host Pilots who would make the winning push, scoring 42 second half points to come back from being down double digits and win, 78-73, at the Chiles Center.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• San Francisco (5-15, 1-8 WCC) held a 10-point, 46-36, halftime lead after scoring their most points in a single quarter all season with 32 in the second. The Dons were still up by 12 points 3 1/2 minutes into the third period, but they would miss their next six shots while also turning it over twice. Meanwhile, Portland (10-10, 2-7 WCC) scored eight straight points and went on a 16-5 run to cut the Dons' lead to one at 57-56.
   
• Portland used the offensive glass in the third quarter to help it come back. The Pilots grabbed six offensive boards in the third period alone, including four during their 8-0 stretch. Portland would outrebound the Dons, 45-36, in the game, including 14-13 on the offensive end.
   
• Most of the fourth quarter looked like the first, with the teams trading the lead five different times in the first five minutes. But Darian Slaga, who finished with a game-high 25 points, hit all three of her 3-pointers on the afternoon in the fourth quarter, and all three of them gave Portland the lead. The first, just 33 seconds into the final period, gave the Pilots their first lead since the second quarter at 60-59. The second one again brought Portland back from a deficit and gave it a 65-63. And the third broke a 67-67 tie to put Portland up for good at 70-67 with 3 1/2 minutes to play.
   
• Portland went on a game-clinching 11-2 run that kicked off with Slaga's third trey and gave it a nine-point lead with only 37 seconds left. During that same stretch, the Dons went just 1 for 12 from the field, including missing eight consecutive shots. Before that cold streak, the Dons had been shooting 49.1 percent in the game. They finished with a 2-for-13 stretch (15.4 percent).
   
• San Francisco pulled away from a close contest in the second quarter and staked itself to a large lead when it took off on a 16-3 run. Trailing 23-22, the Dons hit three 3-pointers and also had a three-point play from Lucija Kostic to go up 38-26. Their largest lead would come at 44-31 with 82 seconds to go before halftime, as they outscored the Pilots, 22-8, from when they last trailed. Nia Alexander scored eight points during that stretch and had 10 in the second quarter alone, including two treys.
   
• The game started as a back-and-forth battle. Only once did either team lead by more than three points in the first quarter, and that was an early four-point, 9-5 advantage for USF five minutes in. The game was tied three times and there were four lead changes in the first 10 minutes alone. That continued in the early part of the second with two more ties and three more lead changes in in the first 3:47.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• 4: USF had four players finish in double-figure scoring for the first time since Dec. 29 in a 68-57 win over San Diego. Shannon Powell led the Dons with 19 points. Lucija Kostic had a season-high 18 points, Nia Alexander scored 15 and Moa Lundqvist scored a season-best 12 points.
• 10: San Francisco only had 10 turnovers in the game, its lowest total since only having seven against UC Davis on Dec. 15. Saturday was the third time in the last four games USF has had the same amount or less turnovers than its opponent.
• 18: Lucija Kostic scored a season-high 18 points Saturday. She went 8 for 13 from the floor and also flirted with a triple-double thanks to seven rebounds and a season-best seven assists.

COMING UP

• San Francisco kicks off the second half of WCC play on Saturday with a road trip to the South Bay at rival Santa Clara. The Dons then host Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount on Feb. 7 and 9, respectively. Fans can purchase tickets and find all live coverage links on USFDons.com.