If the University of San Francisco men's basketball team fresh off a battle with No. 2 Gonzaga are back home at the friendly confines of War Memorial at the Sobrato Center for a WCC showdown against Pepperdine.  The Dons (17-11/6-7 WCC) and Waves (15-13/8-6 WCC) are slated for a 3:00 p.m. tip – or 30 minutes after the completion of the women's game against visiting BYU.  Saturday's game will be televised on NBC Sports Bay Area with Roxy Bernstein and Mike Montgomery handling play-by-play duties. Pat Olson and Jim Brovelli will have the call on the official home of USF Dons basketball, KNBR 1050-AM.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Feb. 22, 2020 – 3:00 p.m.
Opponent: Pepperdine Waves (15-13/8-6 WCC)
Site: War Memorial at the Sobrato Center    
TV:  NBC Sports Bay Area | ROOT Sports Northwest |  AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain 
Stream:  WCC Network (out-of-markets)
Talent: Roxy Bernstein (play-by-play) and Mike Montgomery (analyst)
Radio:  KNBR 1050-AM
Talent: Pat Olson (play-by-play) and Jim Brovelli (analyst)
Live Stats: Statbroadcast.com
 
USF AT A GLANCE
• USF is 17-11 on the year and 6-7 in the WCC.  At home, the Dons are 11-5 and in conference play they are 3-3.  Over the last 10 games, the Dons are 5-5
• Last time out: For just the fourth time this year the Dons could not hold on to a halftime lead.  No. 2 Gonzaga, thanks to a 24-2 run to begin the second half went on to win 71-54 at McCarthey Athletic Center.
• Silver Linings:  Looking at the positives - the Dons led that contest for 17:03 - in two games against the second ranked team in the nation this year the Dons have led a total of 43:45 out of 80 minutes - and had the lead at half in both contests.
• More on the Dons vs. Bulldogs:  USF held Gonzaga — the highest-scoring team in Division I — to 17 points below their season average, with the Bulldogs scoring just 22 points in the first half. The only other team to hold Gonzaga to 25 points or below in a half was Michigan — so far, the only team to down the Bulldogs this season.
• #31 to the Rafters:  The USF Athletics department announced last week that they will be retiring Hall of Famer Joe Ellis' (1964-'66) number 31.  The ceremony will take place on Feb. 22 against Pepperdine.
• Doubling Up: In the win over Santa Clara, the Dons had a pair of double-doubles by Jimbo Lull (16 pts. 14 reb.) and Charles Minlend (11 pts. 10 reb.)  It is the fifth career double-double for Lull and third career double-double for Minlend. This year, the Dons have had 10 double-doubles - USF is 5-3 when a player records a double-double this season.
• The NET:  In the latest update to the NCAA Evaluation Tool the Dons are up to 96th - they are fourth in WCC behind Gonzaga (2), BYU (18) and Saint Mary's (37).  The Dons are fourth in the WCC in Avg. Net Win at 174 - Gonzaga is third in the WCC at 163, SMC second at 162, and BYU is first at 153.  Fifth in the conference is Pepperdine with an average Net Win of 204.
• Quadrant:  The Dons boast a 4-7 record in quadrant 1 and 2 games this year.  USF is 1-5 in Q1 games, 3-2 in Q2 games.
• Starting Down a 20-win Season:  With three games to play the Dons have a chance to earn their 20th win prior to the WCC Tournament.  The last time USF posted four-straight 20-win seasons came when did it seven-straight years from 1975-76 to 1981-82.
 
VS. PEPPERDINE
Series
Saturday will be the 136th time the Dons and Waves have squared off.  All-time the Dons own an 82-53 advantage in a series that dates back to Jan. 6, 1956 when USF defeated Pepperdine 62-51 in San Francisco.  At home, USF is 44-20 - over the last 10 games the Dons have won nine of the last 10 home contests against the Waves including three-straight.  Last year, USF swept the regular season series against the Waves before Pepperdine defeated the Dons 89-72 in the WCC Tournament on Mar. 9, 2019.
 
About the Waves
The Waves are 6-4 over their last 10 contests and are 15-13 overall.  They opened the year 4-6 after getting picked to finish fourth in the WCC preseason poll.  As a team, the Waves are averaging 76.8 points per game while surrendering 77.1 points per contest.  The Waves have four players averaging double figures, leading the team in scoring is Colbey Ross who is averaging 20.3 points per contest while also dishing out 7.2 assists per game.  The Waves are shooting 43.8 percent from the field and 35.1 percent from 3-point range.  Pepperdine ranks 10th in the WCC in 3-point field goal defense, allowing their opponents to shooting 38.6 percent from beyond the arc. 
Last Time Out Versus Pepperdine
The Dons record against the Waves in a neutral floor are not great - USF entered their match-up against Pepperdine 3-7 in the previous 10 contests at a neutral floor. In the quarter finals of the WCC Championships on Mar. 9, 2019 the bad luck continued.  Pepperdine, thanks to a tremendous shooting performance from long range, defeated the Dons 89-72. In the second half USF cut a 10-point deficit to three following a three point field goal by Remu Raitanen. Colbey Ross led all scorers with 26 he was one of five Waves in double figures. USF had two players in double digits, with Charles Minlend scoring a team-high 17 points.
 
UP NEXT
The Dons will honor three incredible seniors next Thursday on Senior Night when USF plays its final home contest of the season against Portland.  The Dons and Pilots are slated to tip off at 7:05 p.m.  Thursday's game will be streamed on the WCC Network with Pat Olson and Jim Brovelli handling play-by-play duties.