The University of San Francisco men's basketball is travels to the Rose City to take on the Portland Pilots at the Chiles Center tomorrow.  The game will be streamed on the WCC Network and slated for a 5:00 p.m. tipoff.  Pat Olson will have the call on the home of USF Dons Basketball, KNBR 1050-AM.   
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Jan. 14, 2021 – 5:00 p.m.
Opponent: Portland Pilots (6-5, 0-2 WCC)
Site: Chiles Center
TV:  WCC Network
Radio:  KNBR 1050-AM
Talent: Pat Olson (play-by-play)
Live Stats: PortlandPilots.com


USF AT A GLANCE
• The Dons nearly rallied back from a 19 point first half deficit in the loss to Loyola Marymount on the road last Sunday.  With 5:50 to play the Dons tied the game at 54 when their finally ran out of gas. The Lions would hold on to win 68-60 at Gersten Pavilion.  USF could not take advantage of LMU's 23 turnovers.  The free throw line was the different with LMU going 7-for-11 in the second half and 18-for-23 overall.
 
• 15 who have Played 14: Knock on wood - the Dons are one of just 15 teams who have played 14 or more games.  As of Jan. 13 they are the only team on the West Coast who has played that many games.  Liberty, Oakland have played 15 which leads the country.
 
• Schedule Oddities: Following Sunday's game the Dons have been the conference opening opponent for four straight opponents (San Diego, Gonzaga, Portland and Loyola Marymount.) The Dons are 2-2 in WCC play winning both home contests.
 
• 20 Turnover Contests:  On Sunday LMU turned the ball over 23 times.  It is the 13th time since 2011-12 that a USF opponent has turned it over 20 or more times - in those contests USF is 9-4.  The last time it happened was at Stanford on Dec. 17, 2017. 
 
• There's A First For Everything:  In the Golden Era - the Dons have made more field goals than their opponent on the road seven times - on Sunday at LMU was the first time they did that and lost.  USF is now 6-1 in those contests. USF is 21-3 overall when making more field goals than their opponent in the Golden Era.
 
• Friendly Road Confines: Since 2011 the Dons have enjoyed their trip to the Rose City.  During that time USF is 9-1, they average 77.4 points per game while shooting .450 from the field and .360 from long range.  The only facility in the league the Dons enjoy playing at more than the Chiles Center is Pepperdine's Firestone Fieldhouse, where the Dons shoot .468 from the field.
 
• Bouyea in Rare Company:  According to CollegeBasketballReference.com there are only six players in the nation who have made 92 or more field goals and are shooting better than 50 percent from the field.  The West Coast Conference has two of them in Jamaree Bouyea and Gonzaga's Corey Kispert.  Bouyea has made 94 field goals and is shooting 53.7 percent from the floor, while Kispert has made 93 field goals and is shooting 60.8 percent from the field. The other players are Nate Watson (Providence), Luka Garza (Iowa), Terry Taylor (Austin Peay), and Tre King (Eastern Kentucky).
 
Series Against Portland
Thursday marks the 93rd time the Dons and Pilots have squared off. All-time the Dons own a 63-28 advantage in the series that goes back to Jan. 26, 1953 when the Pilots defeated the Dons 61-60 in Portland. In Portland, the Dons are 50-24 against the Pilots, at the Chiles Center, which opened in 1984 - the Dons are 21-14.  Last season, the Pilots defeated the Dons at home 76-65 which snapped a nine-game road winning streak for USF.  Under Todd Golden, the Dons are 2-1 against the Pilots. Pilots head coach Terry Porter is 1-8 against USF. Last season, the teams split the season series with both sides winning the home contest.
 
About the Pilots
Portland has lost three-straight after falling to No. 1 Gonzaga 116-88 last Saturday. In that contest, Gonzaga's Joel Ayayi had the Bulldogs first career triple double with 12 points, 13 rebounds and 14 assists in just 28 minutes of action.  As a team, the Pilots are averaging 73.9 points per game and shooting 41.4 percent from the field. Their opponents are averaging 80.5 points per contest while shooting 46.7 percent from the field.  Ahmed Ali and Eddie Davis lead the team in scoring with Ali averaging 18.5 points per game and Davis averaging 10.7. 
 
Last Time Out Versus Portland
The Dons overcame a turnover plagued first half to cruise to a 24 point West Coast Conference victory over visiting Portland last Thursday night at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center. A 10-0 run out of the break, and a tremendous defensive performance gave USF a 88-64 win to improve to 2-1 in league play.
 
Portland began of the game shooting incredibly well.  The Pilots shot 51.9 percent in the first half and were 5-for-8 from long range, 25 of their 43 points came from beyond the arc or at the free throw line where they were 10-for-12 in the first half.
 
USF had four players finish in double figures and were led by Khalil Shabazz's game-high 19 - 13 of which came in the second half.  Josh Kunen had a strong game, he finished the game with a game-high nine rebounds, a season-high.  He had five offensive boards along with three assists, two steals and three blocks.
 
NEXT UP
The Dons will return home to take on BYU on Saturday, January 16 at 7:00 p.m. Saturday's contest between the Dons and Cougars will be televised on ESPN2 with Eric Rothman and Richie Schuler handling play-by-play duties.  Pat Olson will have the call live courtside on KNBR 1050-AM.