PORTLAND, Ore. – The University of San Francisco had another slow start offensively and found itself down by eight early in the first half. But the Dons came to life thanks to the three ball and Jamaree Bouyea's career-high 28 points, giving USF a 79-63 win over Portland at the Chiles Center on Thursday evening.
 
An early 7-0 run helped get Portland (6-6, 0-3 WCC) out front 21-13 with 11:20 to play in the first half.  At that point the Dons were struggling to find their touch going 0-for-4 from 3-point range. 
 
USF (8-6, 3-2 WCC) eventually got the offense in gear thanks to Taavi Jurkatamm who hit a pair of threes and the Dons' bench who provided a big lift early.  A 13-0 run later in the first half brought the Dons back from eight down.  A Bouyea layup with 6:12 remaining before intermission gave USF its first lead of the night, a lead they would not relinquish.
 
The Dons finished the night with four players in double figures led by Bouyea's career-high 28 points.  The senior from Seaside, Calif., was electric going 12-for-19 from the field.  Khalil Shabazz had 13, followed by Jurkatamm and Rishwain who had 11 each.
 
I thought we played well," said head coach Todd Golden. "It was an interesting start, but you have got to give Portland credit.  Eddie Davis came out guns blazing.  I thought we did a wonderful job on the glass, we fouled a little too much, but overall it was a really good defensive effort on the road."
 
The Pilots shot 34.0 percent from the field going 18-for-53, from long range they connected on just 21.1 percent of their attempts going 4-for-19. In the second half they were just 1-for-8 from beyond the arc.  Portland had three players finish in double figures, led by Davis' 20 points.  Ahmed Ali had 11 and Latrell Jones had 10.
 
USF shot well overall, connecting on 47.7 percent of their attempts.  From 3-point range, the Dons were 13-for-38.  USF improves to 8-2 when making 10 or more 3-point field goals this season.
 
On the glass, the Dons had one of their better days.  USF finished with 43 rebounds, second most of the season.  They were +17 in rebound margin which was a season-high.  More importantly, one game after giving up a season-high in second chance points, USF limited the Pilots to just six second chance points.
 
A big reason for the Dons strong play on the glass was Josh Kunen.  The sophomore finished with a game-high 11 rebounds, three on offense.  He also had five assists, and three blocks. 
 
Samba Kane and Rishwain also had excellent evenings.  Kane finished the night with eight rebounds and seven points in 12 minutes of action.  Rishwain grabbed four rebounds along with his 11 points and was plus-20 in the plus/minus category.
 
"Josh did a really nice job just kind of settling down, the last couple of games he's been a little inconsistent handling the ball – but he was a real factor on the glass. I was really proud of Samba I thought he gave us a lift in the first half when we were struggling really cleaned some things up inside. Julian also gave us a big lift he hit some big buckets early," said Golden.
 
USF went into the locker leading 43-30 at halftime. The second half featured plenty of Bouyea and several runs by USF.  The Dons led by as much as 24 with 8:50 to play in the contest.  Overall, the Dons led the game for over 26 minutes, the seventh time this season they have led for 25 or more minutes.
 
The Dons will return to action on Saturday as part of a men's and women's double header.  The women will host Gonzaga at noon with the men hosting BYU at 5:00 p.m. Saturday's game will be televised on ESPN2 with Eric Rothman and Richie Schuler on the call.  Pat Olson will have the call on the home of USF Dons Basketball, KNBR 1050-AM.