The University of San Francisco men's basketball is back on the Hilltop on Thursday where it will host the Portland Pilots.  Thursday's game is scheduled to tip off at 6:00 p.m. and will be televised on ESPNU with Dave Feldman and Corey Williams handling the play-by-play duties.  Pat Olson will have teh call on the home of USF Dons Basketball, KNBR 1050-AM.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Jan. 7, 2021 – 6:00 p.m.    
Opponent: Portland Pilots (6-3, 0-0 WCC)
Site: War Memorial at the Sobrato Center
TV:  ESPNU
Talent: Dave Feldman (play-by-play) and Corey Williams (analyst)
Radio:  KNBR 1050-AM
Talent: Pat Olson (play-by-play)
Live Stats: USFDons.com


USF AT A GLANCE
• The Dons enter Thursday's game with a 7-5 overall record and are 1-1 in the WCC after falling to No. 1 Gonzaga 85-62 in Spokane last Saturday. The Dons battled in the first half but a late run by the Bulldogs gave them a 10-point cushion at the half.  Out of the break Gozaga's depth took over, and handed the Dons their largest loss of the season and first 20-point defeat since falling to No. 4 Gonzaga 92-62 in Spokane on Feb. 7, 2018.
 
• On the National Stage: The Dons will square off against the Portland Pilots on ESPNU on Thursday - it is the sixth time the Dons have played a nationally televised game.  USF is 1-4 in those contests, 1-2 on the ESPN family of Networks and 0-2 on the Pac-12 Network. The Dons defeated No. 4 Virginia on ESPN on Nov. 27.
 
• Bouyea Versus Cousy: USF's senior point guard has gone head-to-head against three players on the Bob Cousy watch list (Jalen Suggs, Gonzaga/Fatts Russell, Rhode Island/Kihei Clark, Virginia) - in those contests he averaged 19.7 ppg, shooting 52.2% from the field, 44.4 percent from 3-point range with 2.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists.  He shutdown Suggs and Clark holding them well below their average at five and nine points respectively.
 
• Schedule Change: The Dons and Pilots were originally supposed to pay on the Hilltop in February - but with Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount on pause because of Covid the league moved this game up to Thursday. The Dons were supposed to host the Waves.
 
• Dons Next Great Big Man?: Through is first 12 games in his sophomore season, Dons reserve center Jonas Visser compares very favorably to a former all-conference center Jimbo Lull. In Lull's first 12 games (he did not play every contest like Visser has) he played 70 minutes, averaging 5.8 minutes per game, while shooting 50% from the field (12-for-24) averaging 1.0 rebound per game and 2.6 points per contest.  In 12 games this year, Visser has played in 150 minutes, 12.5 minutes per game, shooting 51.7% (15-for-29), grabbing 2.1 rebounds per game and averaging 3.1 points per contest. 
 
• Dons From Distance:  The Dons rank third in the nation in 3-point field goal attempts with 355, they are 10th in 3-point field goals made per game at 10.9, 69th in 3-point field goal percentage at 36.9%, and second in made 3-point field goals with 131.  All of those numbers lead the West Coast Conference.  They are also exceptional at 3-point field goal defense - the Dons are 26th in the nation and second in the conference at holding their opponents to 27.3 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
 
Series Against Portland
Thursday marks the 92nd 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. At home, USF is 35-9 against UP and has won five-straight on the Hilltop. Last season, the two teams split the season series with the home team taking the win each time.  Last time out, the Dons routed the PIlots 81-64. The last Pilots win came on Jan. 4, 2020 when USF fell to the Pilots 76-65 at the Chiles Center.  The last time the Dons fell to the Pilots at home came on Feb. 5, 2015 with the Dons losing 69-57.
 
About the Pilots
The Pilots have been idle since Dec. 30, 2020 - they enter Thursday's game with a 6-3 record.  Like the Dons, they have split with Pac-12 Opponents, defeating Oregon State before falling to Oregon. The Pilots are a much different team home versus away. At the Chiles Center, the Pilots are 5-1, away from their home arena they are 1-2.  As a team, UP is averaging 73.4 points per game while shooting 41.6 percent from the field.  Their opponents are averaging 75.8 points per contest and shooting 42.2 percent from the floor. Two players are averaging in double figures with Ahmed Ali leading the team with 19.0 points per game. 
 
Last Time Out Versus Portland
An emphatic two-hand dunk that resulted in a technical foul by Jimbo Lull halted a second half run by Portland that erased a 23 point lead for the Dons.  In the end, USF got back on track to win at home 81-65 on Senior Night.
 
Lull led the Dons with 16 points and 13 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season.  He was one of five players in double figures. Jamaree Bouyea finished with 16 points five rebounds and four assists. Jordan Ratinho finished with 13. Khalil Shabazz had 12 and Josh Kunen had 10.
 
The Dons led 40-20 at halftime, with 8:21 in the contest a dunk by Tahirou Diabate cut the Dons lead to three, 52-49. USF went on a 17-2 run over the next four minutes to put the game away. 
 
NEXT UP
The Dons game Saturday at Loyola Marymount was pushed back a day.  USF and LMU will now play on Sunday, January 10 at 4:00 p.m. at Gersten Pavilion.  That game will be streamed on the WCC Network.  Pat Olson will have the call remotely on KNBR 1050-AM.