MALIBU, Calif. – Completing their two-game road swing with a California showdown, the University of San Francisco men's basketball team (16-4, 3-2) got back in the win column with a dominant 71-45 win over Pepperdine at Firestone Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• Pressing their foot on the gas to begin the ballgame, USF raced out to a 9-3 lead following a layup from Yauhen Massalski in the paint at 15:16. Just four minutes later, the Dons stretched their advantage to double digits, 16-5, when Julian Rishwain sunk all three free throws after being fouled behind-the-arc at the 11:29 mark.
• Heating up as the half played on, USF continued to roll early after Rishwain nailed consecutive three-pointers at 9:48 and 7:40 to put the Dons up 24-7. Finding their rhythm on both sides of the ball to close out the half, San Francisco would hold the Waves to just 20 points in the first half, tying their season low for points allowed in a half as USF previously held Davidson to 20 points in the first half on Nov. 13 and UAB to 20 points in the first half on Nov. 26. At the break, the Dons remained in control over Pepperdine, 33-20.
• Opening the second half on a tear, Patrick Tapé extended USF's lead to 21, 41-20, following a crafty hook shot over a Pepperdine defender on the block at 17:27. As the midway point of the half passed, Gabe Stefanini gave the Dons a 26-point advantage, 59-33, with a jumper of his own at the 9:27 mark. Growing the gap to 32 points, Khalil Shabazz joined the scoring party with a made three at 4:03.
• Holding strong to cruise to their third conference victory of the season, USF shined on ends of the floor on Saturday to take down the Waves, 71-45. Notably, the Dons held the Waves to their lowest point total of the season in the win.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Pouring in a season-high 20 points to lead all scorers, Rishwain was named the Player of the Game after finishing 6-of-9 from the field overall, 5-of-8 from distance and a perfect 3-of-3 from the free throw line. Additionally, the Los Angeles native added 3 rebounds and 2 steals in 23 minutes played.
• Having his way down low, Massalski logged his fifth double-double of the season against the Waves by tallying 12 points and 10 rebounds on 5-of-10 from the floor and 2-of-3 from the charity stripe.
• As a team, USF led Pepperdine in points in the paint (30-12), points off turnovers (22-8), fast break points (12-3) and bench points (28-17).

POSTGAME:

• To view the full postgame interview with head coach Todd Golden, please click here.

UP NEXT:
USF will return home to the Hilltop for two crucial matchups next week as the Dons are set to host Saint Mary's on Thursday, Jan. 27 at 7:00 pm followed by a meeting with Santa Clara on Saturday, Jan. 29 at 4:00 pm. Both contests will air live on Stadium and KNBR 1050 at game time. Live streaming, radio and live statistics links are available via the team's schedule page on usfdons.com.
 
TICKETS AND MERCHANDISE:
Single-game tickets for West Coast Conference basketball games are currently on sale at www.usfdons.com/tickets. 

Want to dress like the Dons? Rep USF today by visiting the all-new USF Dons online store at www.usfdons.com/shop.
 
FOLLOW US:
For updates and more information on the USF men's basketball program, follow the Dons @USFDonsMBB on Twitter, @USFDonsMBB on Instagram and @USFDonsMBB on Facebook.