SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. -- Returning back to the City by the Bay on a Sunday afternoon, the USF Dons women's basketball team (7-2) earned a hard fought neutral site victory over a good San Diego State Aztecs (7-2) team by a 65-56 final at the Chase Center. Playing at the home of the Golden State Warriors, the Dons brought championship level defense to the floor as they forced the Aztecs into 25 turnovers and only four second chance points to pick up their fifth straight win on the season.
The Dons utilized their depth and deep bench as USF's reserves totaled 42 of the team's points with
Jasmine Gayles' game-high 19 points and six rebounds pacing the way.
Debora dos Santos was able to put together a solid performance for the Dons as she contributed 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting while also securing five rebounds to go along with a pair of assists and steals.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
- Both teams struggled to generate offense early playing on an unfamiliar floor as the Aztecs jumped out to the early 8-4 lead with the first USF points coming from a Kennedy Dickie jump shot and a pair of Ioanna Krimili made free throws. After the Dons took a brief led late in the quarter courtesy of a Krimili three pointer, the Aztecs were able to build some separation and led 17-12 following the first 10 minutes of play.
- The Dons came out firing from three-point range to begin the second quarter as both Jessica McDowell-White and Kia Vaalavirta each knocked down a long distance shot to pull USF within three points early in the quarter. Despite trailing by as many as seven points, the Dons buckled down and were able to head into halftime at 32-all thanks in part to strong defense and key buckets from dos Santos and Gayles.
- USF's front court came out ready to play in the second half as the Dons took an early lead on a pair of Abby Rathbun layups before an Aztec response gave them the 43-38 advantage midway through the third quarter. Thanks to another made jumper from Gayles, USF was able to grab the 47-45 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
- Leading late, the Dons ratcheted up the defensive intensity as they didn't allow San Diego State to retake the lead at any point in the final ten minutes. Thanks to a few key plays from Amy Baum, Rathbun and dos Santos USF was able to extend to their winning streak to five straight games in non-conference using a strong defensive effort and good free throw shooting to outlast the Aztecs bya 65-56 final score.
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
- Gayles led the way for USF in the victory on Sunday afternoon with 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the field while also grabbing six rebounds, dishing out two assists and coming away with a steal for the Dons.
- dos Santos had another strong performance off the bench in the USF front court as she scored 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting while corralling five boards, coming away with two steals, blocking a shot and knocking down five free throws against the Aztecs.
- Providing a tremendous spark with her hustle and intensity, Rathbun scored eight points on 4-for-5 shooting from the field to go along with two rebounds and assists in her 18 minutes of play.
POST GAME WITH THE DONS:
UP NEXT:
The Dons will be back home at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center this Wednesday, Dec. 7 at 5:00 p.m. as they host the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions (1-7) at War Memorail at the Sobrato Center. Live statistics and a watch link can be found through the team's
schedule page.
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 women's basketball program, follow the Dons @USFDonsWBB on Twitter, @USFDonsWBB on Instagram and @USFDonsWBB on Facebook.
SPONSOR THE DONS:
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our primary sponsor - Provident Credit Union - for their continued support of USF Athletics. Interested in sponsoring the Dons? Please contact Frank Allocco, the Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director of External Relations, at fallocco@usfca.edu or at (415) 422-4561.
