Gaels Defeat Dons in Bay Area Battle

Saturday, January 20

San Francisco, Calif.

7:00 PM

University of San Francisco

15-5,4-1WCC

Saint Mary's

14-6,5-0WCC

Team	1	2	F
Saint Mary's (CA)	39	38	77
San Francisco	28	32	60

Photo by: Christina Leung

1/20/2024 10:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - Capping off the week against a familiar foe, the University of San Francisco men's basketball team (15-5, 4-1 WCC) fought until the final whistle on Saturday night, but ultimately fell to Saint Mary's (14-6, 5-0 WCC), 77-60, at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

Beginning the evening on a hot streak, Saint Mary's got off to a strong start by knocking down their first three attempts from beyond-the-arc as the Gaels got off to a 9-3 lead at the 16:53 mark.
Fighting back on the next possession, Ndewedo Newbury danced through the paint at 16:10 to make it a five-point game, 10-5. Responding right after, Aidan Mahaney and Joshua Jefferson followed suit by nailing two more triples for SMC to push their advantage to 16-5 at 15:12.
Keeping pace, Saint Mary's continued to answer each basket that the Dons would make as another three-pointer courtesy of Mahaney at 10:49 stretched the score to 26-12 in favor of the Gaels.
Working their way back as the half played on, San Francisco reeled off a 6-0 run as the midway mark of the first half crossed, which was capped off by a jumper from Malik Thomas at 8:09 to make it an eight-point game, 26-18.
After a jumper from Jefferson gave Saint Mary's their double-digit lead back at the 6:53 mark, USF used six straight points again to cut into their deficit. Converting on a jumper of his own in the paint at 4:25, Ryan Beasley brought the green and gold within six, 32-26.
Finding a way to score once more, Newbury made a layup to keep the Dons within eight, 36-28, with 1:05 left in the half, but Mahaney closed out the first twenty minutes of action with his third made three to give Saint Mary's an eleven-point advantage, 39-28, heading into the locker room.
Coming out of the break, the Gaels netted the first two baskets of the second half to extend their lead to fifteen, 43-28.
Just a few minutes later, USF would continue to battle as a pair of free throws from Malik Thomas at 15:16 made it a twelve-point game in favor of SMC, 49-37.
As San Francisco kept searching for a game-changing run throughout most of the second half, Saint Mary's kept their foot on the throttle and never waivered for the remainder of the ballgame. Although a three-pointer from Mike Sharavjamts brought the green and gold back within 13 points, 73-60, it was too little too late for the Dons this time around as Mahaney sunk his fourth triple of the night followed by a free throw from Jefferson to wrap up the contest and secure a 77-60 road victory for Saint Mary's.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

Providing a spark off the bench for San Francisco, Beasley finished with a career-high 17 points on 7-of-10 from the floor and 3-of-4 from the free throw line. Additionally, the freshman added three rebounds and two steals in 27 minutes played.
Offensively, Thomas (12 points) and Jonathan Mogbo (11 points) also finished in double figures for USF as the two went a combined 11-of-13 from the line. Defensively, Marcus Williams tied his season-high with three steals against the Gaels.
As a team, San Francisco led Saint Mary's in points in the paint (34-32) and bench points (22-6).

POSTGAME WITH THE DONS:

To view the full highlights of tonight's contest, please click here.

UP NEXT:
San Francisco will head to the Pacific Northwest next week as the Dons will battle Gonzaga on Thursday, Jan. 25 in Spokane before heading south for a matchup at Portland on Saturday, Jan. 27. Live streaming, radio and live statistics are available via the team's schedule page.

FOLLOW US:
For updates and more information on the San Francisco men's basketball program, follow the Dons @USFDonsMBB on Twitter, @USFDonsMBB on Instagram and @USFDonsMBB on Facebook.

MERCHANDISE:
Want to dress like the Dons? Get your official San Francisco Dons gear from the University of San Francisco bookstore today! Click here to purchase.

SPONSOR THE DONS:
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our sponsor - ABM - 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.