Balanced Attack Leads Dons Past Gaels

Thursday, February 8

San Francisco, Calif.

6:00 p.m.

University of San Francisco

10-13,6-4WCC

Saint Mary's

10-13,3-6WCC

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Saint Mary's (CA)	1	19	18	16	54
San Francisco	12	14	20	13	59

2/8/2024 9:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Josh Bascos

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – Returning to the Hilltop after a Southern California road stint last week, the University of San Francisco women's basketball team (10-13, 6-4 WCC) got back in the win column, holding on to defeat Saint Mary's (10-13, 4-5 WCC) in a 59-54 contest on Thursday night at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

Right off the jump, Luana Leite found Jasmine Gayles for a three-pointer on the opening possession, giving San Francisco an early 3-0 lead.
At 8:29, a free throw by Zeryhia Aokuso put the Gaels on the board, but that ended up being Saint Mary's only point of the quarter, as the Dons held SMC to an 0-for-14 first quarter. USF ended those last eight and a half minutes on a 9-0 run, with Jasmine Gayles ending the quarter with 7 points on 3-of-6 shooting to give the Dons a 12-1 lead after the first period.
Leite scored the first points of the second quarter on a lay-up to give the green and gold a 14-1 lead, but Saint Mary's battled back with a 10-0 run, including eight points from Makena Mastora, to cut the Dons' lead to 14-11 at the 6:32 mark.
The two teams continued to exchange baskets to end the period, including eight points in the final 6:13 from Freja Werth, as San Francisco went into the break with a 26-20 lead.
Opening the second half on a 7-2 run through the first three minutes, the Dons built their lead back up to double-digits, 33-22 at 6:51.
Saint Mary's quickly answered with a 12-4 run of its own, including five points from Ali Bamberger to cut the Dons' lead to three, 37-34 at 3:06.
Three shots from deep from Werth, Aya Kéita, and Debora dos Santos extended the green and gold's lead to eight, 46-38, at the end of three quarters of action.
San Francisco opened the final period with five quick points from Leite and Gayles to put the Dons on top 51-38 through the first minute of the fourth.
Holding a 57-46 lead with just under four minutes to play, the Gaels made a push with an 8-0 run, including six points from Aokuso, to cut the Dons' lead to 57-54 with 20 seconds remaining.
A turnover from Saint Mary's and two free throws from Gayles in the final ten seconds sealed the deal for San Francisco, as the green and gold took a 59-54 victory to open a three-game homestand.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

Jasmine Gayles once again led San Francisco in scoring with 16 points and two made threes in a team-high 37 minutes of play.
Freja Werth hit a game-high four three-pointers, finishing with 14 points and eight rebounds.
Nearly recording a third-straight double-double, Debora dos Santos put up nine points and a game-high 13 rebounds in the contest, with seven points and eight rebounds coming in the third quarter.

POSTGAME WITH THE DONS:

To view the full highlights of tonight's game, please click here.
To watch the full postgame interview with Head Coach Molly Goodenbour, please click here.
To watch the full postgame interview with Jasmine Gayles and Freja Werth, please click here.

UP NEXT:
San Francisco continues its homestand on Saturday afternoon, hosting Pacific for a 2 p.m. match-up at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.

FOLLOW US:
For updates and more information on the San Francisco women's basketball program, follow the Dons @USFDonsWBB on Twitter, @USFDonsWBB on Instagram and @USFDonsWBB 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 – 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.