SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - Looking to add on to an historic season, the University of San Francisco men's basketball team (25-9, 13-5 WCC) will continue its postseason slate on the Hilltop this weekend as the Dons are set to host Loyola Chicago (23-11, 12-6 A-10) in the second round of the NIT on Sunday afternoon at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.

The winner of Sunday's second round contest will move on to the NIT Quarterfinals, facing the victor of Kent State vs. No. 2 seed Stanford (Sunday, Mar. 23/6:00 p.m. PT/ESPN2) on Tuesday, Mar. 25 or Wednesday, Mar. 26.
 
GAME 35 DETAILS:
Date: Sunday, Mar. 23, 2025
Time: 4:00 p.m. PT
Opponent: Loyola Chicago (23-11, 12-6 A-10)
Watch: ESPN2 (Chris Sylvester, Jerod Haase)
Listen: KNBR 1050 (Pat Olson, Jim Brovelli)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Tickets: Purchase Here
 
DONS AT A GLANCE:

• Hosting its first NIT game since 2014, No. 1 seed San Francisco took care of business against WAC regular season champion Utah Valley in a 79-70 victory on Wednesday, Mar. 19. The Dons starters accounted for all but two of USF's points in the win, with Carlton Linguard Jr. posting his best game in the green and gold with a season-high 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor. Ryan Beasley and Malik Thomas combined for 40 points, with Thomas grabbing a career-high 10 rebounds to notch his first career double-double.
• Wednesday night's victory over UVU marked USF's first postseason victory in seven years (Mar. 26, 2018/CBI Finals - Game 1/72-62 vs. North Texas) and San Francisco's first NIT win since 2005, when the Dons beat Denver, 69-67, in an opening round matchup.
• Grabbing its 25^th victory of the season, San Francisco has tied the fourth-most single season wins in program history. A win on Sunday night would outright give the 2024-25 Dons squad the fourth-most wins in school history at 26 and the most in one season since the 1976-77 season (29, most in program history).
• 78 points and 10 made threes have been magic numbers for San Francisco this season, as the Dons hold a 16-1 record when scoring at least 78 points this season and are 10-3 when hitting double-digit three-pointers.
• Protecting home court throughout the season, the Dons are a perfect 17-0 at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center, with the 17 wins being the most single-season home victories in program history.
• San Francisco is looking to capture multiple postseason wins for the first time since 2018 (CBI) and just the third time since 1958. Notably, the Dons are eyeing its first NIT appearance with multiple victories for the first time since 1949, when the Dons prevailed as NIT champions to clinch the first national championship in program history.

SCOUTING THE RAMBLERS:

• Loyola Chicago finished Atlantic 10 regular season play with a 12-6 record, tied for the third-best in the conference, to secure a No. 4 seed in the A-10 Tournament. The Ramblers took down Saint Louis, 72-64, in the quarterfinals before falling to eventual conference tournament champion VCU, 62-55, in the semifinals on Mar. 15.
• Last week, LUC received an invite to the NIT for the second consecutive season and the seventh time in school history, facing San José State in the first round of the tournament. After falling in the first round of last year's tournament (Mar. 20, 2024/74-62 at Bradley), the Ramblers flipped the script in San Jose on Wednesday with a 73-70 first round road win against the Spartans, picking up their first postseason win since 2021 (NCAA Tournament Round of 32) and their first NIT victory in 63 years.
• In the win over SJSU, senior Des Watson led the way with 24 points on 8-of-15 shooting, playing all but four minutes in the victory. Notably, the Ramblers shot 49.1 percent (28-for-57) from the field in San Jose as they are now 15-3 this season when shooting over 45 percent from the floor.
• Protecting the paint throughout the year, sophomore center Miles Rubin has dominated defensively for Loyola Chicago, totaling a team-high 79 blocks on the season and ranking eighth in the nation in total rejections.
• Earlier this month, junior guard Jayden Dawson earned Atlantic 10 All-Conference Second Team honors, scoring a team-best 14.2 points per game on 39.4 percent shooting from deep within league play. Dawson looks to get back on track against San Francisco, averaging just 7.0 points on 5-of-23 shooting in his last two games.
• As a team, LUC leads the A-10 in assists, dishing out 15.9 dimes per game, good for 43^rd in Division I.

SERIES HISTORY:
San Francisco and Loyola Chicago are set to face off for the second time this season, having previously met this season on Dec. 15, 2024 in a neutral site matchup at Fiserv Forum, home of the Milwaukee Bucks. Malik Thomas led the Dons to victory, 76-66, with a career-high 35 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the field and 11-of-12 shooting from the foul line. Sunday afternoon will mark just the eighth all-time meeting between the two schools, with Loyola Chicago holding a 4-3 lead in the series. Notably, USF and LUC met in the 1949 NIT Championship game, with the Dons prevailing in a close 48-47 victory to notch its first national championship in program history.
 
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 US:
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our sponsor - Corona - for their continued support of San Francisco 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.