Longtime USF play-by-play announcer
Pat Olson shares his thoughts on the Dons program in his latest edition of "Thoughts from Courtside."
Catch tonight's USF-St. John's broadcast on flagship station 95.7 The Game FM beginning at 6:45 p.m. with the
Rex Walters Pregame Show.
St. John's at War Memorial Gym on Tuesday: It should be a great environment when Steve Lavin and his extremely athletic St. John's team battle the Dons at War Memorial Gym Tuesday evening. In today's world of scheduling, it has become increasingly difficult to get top-tier programs to play on the road at the mid-major programs so kudos to Athletic Director
Scott Sidwell and Head Coach
Rex Walters for making this game a reality. In fact, games like this have been fewer and farther between on the Dons home non-conference schedule.
When I first came to the Hilltop in the early 1990's USF usually hosted one big-name school each and every year in the non-conference schedule. I can recall USF hosting Xavier, St. John's, Purdue, St. Louis and Ohio State during the 1990's. In December of 2004 the Dons entertained St. Joseph's and rolled to a 26 point win in front of over 4,000 screaming fans. Just one year later Bobby Knight and Texas Tech came to Hilltop – and the Dons upset The Red Raiders 90-72 in front of a sold out crowd. That Texas Tech squad featured a talented young freshman named Dior Lowhorn – who decided after the season to leave Lubbock, and transferred to USF. Just two years ago USF hosted a talented Colorado squad and the Dons prevailed 83-81 in an overtime thriller. In these days of RPI rankings, the big name schools seem to want to stack their schedule with home games, so Tuesday will indeed be a special night.
Welcome to the Hilltop 95.7: Our flagship radio station – 95.7 The Game will be broadcasting live from the north lobby inside War Memorial Gym leading up to the St. John's game. Ric Bucher and Chris Townsend will be anchoring their afternoon show from 3:00-6:45. Tune in at 3:00 to hear lots of talk about USF and St. John's. 95.7 will be bringing a Public Address system inside the lobby as well – so if you stop by before tip-off you'll be able to watch and hear the show.
Mark Tollefeson the 'Energizer Bunny Rabbit”: Every good team needs a player who can provide a spark and bring energy off the bench and over the last two games Tollefsen – a redshirt freshman from Danville has become that player for the Dons. It has been a lot of fun watching his development this season with USF. I saw him play twice in the Pro-Am summer league this past July at Kezar Pavilion and he seemed to want to lurk on the perimeter and settle for the three-point shot. But during the early part of the season he has really started to move inside more and more. Over the last two games he has played 43 minutes off the bench and has played with a lot of passion. In the 79-59 win over Columbia he hit two key three-pointers off the bench in the first half. In last Friday's 78-68 victory over Montana he hauled down seven rebounds including two offensive rebounds. He was not credited with a blocked shot in that win, but I swear he impacted four or five shots with his length and athleticism.
Dons Leaders: The Dons currently have two players that are ranked in the Top-5 in the country in key statistical categories. Junior forward
Cole Dickerson leads the entire country in rebounding, pulling down an impressive 15 rebounds per contest. He yanked down a career high 20 rebounds in the win over Montana on Friday and was just named the West Coast Conference Player of the Week. Junior transfer De'End Parker ranks second in the country in 3-point field goal percentage. He has made 12-17 from triple land so far –and sits at 70.6 percent.
See You in Stockton on Saturday: The Dons play at the Spanos Center this coming weekend. The Tigers are always a tough out and Bob Thomason is one of the best coaches on the West Coast. He is saying so long after this season as he announced his retirement over the off-season. In 25 years at the helm at UOP he has won 414 games – the most in school history – and the most wins in the history of the Big West Conference. The Tigers of course join the West Coast Conference next season and this year play four WCC schools. The Tigers surprised St. Mary's 76-66 in Anaheim at The DirectTV classic last month, but were throttled at Gonzaga losing by 18 points this past Saturday. They still have a rematch with the Gaels in Moraga later in December, host Santa Clara in Stockton and of course entertain the Dons this weekend. It's an easy two hour drive to Stockton – so I hope to see you there for a 5:00pm tip-off. The USF athletic department has organized a bus trip to Stockton for those who want to take a relaxing trip. The bus departure time from War Memorial Gym is at 2:00pm. There will also be an East Bay pick-up at the Castro Valley BART Station at 2:45pm. The fan bus package is $55 and includes the bus ride, a game ticket and beer and wine. For more information call 415-422-6807.
They Said It: “Nineteen points and 20 rebounds – that's crazy stuff,” said Coach Walters on the radio postgame show when asked about
Cole Dickerson's performance following the Dons home court win over Montana. It was Dickerson's fourth double-double this season.
