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Dons Comeback Falls Short at Santa Clara as Broncos Survive 74-62
Feb. 5, 2007
The USF Dons rallied from a 17 point second half deficit to get to within three but host Santa Clara held on to defeat USF 74-62 Monday night at the Leavey Center in Santa Clara.
The Dons (9-15, 5-4 WCC), who were paced by 20 points by Alan Wiggins, Jr.'s 20 points, trailed by 17 with 16:58 remaining. A 25-11 USF run closed the gap to 62-59 with 2:51 on the clock.
Wiggins' 20th point was his 1,000th in his USF career. Armondo Surratt added 12 points, four assists and two steals, and Antonio Kellogg added 11.
In the middle of the comeback, USF point guard Armondo Surratt fell to the ground clutching his left knee. He went to the locker room for the rest of the game. The extent of his injury was undetermined pending an examination Tuesday.
With USF trailing by just 65-61, Santa Clara's Danny Pariseau hit consecutive three-pointers to put Santa Clara in control. He led Santa Clara with 19 points. The Broncos improved to 17-7, 7-2 in league play.
The loss ended a two game USF winning streak and a USF four game roadtrip.
"I thought that we came out flat and missed some matchups," said head coach Jessie Evans. "Santa Clara is playing with confidence. In this league it is difficult to overcome a big deficit, especially on the road. We regrouped at halftime and made a great defensive effort. But overcoming the deficit took a lot out of us at the end of the game and we couldn't get over the hump. They made some big shots at the end of the game that clinched it for them, especially the late three's by Pariseau."
USF returns home to face Pepperdine Saturday for homecoming and Loyola Marymount next Monday as the Dons will play four of its final five league games at home.
The Dons, unlike their win Saturday at San Diego came out shooting cold, making just six of their first 21 field goal attempts while the Broncos were hot making 14 of their first 28. In the first half overall, USF shot just 37% while the Broncos made 50%.
USF trailed 36-19 but made a 9-2 run to close to 38-28 before the Broncos scored the last five points to lead 43-28 at intermission.
