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San Francisco Drops a Tough 75-69 Decision at No. 18 Gonzaga in WCC Regular Season Finale
Feb. 27, 2010
Complete 2010 Zappos.com WCC Tournament Men's Bracket in PDF Format 
(Spokane, WA) - USF men's basketball attempted to complete its first season series sweep of Gonzaga since 1989, but dropped a 75-69 West Coast Conference decision Saturday afternoon at the McCarthey Athletic Center. The Dons (12-17, 7-7 WCC) missed some opportunities at the free throw line late in the ballgame as the No. 18/15 Bulldogs (24-5, 12-2 WCC) secured the league regular season championship.
With Loyola Marymount's 88-80 loss at Saint Mary's tonight, USF secures the No. 4 seed in the 2010 Zappos.com West Coast Conference Tournament and earns a first round bye. The Dons will take on the winner of Friday's No. 5 LMU/No. 8 Pepperdine game. Tip-off will be Saturday, March 6 at 6:00 PM at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.
Senior forward Dior Lowhorn led the Dons with a game-high 17 points with six rebounds in his final regular season game in the Green and Gold. Junior forward Moustapha Diarra enjoyed a strong night with 15 points and three boards in 19 minutes, while sophomore guard Kwame Vaughn chipped in 12 points and six rebounds. Sophomore forward Angelo Caloiaro added 10 points.
Senior guard Dontae Bryant turned in another strong performance against the Bulldogs finishing with nine points, four rebounds and eight assists against no turnovers in 32 minutes.
USF out-rebounded the Bulldogs 33-30, including a whopping 14-6 advantage on the offensive glass. The Dons limited their mistakes with just nine turnovers in the contest. The Dons connected on .424 (25-59) from the field, but managed just .636 (14-22) from the charity stripe. Gonzaga shot .520 (26-50) from the floor and took care of business at the foul line hitting at a .818 (18-22) rate.
USF trailed by 10, 65-55 with 6:15 remaining and Gonzaga looked poised to deliver a knockout blow, but the Dons clawed back into the contest and pulled to within three, 70-67 with 2:40 left on a Diarra lay-up. San Francisco would get no closer and the Bulldogs held on to a two possession cushion. USF was victimized by poor free throw shooting in the second half, connecting on .579 (11-19).
San Francisco led by 10 in the early going of the half at 16-6 on a three-point play by freshman forward Perris Blackwell with 13:03 left in the opening frame. The Dons went ice cold and Gonzaga took full advantage going on a 14-0 run to take a 20-16 advantage. USF did not score until a bucket by Vaughn with 7:44 remaining. The Bulldogs pushed the margin to nine points, 27-18, but the Dons roared back, closing the half on a 15-8 spurt to head into the locker room down two at 35-33.
USF connected at a .424 (14-33) clip in the opening half, while Gonzaga hit at a .517 (15-29) rate, including a 3-for-6 rate from long distance. The Dons were paced by 11 from Lowhorn, while Vaughn added nine. Senior guard Dontae Bryant dished six assists without a turnover in the first 20 minutes.
All USF men's games in the 2010 Zappos.com West Coast Conference Tournament will be broadcast live on the flagship station of Dons Basketball Green 960 with Pat Olson and Jim Brovelli providing the call. In addition USFDons.com beat writer Stacy Hicklin will provide exclusive coverage of all things Green and Gold in the league's showcase event.
