Dec. 2, 2008

Complete Release in PDF Format

USF COMPLETES SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SWING: San Francisco concludes its two-game road trip to Southern California, Wednesday, December 3 against Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo at Mott Gym. It is the first time the two teams have squared off since the 2000-01 campaign. The showdown against the Mustangs will be the third game for the Dons in five days - the second time this season USF has tackled three opponents in a five day stretch. The Dons look to bounce back after dropping a hard-fought 74-69 decision Monday against USC at the Galen Center. San Francisco's next three opponents compete in the Big West Conference.

DONS OFF TO BEST START SINCE 1999-00: After seizing a 65-63 win against Colorado State (11/29/08) to close out a perfect 3-0 homestand, USF continued its strong start, improving to 5-1. Despite a 74-69 setback at USC (12/1/08), the Dons boast their best season opening surge since the 1999-00 squad blazed through the non-conference slate at 12-1. San Francisco's only loss during the non-conference slate that year came in a 71-61 setback at Maryland in the opening game of the 1999 Preseason NIT.

EARLY RETURNS: With seven games in the books, USF has demonstrated some positive tendencies to watch for in the upcoming contests.

- USF shooting at a .484 (180-372) clip from the field
- USF limiting opponents to a .429 (156-364) field goal percentage
- San Francisco connecting at an impressive .415 (51-123) clip from 3-point range
- USF averaging 13.4 assists per game
- Four Dons averaging double-digit scoring
- 10 players averaging at least five minutes of playing time per game
- During its 3-0 homestand, USF averaged 70.7 points per game on .469 shooting from the field, allowed opponents just 52.7 per contest on .364 from the floor. USF averaged just 13.3 turnovers per game and forced 21.3.

LONG DECEMBER ROAD FOR THE DONS: San Francisco plays no fewer than eight of nine December contests on the road. The road began with a tough 74-69 loss at USC (12/1/08) in the Dons first game against the Trojans since the 1972-73 campaign. USF now travels to Cal Poly (12/3) before hosting Long Beach State Saturday, December 6. The Dons then travel to Pacific (12/9) and Boise State (12/13) before returning to the Bay Area to take on San Jose State (12/22). After breaking for the Christmas holiday, USF closes out its five-game road trip at Holy Cross (12/27) and at Boston College (12/29). San Francisco opens up 2009 with a three-game homestand beginning with a Saturday, January 3 match-up against Cal State East Bay.

USF DONS BASKETBALL ON GREEN 960 AM: USF men's basketball returns to the airwaves and cyberspace for the 2008-2009 season and all games will be available live at USFDons.com, with the bulk of the schedule available on Green 960 AM. Join Pat Olson for the play-by-play in his 18th year behind the microphone courtside. USF Hall-of-Famer Jim Brovelli will join Olson on selected broadcasts. Other features available on USFDons.com include live scoring via GameTracker, courtesy of CBS Sports and live streaming video of all non-televised home games courtesy of Yahoo Broadcast.

YAHOO ONLY BROADCASTS (NOT CARRIED ON GREEN 960): Three remaining 2008-09 regular season games will not be carried on Green 960 and will be available on the internet via Yahoo Broadcast on USFDons.com: USF at Holy Cross (11/27), USF at Boston College (11/29) and USF vs. Cal State East Bay (1/3).

CAL POLY TIP TIME: Wednesday's game at Cal Poly is set for a 7:30 PM tip-off. It was originally listed as 7:00 PM on some schedules.

DONS AND MUSTANGS
- USF squares of against Cal Poly for the seventh time, but the first since taking a 71-68 victory on the Hilltop (12/9/00).
- San Francisco and Cal Poly played the first game in the series in 1960-61, a 60-51 setback at Mott Gym (1/24/61).
- USF's last win in series came in a 81-73 triumph (1/28/66) at War Memorial Gym
- The Mustangs are the second of four Big West opponents faced by the Dons this season. USF took a 73-72 win against defending regular season champs UCSB (11/24).
- USF's next three games are against the Big West - Cal Poly (12/3), Long Beach State (12/6) and Pacific (12/9).

GAME NO. 8 SCOUTING CAL POLY: The Mustangs enter Wednesday's game against USF with a 1-4 overall record and have dropped back-to-back games in the state of Utah, falling at BYU (76-64) and got drilled by Utah State (97-57). Cal Poly's lone win came in a 76-42 blowout against North Florida at the Basketball Traveler's Invitational. Through five games, Cal Poly averages 62.6 points per game on .399 shooting from the floor. Senior forward Titus Shelton paces the Mustangs offensively with a team-high 14.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, while junior guard Lorenzo Keeler adds 10.4 points per night. Head coach Kevin Bromley is in his ninth season in San Luis Obispo and guided the club to a 12-18 overall record, 7-9 in the Big West, good for a share of sixth place a year ago.

TEAM COMPARISONS - 2008-09 SEASON - (As of 12/2/08):
Team PPG Margin FG% 3-FG% FT% RPG APG TOPG SPG BPG USF 74.0 +7.9 .484 .415 .704 30.1 13.4 15.9 6.3 2.9 CP 62.6 -10.0 .399 .345 .654 29.0 12.8 13.0 7.6 3.0

CAL POLY PROBABLE STARTERS (As of 12/2/08)
G. #0 Trae Clark, 5-11, Sr. (3.0 ppg, 2.4 rpg)
G. #12 Lorenzo Keeler, 6-2, Jr., (10.4 ppg, 1.6 rpg)
G. #23 Shawn Lewis, 6-4, So. (8.0 ppg, 2.8 rpg)
F. #24 Wes Dipprey, 6-8, So. (5.2 ppg, 6.0 rpg)
F. #35 Titus Shelton, 6-7, Sr. (14.2 ppg, 3.0 rpg)

LAST MEETING: at USF 71, Cal Poly 68 (12/9/00)

SERIES RECORD/STREAK: USF leads 5-1/USF won five

ON THE AIR/ON THE WEB:
Radio Broadcast: Green 960
Television: None
Internet Audio: Yes - USFDons.com (Yahoo Broadcast)
GameTracker: Yes
Cal Poly Official Website: CalPolyMustangs.com

UP NEXT FOR THE DONS: USF returns to the friendly confines of War Memorial Gym in its only game during the month of December when it hosts Long Beach State Saturday the sixth. It is the second of three consecutive Big West foes faced by the Dons. The game is also an Alumni Day for USF Basketball in its year-long 50th anniversary celebration of War Memorial Gym.

LOWHORN SURPASSES 1,000 CAREER POINTS: With a 23-point night at USC (12/1/08) junior forward Dior Lowhorn surpassed 1,000 combined career points and enters Wednesday's contest at Cal Poly with 1,010 points with 780 coming at USF and 230 at Texas Tech. Last year, the Bay Area native ranked fourth in USF single-season scoring history in his first season on the Hilltop, finishing with a remarkable 636 points.