GAME NOTES: The San Diego Toreros try to keep the good times rolling tonight as they drop in on the San Francisco Dons for a West Coast Conference showdown at War Memorial Gymnasium. San Diego has been watching from the sidelines for the last week, since defeating Pepperdine by a score of 61-58 on the road. That victory was the fifth in a row for the Toreros and moved them to an impressive 6-1 in conference, which at the moment has them third in the league standings behind only Saint Mary's and Gonzaga. Meanwhile, the Dons also defeated the Waves for their most recent win a couple weeks ago, but since then USF has bowed to both Loyola Marymount and most recently, the nationally-ranked Gaels on Friday night by a score of 76-51. Now just 2-6 versus the rest of the WCC, the Dons have won just twice in the last 14 outings. San Diego squeezed out a 46-41 win in the first meeting of the season with the Dons on its own floor back on January 12th, which means the Toreros have moved out to a 31-29 advantage in the all-time series.

A 13-point halftime lead against Pepperdine almost disappeared as the Toreros shot only 36.7 percent from the field in the second half in order to hold on for the three-point road win in Malibu. De'Jon Jackson responded with a team- high 20 points, followed by Rob Jones and Brandon Johnson with 16 and 11 points, respectively, combining for 16 of the unit's 33 rebounds as well. Brandon Johnson is first on the scoring list this season for the Toreros with his 16.9 ppg and he is also first in terms of assists (76) and steals (48). Gyno Pomare, a 55.4 percent shooter from the field, checks in with 14.3 ppg and 7.3 rpg, but that still doesn't cover up the fact that he has a mere 14 assists over the course of 24 games. To this point in the season, San Diego has scored exactly the same number of points (1,526) that is has surrendered.

Trailing by double digits at the break on Friday night, the Dons didn't do themselves any favors with just nine field goals in the second half as they succumbed to Saint Mary's on the road. Dior Lowhorn responded with 22 points and 11 rebounds, shooting 10-of-20 from the field for San Francisco, while Danny Cavic tacked on 10 points. One of the top scorers in the WCC, Lowhorn is producing 21.0 ppg and is also responsible for close to eight boards per contest as well. A presence on the inside with a team-best 23 blocked shots, ball handling is certainly something Lowhorn needs to focus on, having turned it over 66 times with just 18 assists. Manny Quezada accounts for 14.5 ppg and is tops with 106 assists over 23 games and even though the pair generates more than half of the team's scoring (65.7 ppg), the Dons are permitting opponents 72.7 ppg this season.

San Francisco may be at home tonight, but with just three victories in eight chances in their own building, the Dons are still at a disadvantage no matter where they suit up.