Santa Clara hosted San Francisco for round two of the holy war. USF entered the game 4-1 in conference play, while Santa Clara entered 3-1. So not only did they battle not only to win the rivalry game, but also become a top seed in the conference standings.
Earlier this season, both teams clashed in San Francisco, where the Dons took care of business in an overtime thriller.
Before the game, USF declared Ryan Beasley healthy, huge news for the Dons.
Starting the game, neither team could take a commanding lead. It had already been evident that both teams were at somewhat of equal powers, but it was proven true early into the contest.
A thunderous dunk by Barry Wang brought the lead up to 5 for the Dons, late in the first half.
At halftime, San Francisco led 28-21, led by 10 points by Malik Thomas. The defense by both teams was outstanding, and proved why both teams are such good teams and programs.
In the second half, a quick start by the Broncos put them back in the game. They even took the lead a few minutes later, making things even more interesting. With 11 minutes to play, Elijah Mahi and Carlos Stewart Jr. hit back to back threes to increase the lead to 7, and it seemed like the Broncos were in a great position to finish the game strong.
Another Stewart Jr. three made the game 53-41, and the Dons had to call a timeout with 7:50 to play.
The entire second half was incredible for the Broncos. Although they came in down 7, countless plays made Santa Clara seem unstoppable. It felt like highlight play after highlight play, ultimately led by Stewart Jr.
The final score was 77-54, Santa Clara.
Leading the way was Carlos Stewart Jr., who put up 25 points for the Broncos. Elijah Mahi helped with 17, while Christoph Tilly and Adama Bal added 10 each.
The Dons top scorer was Malik Thomas, who finished with 19. Outside of him, no player even reached 10 points, which seems to be the story of the season for USF: Help Malik Thomas.
This was a massive win for the Broncos. Not only did they beat their rival badly, but they are now riding momentum after back to back wins over top opponents. If they continue to stay hot, they have a real chance at making a WCC title run and possibly even snatching a tournament bid for March Madness.
For the Dons, the poor performance is tough. This now marks the fifth game in a row where USF has not covered the spread, and underperformed. The Dons currently sit at 3-2 in conference play, and need to make a huge step if they want a shot at winning the conference and/or making March Madness.