David Fucillo (the man behind Niners Nation and SB Nation Bay Area) and I talked about catching a USF Dons game all season, and we lucked out when we chose tonight’s game against No. 24 Gonzaga. Tonight was the first time I’ve watched a game at War Memorial Gym, and I could probably attend about 20 more games there and not see an ending as exciting as the one I saw tonight.
The University of San Francisco looked overmatched early one due to the Bulldogs’ size advantage, then Dons coach Rex Walters went to a fullcourt press and everything changed.
Soon after the Dons started pressuring, the Bulldogs’ early lead was a distant memory. The game became a back-and-forth battle for the last 35 minutes, culminated by a game-winning leaner with 3.3 seconds left by Rashad Green, who (to Walters’ credit) wasn’t held back by a timeout. Check out Green’s shot that put the Dons up 66-65, followed by a few seconds of defense and several happy USF fans storming the court.