Pilots overcome 14-point second half deficit before USF wins late

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. --- San Francisco seniors Danny Cavic and Vince Polakovic logged career-highs of 25 and 20 points, respectively, as the Dons dealt the Portland Pilots a 73-60 defeat at War Memorial Gym on Monday. The Pilots overcame a 14-point second half deficit and took a brief lead late, but the Dons retook the lead and pulled away.

“The frustration is with the inconsistency, even within a single game,” Portland head coach Eric Reveno said. “If you take segments of our games, we look pretty good, but we need to perform more consistently overall.”

Sophomore guard Nik Raivio scored 16 points to lead the Pilots (8-19, 2-9 West Coast Conference). Freshman forward Luke Sikma had another solid outing with eight points and a game-high 12 rebounds. He went 4-for-4 from the field.

“We have got to find ways to get the ball inside better,” Reveno continued. “San Francisco did a nice job of using their athleticism, both on the interior and pressuring on the perimeter, to prevent us from getting good looks.”

Cavic drilled six three-pointers and made 7-of-8 free throws in the contest. Polakovic, who became eligible on Saturday and established a career-high with 18 points in a loss to Gonzaga, tallied his second consecutive career game by draining 8-of-12 from the field.

“Polakovic was a nice midseason addition for them,” Reveno added. “He provides them some versatility and another dimension. I thought his performance and the fact that Cavic had too many uncontested threes was the difference in the game.”

USF sophomore forward Dior Lowhorn, who entered the game averaging over 20 points to lead the league, was limited to 14 on the night.

It appeared the Dons (7-19, 3-8) would pull away early in the second half as Cavic’s three made it 42-28 with 14:36 remaining, but the Pilots mounted a furious rally which included five three-pointers over the next seven minutes. The final trey by freshman Jared Stohl gave Portland a 51-50 lead, but Myron Strong quickly answered at the other end with a three-point play.

Raivio tied it at the other end, but a three-pointer by Manny Quezada and three-point play by Polakovic pushed the Dons’ lead back to 59-53. Another Raivio layup made it a three point game, but Cavic made a pair from the free throw line and the Pilots went the next three possessions without a basket.

USF shot 52 percent from the field, made 10-of-20 three-pointers and 15-of-18 at the foul line. The Pilots shot 43 percent and converted just 9-of-26 three-pointers.  

Portland committed 15 turnovers in the contest, including 10 in the first half as the Dons built a nine-point lead. The Pilots went through a six minute scoring drought at one point during the period before pulling within 29-24 at the half.

Portland returns home to the Chiles Center for its final three regular season games beginning with a contest against Northwest rival Gonzaga on Monday, Feb. 25 at 8 p.m. The game will be televised live on ESPN2. The Pilots will then host Santa Clara on Saturday and Saint Mary’s the following Monday, both games slated for 7 p.m. starts and televised on Comcast SportsNet.