Thursday, February 26th, 10:05 p.m. (et).

FACTS & STATS: Site: Gersten Pavilion (4,156) -- Los Angeles, California. Television: None. Home Record: USF 7-5, LMU 2-9. Away Record: USF 2-12, LMU 0-15. Neutral Record: USF 1-0, LMU 0-2. Conference Record: USF 2-10, LMU 1-11. Series Record: San Francisco leads, 100-34.

GAME NOTES: The two teams occupying the final spots in the West Coast Conference standings square off tonight, as the Loyola Marymount Lions entertain the San Francisco Dons at Gersten Pavilion in Los Angeles. Neither squad has had much success against the rest of the WCC obviously, but at least the Dons can say that they managed to beat more than just a couple of opponents during the season's portion of the non-conference slate. In fact, before it all fell apart, USF won five of the first six games of the campaign. More recently, the Dons surprised Santa Clara with a 67-66 overtime victory on Saturday to snap a four-game slide, but it was still just the second win against a Division I program since December 13th. As for the Lions, one of the two D-I teams to have fallen to San Francisco during the new calendar year, their only other win this season came against San Diego back on February 12th in a 65-57 final at home. Since, LMU has fallen in three straight outings, including a 73-65 final versus the University of Portland on Saturday on the road. In terms of the all-time series, the 73-53 blowout win for the Dons in the first meeting of the season at the end of January represented the 100th all-time for the program over the Lions. USF has won three in a row and now maintains a 100-34 mark since the series began back in 1924.

Kwame Vaughn knocked down three straight free throws for the Dons in the final minute of overtime against Santa Clara over the weekend, including the game- winner with just seconds remaining, to give the home team the narrow one-point victory. Vaughn finished the outing 8-of-9 at the stripe for his team-best 17 points, adding nine rebounds and three assists, followed by Dior Lowhorn and Angelo Caloiaro with 13 and 10 points, respectively. While the win was surprising in itself given the opposition, the fact that USF got the job done with just eight players in uniform was even more remarkable. Lowhorn, who also cleared nine rebounds for the group, leads the team both on the glass (6.7 rpg) and in the scoring department (20.0 ppg) this season, thanks in large part to his 45.6 percent accuracy behind the three-point line. Vaughn is now accounting for 10.2 ppg, even though his three-point shooting (.250) could stand some refinement.

The Lions brought just three players off the bench in the loss to Portland last week, the trio combining to hit only 1-of-6 from the field for a total of two points. Jarred DuBois accounted for a team-best 19 points, Vernon Teel 18 and six assists and Marko Deric 11 points before he fouled out. In the case of Teel, he made good on just 6-of-21 shots from the field and missed all four of his three-point tries as the team converted a mere 4-of-16 out on the perimeter. Shooting has been a huge issue for the entire team this season as the squad converts just 34.9 percent from the floor both overall and in conference play. Teel is putting up 16.3 ppg versus the rest of the WCC, with DuBois and Kevin Young to follow at 14.3 and 10.5 ppg, respectively, and still the Lions are generating a meager 57.3 ppg in those contests. When it comes to overall play in 2008-09, LMU is being outscored by nearly 17 ppg and is getting beaten on the glass by six per outing as well.

Someone has to win this game, since there are no ties in college basketball, which is why LMU has to be given some consideration, especially if San Francisco goes with a short bench once again.

Predicted Outcome

Loyola Marymount 66, San Francisco 63