San Francisco pulls away in second half to defeat DePaul in Arizona Tip-Off

Field Level Media|published: Sun 19th November, 19:00 2023

DePaul Blue Demons head coach Tony Stubblefield instructs the team in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against the Xavier Musketeers during the second round of the Big East conference tournament, Thursday, March 9, 2023, at Madison Square Garden in New York. Xaiver Depaul Big East Basketball Tournament March 9 0133 credits: Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

San Francisco earned third place in the Cactus Division of the inaugural Arizona Tip-Off Tournament with a 70-54 victory Sunday evening.

The Dons (3-2) used an early-second half run to pull away for good, and forward Jonathan Mogbo tied with guard Marcus Williams for a team-high 14 points each.

Both teams had lost their previous games at the Glendale, Ariz., event.

There were two lead changes in the first half, as the Dons held a 4-2 early lead before DePaul (1-4) grabbed the lead on a Da'Sean Nelson three-pointer. Including that bucket, Nelson and Chico Carter Jr. combined for eight points before San Francisco's Mike Sharavjamts' jumper tied it at 13 apiece.

Jeremiah Oden's trey and a Caleb Murphy layup gave the Blue Demons a five-point edge, then Nelson's basket was the only interruption in an 8-2 Dons surge that made it 21-20.

San Francisco was up, 33-30, at the midway point. The Dons connected on 15 of their 30 shots in the first half, including a 3-for-9 mark from deep. Meanwhile, DePaul went 6-for-10 (60%) on three-point tries.

Mogbo laid in two buckets in the initial two minutes of the second half, bookending Williams' three-pointer. That stretched San Francisco's advantage to 10, then two Mogbo dunks made it an 11-0 run in the first 3:47 of the second half.

Mogbo, who was 79.4% from the field through the first four contests, went 7-for-8. He entered the night fourth in shooting percentage in the nation.

The Blue Demons entered the contest with five scorers averaging double-digits but were limited to 24 points in the second half of the contest. Carter Jr. tied Nelson's 15 points and paced DePaul for the second matchup in a row and third this season.

San Francisco has now won five of the programs' seven all-time meetings. They'll play Purdue Fort Wayne Wednesday, while the Blue Demons play Northern Illinois on Saturday.

—Field Level Media