STOCKTON, Calif. – The Pacific men's basketball team competes in two crucial league games as it takes on San Francisco at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 16, at the Alex G. Spanos Center, and LMU at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 18 on the road.
The Tigers (13-14, 6-6) are coming off a conference split, falling at Portland and then defeating San Diego, 99-94, last Saturday at the Alex G. Spanos Center.
Keylan Boone scored a career-high 30 points in the win over the Toreros, shooting 55 percent (11-for-20) from the field and connecting on four of his eight attempts from the three-point line. In two games against the Toreros this season, Boone is averaging 28.5 points per game, 8.5 rebounds per game, and is shooting 61.8 percent from the field. The junior from Tulsa, Okla., registered his second career double-double in the first meeting against the Toreros, scoring 27 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.
Jordan Ivy-Curry added a season-high 25 points, propelling the Tigers offensively off the bench. Surpassing the 20-point threshold for the first time since scoring 23 in the season opener at Stanford, Ivy-Curry shot 69.2 percent from the field and tied a career-high with five three-point baskets made.
San Francisco split a pair of games last week, falling at #16 Gonzaga, followed by a narrow 88-80 win at home against Pepperdine. The Dons (16-12, 5-8) have lost three of their last four games and are tied with Portland for seventh place in the league standings.
Khalil Shabazz leads the Dons in scoring, averaging 16.3 points per game. Shabazz also leads the team in rebounding, corralling 5.6 per game. The Tigers contained the Dons' best overall player in the first meeting this season, keeping Shabazz to just two points on 25 percent (one-for-four) shooting at the War Memorial at the Sobrato Center on January 19.
Tyrell Roberts and Zane Meeks also average double figures for the Dons, recording 15.9 and 12 points per game, respectively.
Thursday's meeting will be the 113th time these two programs have faced off, with San Francisco holding a 78-34 edge. In the first meeting on the road, Donovan Williams scored 15 points and grabbed five rebounds as the Tigers fell to the Dons, 78-57.
LMU will take on Gonzaga at home before hosting Pacific to finish off a two-game homestand. After defeating #15 Saint Mary's and falling at Santa Clara, the Lions (17-10, 7-6), enter the week in fourth place. The lone team in the conference to defeat the league's top-two teams this season, the Lions sit a half-game ahead of the Tigers in the standings.
Cam Shelton leads the Lions and ranks second in the conference in scoring, averaging 20.4 points per game. Shelton scored 30 points in back-to-back games this past weekend, scoring 31 in the win over Saint Mary's and 36 at Santa Clara.
Shelton also leads the charge defensively, leading the team in steals with 50 and ranking second in total rebounds with 150.
Pacific trails LMU in the all-time series, as the Lions hold a narrow 35-29 advantage over the Tigers in 64 meetings. The Tigers nearly led wire-to-wire in the first meeting this season, defeating the Lions 78-72 at the Alex G. Spanos Center on December 31, 2022.
Nick Blake led the team in the win over the Lions, scoring 23 points off the bench. Boone and Ivy-Curry also scored in double figures, adding 10 and 11 points, respectively.
For more information about the 2022-23 season and future events, follow Pacific men's basketball on social media and download the Pacific Athletics mobile app.
