WCC Baksetball Preview: San Francisco Dons

After a third-place conference finish last year, San Francisco should go into Chris Gerlufen's third season with high expectations.

Despite suffering the loss of two first-team All-Conference players, the Dons are returning a large chunk of their production from last season, and have also made numerous offseason additions to cement strong rotational depth.

They are going to have some formidable scoring threats in the backcourt, and it all starts at point guard with Ryan Beasley. The 5'11" sophomore averaged nine points, two rebounds and two assists last season, and showed an impressive ability to run an offense as only a freshman. Beasley popped off with a 29-point performance against WSU in the conference tournament at the end of last year, and he is going to be a very fun player to watch in his second collegiate season.

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Ryan Beasley will have talent surrounding him at the guard position. Returning SG/SF hybrid Tyrone Riley averaged ten points and six rebounds last season as a freshman. Riley is a very powerful guard who is strong attacking the offensive glass, and he too could be primed for a big sophomore campaign.

In the portal, coach Gerlufsen has gone out and landed a couple significant pieces at this position group. University of Portland transfer Vukasin Masic averaged 10.5 points last season, and is a real threat shooting the deep ball. In his final game as a pilot in the WCC conference tournament, Masic shot seven of ten from beyond the arc in a 26-point performance.

Perhaps the most intriguing addition to the Dons' roster this offseason is Oregon transfer Mookie Cook, a SF/SG combo whom they are hoping can have a giant impact. Despite playing sparingly in his freshman season at Oregon, Cook was rated 0.94 as a recruit by 247 sports, and it's believed that he has a high ceiling. College basketball scout Adam Finkelstein wrote that Mookie is "a versatile combo-forward who can impact the game in a variety of different ways." Cook has been touted for his defensive abilities in addition to attacking the glass on offense, and if his potential can be unlocked, he could be a huge weapon for the Dons this year.

At forward, San Francisco is returning Ndwedo Newbury and Junjie Wang. Newbury is a graduate senior from London, who averaged eight points and four rebounds last season. 6'9" Chinese forward Junjie Wang was solid off the bench last year as a sophomore, and could find himself as a big part of the rotation. In the transfer portal, coach Gerlufsen has picked up Rhode Island transfer David Fuchs and Pitt transfer Guillermo Diaz-Graham. At 7-foot, Diaz-Graham can likely be used as a center in addition to playing as a power forward, however he is a bit underweight to play like a traditional big man. With so many quality guards, San Fran may not need their forwards to be scoring in high volumes every game. However, they will definitely need them to have a strong presence around the rim and be active on the boards.

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With the backcourt being commanded by sophomore Ryan Beasley, the Dons should be dangerous on the offensive end of the floor. Beasley has talented scorers playing around him, and combined with a lot of experience at power forward, this could be a well-rounded roster. Some of the x factors for this team will revolve around the development and immediate impact of Mookie Cook, in addition to the production from UP transfer Vukasin Masic. San Francisco is returning more key players than almost any other team in the WCC, and depth is looking like a strength for them. While Gonzaga is certainly the favorite, the Dons are a team that could potentially make some noise at the top of the conference this season.

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