SAN DIEGO – An 83-63 win over Pepperdine in the Jenny Craig Pavilion Thursday night was San Diego men's hoops' largest margin of victory over a conference opponent in 2,497 days.
 
For Toreros like star guard Ty-Laur Johnson, it's good, but not good enough.
 
"We could've done a lot better than we did, but I'm proud of my team," the junior said. "We could still cut down on the turnovers," he said of his own individual performance.
 
The Brooklyn native only had two turnovers to go with a 14-point, 10-assist double-double – the first of its kind for a Torero since at least 2019 – plus four steals and five rebounds, entering the game averaging 19.5 points in his last six.
 
On a night where USD logged a season-best field goal percentage of 54.2% and converted at a 45.8% (11-24) clip from beyond the arc, grad guard Adrian McIntyre led the Torero scoring contingent with a 16-point effort with the flu.
 
Also in double figures were senior guard Juanse Gorosito for the 10^th time this season as he scored his 1,000th career collegiate point while junior forward Assane Diop tallied double figures for the first time, in his return to the starting lineup.
 
San Diego, which had struggled with rebounding in recent games, finished plus-eight on the glass. Led by Johnson's season-high 10, the Toreros dished out 21-plus assists for a third time this season.
 
How it Happened

• Starting lineup No. 11 of the season saw Diop and grad guard Dominique Ford return to the first five while grad forward Tim Moore Jr. made his first start as a Torero
• USD got right to work with an 11-0 run behind thievish defense
• San Diego laid on the threes, making four of five in a hot streak
• After starting the game 1-6 from the floor, the Toreros went on an 10-14 shooting stretch
• At the half, USD led the Waves 39-31
• After a reverse alley-oop by Tim Moore Jr. to start the half, San Diego went on another 11-0 run, 13-1 to start the second period
• The Toreros extended their lead to as much as 24, but the visitors hung tough with a 10-point stretch of their own
• USD separated again, shooting 56.7% from the field and 50% from 3-point territory in the second half
• Impact substitutes helped the Toreros hold on for the 20-point victory at the final buzzer

 
Notable

• San Diego improves to 2-1 at home in WCC play, three of their last four overall, the lone loss being a narrow 6-point defeat to No. 7 Gonzaga
• It's USD's largest margin of victory against a conference opponent since a March 9, 2019, WCC Tournament quarterfinal, 80-57 win over BYU … It's USD's largest margin of victory over a DI opponent since a Nov. 8, 2023, 87-61 defeat of Jackson State
• Johnson's double-double is USD's second of the season, first with 10 assists (one off his career-best tally), first USD 10-assist double-double since at least 2019

Up Next
In a quick turnaround of travel, the Toreros will hit the road and head back to NorCal to face the Pacific Tigers on Saturday, Jan. 10, with tip-off inside the Spanos Center set for 4 p.m. USD defeated then NET No. 101 Pacific 66-54 in the WCC opener at the JCP just 11 days ago on Dec. 28, 2025.