TAMPA, FLA., JAN. 3, 2020 – The USF men’s basketball team makes its 2020 home debut Saturday at 2 p.m. when the Bulls welcome UConn to the Yuengling Center in a matchup that will be broadcast live on ESPNU.
USF (7-7, 0-1) suffered a setback Wednesday in its conference opener despite 14 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals from senior guard Laquincy Rideau (West Palm Beach, Fla.). Overall, Rideau is second on the team with 12.9 points per game while standing third in The American with 4.2 assists per game and second with 2.6 steals per game. In addition, Rideau ranks eighth in the NCAA in steals per game and has already collected the ninth-most in school history with 138 in just 49 career games.
Junior guard David Collins (Youngstown, Ohio) returned after missing one game to score seven points to go along with four rebounds and two steals. Collins leads the USF offense and ranks seventh in The American with 14.5 points per game. He enters play Saturday with 1,045 career points and needs 13 more to move into a tie with Penny Greene (1974-79) for 17th place all-time at USF.
Junior Justin Brown (Atlanta) adds 8.1 points per game and has made a team-best 24 three-pointers, while sophomore guard Ezacuras Dawson III (Miami) ranks eighth in the league with a .432 three-point field goal percentage. Sophomore post Michael Durr (Atlanta) leads USF with 6.4 rebounds per game.
THE OPPONENT
UConn (9-4, 0-1) opened league play Wednesday with a 67-51 loss at Cincinnati to snap a three-game winning streak. The Huskies, however, feature one of the top defenses in the league and rank third in The American in scoring defense (62.4 ppg) and first in blocked shots (7.4 bpg).
Junior guard Christian Vital is the top scorer for the Huskies and stands 11th in the league with 13.8 points per game. Vital is also second on the team with 7.1 rebounds per game to along with a team-high 35 steals. Forward Josh Carlton stands second on the team with 10.2 points per game and first with 7.2 rebounds per game.
NOTABLE
• USF is 3-22 against UConn in the all-time series that dates back to the 1972-73 season.
• The last four games between USF and UConn have been decided by an average of 5.0 points per game.
• USF ranks 45th in the NCAA with 8.7 steals per game and has at least eight in 10 of 14 games this season.
• David Collins has made 338 career free throws and ranks third all-time in school history.
• USF ranks 33rd in the NCAA in turnovers forced with 17.1 per game.
• Laquincy Rideau ranks eighth in the NCAA with 2.6 steals per game.
• USF is 15-4 since the start of last season when Justin Brown scores in double figures.
• USF ranks 54th in the NCAA in scoring defense by allowing just 62.6 points per game.
• USF has held 12 of its 14 opponents under their season scoring average.
• David Collins ranks 18th all-time at USF in scoring with 1,045 career points.
• Ezacuras Dawson III ranks eighth in The American with a .432 three-point field goal percentage.
• Justin Brown has made the 10th-most career three-pointers in school history with 124.
About USF Men’s Basketball
The USF men’s basketball team is led by head coach Brian Gregory. On March 22, 2017, Gregory was introduced as the 10th head coach in program history. He previously led programs at Georgia Tech (2011-16) and Dayton (2003-11). Gregory spent nearly a decade as an assistant coach under Michigan State’s Hall of Fame head coach Tom Izzo and helped the Spartans win the 2000 NCAA National Championship. Gregory owns nearly 250 career head coaching wins and six postseason appearances, including the 2010 NIT Championship. In his second season at the helm of the Bulls, Gregory led the team to the best win turnaround in the NCAA, the most single-season wins in school history and the 2019 College Basketball Invitational championship.
USF has retired three numbers in its 47-year history: Chucky Atkins (12), Charlie Bradley (30) and Radenko Dobras (31). The Bulls have earned three NCAA tournament bids, appeared in the NIT eight times and won the 2019 College Basketball Invitational.
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For tickets, contact the USF Ticket Office at 1-800-Go-Bulls or by going online to USFBullsTix.com.
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