Collins Leads Bulls to Comeback Win Over Stony Brook

USF ATHLETICS GoUSFBulls.com

TAMPA, MARCH 20, 2019 – David Collins scored a career-high 31 points and USF erased a 25-point deficit en route to an 82-79 overtime victory over Stony Brook Wednesday evening in the opening round of the College Basketball Invitational.

Alexis Yetna (Paris) added 15 points and 14 rebounds to post his league-leading 12th double-double of the season, and Michael Durr (Atlanta) finished with 13 points and four rebounds to help USF secure its first postseason victory since the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

Jaron Cornish led Stony Brook with 21 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and three steals, while Akwasi Yeboah scored 19 points and Miles Latimer had 14 off the bench.

Stony Brook (24-9) used a 33-6 run during the first half to build a 48-23 lead and hand the Bulls their second-largest deficit of the season. USF scored the final seven points of the half, including six from Collins (Youngstown, Ohio), to trim the Seawolves’ advantage to 18 heading into halftime.

USF (20-13) opened the second half on a 22-6 run and clawed within two points on a pair of free throws from Yetna at the 9:32 mark. The Bulls would pull even with Stony Brook three more times thereafter before finally taking the lead on a basket by Laquincy Rideau (West Palm Beach, Fla.) with 3:15 remaining.

Anthony Ochefu gave Stony Brook a 66-64 edge with 1:17 left on two free throws, but Collins answered on the other end for USF to tie the game at 66. Collins nearly ended the game in regulation seconds later after stealing the ball at midcourt, but his potential game-winning layup was reviewed and deemed after the buzzer.

Collins opened overtime with a three-pointer and USF never trailed in the extra session on its way to the program’s fifth 20-win season in program history. Stony Brook got to within one point in the final minute, but USF hit five free throws over the final 24 seconds to seal the victory.

Quotable

Head coach Brian Gregory on the game:

“I was surprised as everyone in the arena with how we played in the first half. The guys were very, very good in practice this week and we’re excited about playing. We got hit by a couple of haymakers, but we regrouped in the last two minutes of the first half and we’re able to cut it to 18. I got on the guys pretty good at halftime about not playing our style of basketball. We didn’t defend well and we were giving up too much dribble penetration. They hurt us on the glass and we needed to do something about it. It wasn’t going to be about anything I could write up on a board or on a chart, it was about grit, sticking together and figuring out how to get it done. Our defense was so active in the second half, so active and in the gaps. We forced 20 turnovers and 14 steals, that’s activity. I’m as proud of this team as any I’ve ever coached. We were dead, but they sucked it up and figured out a way to get it done.”

Key Stats
0 – USF held Stony Brook to zero three-pointers in the second half after the Seawolves made eight in the first half.
20 – David Collins attempted the second-most free throws in school history.
48 – USF attempted a season-high 48 free throws
12 – Alexis Yetna recorded his 12th double-double of the season with 15 points and 14 rebounds.
16 – USF finished with 41 rebounds to mark the 16th game this season with at least 40 rebounds.

Notable

USF tied the single-season school record for home wins with 15.
USF is 16-4 at home against non-conference competition under head coach Brian Gregory.
Laquincy Rideau registered his eighth game this season with at least seven assists.
USF posted its fifth 20-win season in school history and first since 2012.

Up Next
USF advances to face Utah Valley in the CBI quarterfinals Monday at 7 p.m. at the Yuengling Center.

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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 10^th 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 brings nearly 250 career head coaching wins and six postseason appearances, including the 2010 NIT Championship, to Tampa. In his first season at the helm of the Bulls, Gregory led the team to its first 10-plus win season since 2013-14.

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 and appeared in the NIT eight times.

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