TAMPA, NOV. 21, 2019 – David Collins scored 18 points and USF held Wofford 19.2 points below its season average en route to a 69-55 victory over the Terriers Thursday night at the Yuengling Center.
Justin Brown (Atlanta) added 16 points and made three 3-pointers, and Laquincy Rideau (West Palm Beach, Fla.) finished with 11 points, four assists and five steals.
Nathan Hoover led Wofford with 11 points and was the only Terrier in double figures. Storm Murphy, who entered play averaging 16.2 points per game, was held to just six points and committed four turnovers.
USF (2-2) built a double-digit lead midway through the first half after a pair of free throws from Michael Durr (Atlanta) gave the Bulls a 24-13 advantage. Murphy scored with just over six minutes remaining to pull Wofford within seven, but USF answered with a 12-0 run capped by a four-point play from Brown to extend the lead to 19.
Collins gave USF its largest lead minutes into the second half with a steal at midcourt and a one-handed dunk that put the Bulls ahead 52-28. USF would lead by at least 14 for the rest of the game while holding Hoover and Murphy to three points combined.
Quotable
Head coach Brian Gregory on the Bulls holding Wofford to a season-low point total in the bounce-back win:
“Our intensity, our energy on defense, our activity on defense was really, really good, and then we controlled the defensive glass, which also helped. Great response from our guys. We’ve practiced better and we usually play better when we do that. I’m proud of our guys.”
Junior guard/forward Justin Brown on what led to USF’s impressive performance on offense:
“This past week, we really keyed in on our offensive efficiency, executing and not doing too many extra things on offense, or trying to do too much by ourselves. We’ve got a team full of players that can score the ball, pass and play together. We just had to get back to who we are and our real identity.”
Notable
• David Collins scored 18 points and needs 86 more for 1,000.
• USF has at least nine steals in all four games this year and ranks sixth in the NCAA in steals per game.
• USF connected on nine 3-pointers and has made at least one trey in 133 consecutive games.
Key Stats
27 – USF scored 27 points off 16 Wofford turnovers.
45.0 – USF shot 45.0 percent from three-point range and made a season-high nine treys.
55 – USF limited Wofford to a season-low 55 points.
Up Next
USF makes its first road trip of the year and will face Loyola Chicago Monday at 1:30 p.m. in the opening game of the Cayman Islands Classic from George Town, Grand Cayman.
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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 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 CBI championship.
For tickets, contact the USF Ticket Office at 1-800-Go-Bulls or by going online to USFBullsTix.com.
