TAMPA - USF will host a pair of opponents during Thanksgiving week as High Point visits on Tuesday, Nov. 25, and Northeastern on Saturday, Nov. 29.
The games tip-off at 7 p.m. at the Sun Dome with Saturday's game televised on Bright House Sports Network. Both games can be heard on WNHZ 1250 AM and GoUSFBulls.com with Jim Lighthall and Todd Kalas brining you the action. Live stats are available and a live blog will also be ongoing during the games on GoUSFBulls.com.
The Bulls are 1-1 on the year after dropping their road opener, 77-75, at Virginia on Wednesday, Nov. 19. High Point is 1-2 on the season after a 69-56 loss at NC State on Saturday. Northeastern is 3-1 overall and hosts Boston University on Tuesday before heading to Tampa.
At Virginia, sophomore guard Dominique Jones dropped a game-high 23 points and senior guard Jesus Verdejo added 22 in the narrow loss. Junior Alex Rivas contributed 10 points and 9 rebounds.
Verdejo leads USF at 20 points per game with Jones right behind him at 18 an outing. Rivas leads the team with 7.5 rebounds per game and Jones leads in assists at 5.5 a game.
SETTING THE SCENE
Date: Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2008
Tip-off: 7 p.m. ET
Location: Tampa, Fla. - The Sun Dome (10,411)
Television: None
Webcast: GoUSFBulls.com (audio & video)
Radio: WHNZ 1250 AM will carry the game with Jim Lighthall handling play-by-play and Todd Kalas as color analyst.
USF's Last Time Out: Dropped a 77-75 decision at Virginia in road opener on Nov. 19.
High Point's Last Time Out: Lost 69-56 at NC State on Saturday, Nov. 22.
Series History: First meeting all-time.
Last Meeting: Have never met.
USF Tickets: 1-800-GoBulls
YEAR TWO OF THE HEATH ERA IS UNDERWAY
The 2008-09 USF season marks the start of head coach Stan Heath's second season at the helm. He is the eighth head coach in the 38-year history of the program.
ABOUT HIGH POINT
It is the first all-time meeting between USF and the Panthers. High Point is coached by Bart Lundy who is in his sixth year at the school. They return three starters and six letterwinners from last year's squad that went 17-14 and 8-6 in the Big South Conference. High Point is 1-2 on the year after losing 69-56 at NC State on Saturday. Junior guard Eugene Harris leads HPU at 14 points per game.
THE HIGH POINT SERIES
This is the first all-time meeting between USF and High Point.
UP NEXT: VS. NORTHEASTERN
The Bulls remain at home to take on Northeastern on Saturday, Nov. 29, at 7 p.m. at the Sun Dome. Northeastern is 3-1 overall and hosts Boston University on Tuesday before heading to Tampa. Northeastern is coached by Bill Coeni who is in his second season at the helm. The Huskies return two starters from a 13-19 team, 9-9 in the Colonial Athletic Association. Junior Matt Janning leads NU at 19.5 points per game. It is the second all-time meeting between the schools with the Bulls winning 65-56 at home on Dec. 12, 1997.
BULLS IN SEASON OPENERS
With the win vs. SMU, the Bulls improved to 29-9 all-time in season openers and to 24-3 all-time in season openers at home. Coach Heath is now 1-1 in season openers. USF has now won eight of the last nine season openers and 17 out of the last 18 season openers at home.
BULLS IN ROAD OPENERS
USF is 17-21 all-time in road openers and 0-2 under Heath after a narrow 77-75 loss at Virgnia on Nov. 19. The last road opener won by the Green & Gold was three seasons ago at Winston-Salem State, a 63-43 victory.
BULLS LOSE CLOSE ONE ON ROAD OPENER AT VIRGINIA
Sylven Landesberg nailed a layup with 13 seconds left and sank a free throw six seconds later to seal Virginia's 77-75 victory over the University of South Florida on Nov. 19.
Down three with a 1:19 to play, USF sophomore guard Dominique Jones drove to the basket to make it 74-73 UVa with 1:11 to go. After two missed free throws by the Cavaliers, Jones drew a foul with 38 seconds remaining and nailed both free throws to put USF up 75-74.
After a Virginia timeout, Landesberg hit the go-ahead layup. After the layup Jones just missed a runner in the lane that would have put the Bulls back ahead. Then Landesberg missed his second free throw and Jones again just missed a shot in the lane that would have sent the game to overtime.
Landesberg finished with 21 points for the Cavaliers (2-0), and Jamil Tucker added 15 points and a team-high seven rebounds in the win. Tucker also went 2-for-3 from behind the arc.
Jones scored a game-high 23 for the Bulls and Jesus Verdejo added 22 and was 4-for-7 from 3-point range as USF led for a large majority of this close knit affair. There were 19 lead changes and 14 ties. The Bulls largest lead was eight and Virginia's three.
The Bulls shot 49.2 percent from the field (32 for 65) compared to a 40.3 mark (27 of 67) for the Cavaliers, but went just 6-for-12 from the free-throw line. The Cavaliers sank 18 of their 28 free throws, including the second half that saw UVa attempt 26 free throws to USF's six.
VERDEJO NETS CAREER HIGH, POST BEST BACK-TO-BACK PERFORMANCES OF HIS CAREER
Senior guard Jesus Verdejo poured in a career-high 22 points at Virginia, going 9-15 from the field and 4-7 from 3-point range. His previous career high was 20, done twice before (11/24/07 vs. East Carolina and 12/17/06 vs. Norfolk State).
Verdejo has totaled 40 points over the last two games, the best back-to-back scoring performances of his career. His previous high was 36, done twice over a three-game stretch last season when he scored 19 points, 17 and 19 in three consecutive games. The 55 scored in those three games is the best three-game scoring total of his career and he can best that with 16 points vs. High Point.
ZUES ALSO MATCHES CAREER HIGH FOR 3-POINTERS MADE
Verdejo also matched his career high for 3-pointers made with four for the second consecutive game. It is his third time overall with four 3-pointers in a game and the eight made the past two games is the best two-game total of his career. He made seven over two games last year vs. East Carolina and FIU.
AND SOME MORE VERDEJO
With his 22 points vs. UVa, Verdejo has eclipsed the 500 career point mark. He now has 515 career points. He is also moving up the all-time 3-point made list. He has 65 career 3-pointers, good for 14th on the all-time list.
JONES TOP SCORER AT VIRGINIA, GOES OVER 20 11TH TIME IN CAREER
Dominique Jones tallied a game-high 23 points vs. Virginia. He has now scored in double figures in 30 of his 33 career games, including both this season. Jones has scored 20 or more points 11 times in his career, which is one every three games played so far in his career.
JONES ALSO DISHING THE ROCK
Jones led the team in assists for the second straight game with five at UVa. With his six assists vs. SMU he has more than five assists in both games this season after having only four games all of last year with five or more assists (two five assist games, a six assist game and a seven assist game).
JONES CLOSING IN ON TOP 50 EARLY IN SOPHOMORE SEASON
With 23 points at Virginia, Jones now has 567 career points, just 14 points behind Solomon Jones at 581 for 53rd all-time on the Bulls scoring list. He could potentially also move past Cal Glover at 582 and into 52nd vs. HPU.
TWO GO FOR OVER 20 AT UVA
USF had two 20-point scorers against Virginia, Jones with 23 and Verdejo with 22. The Bulls had three games last year with two players scoring 20 or more points in the same game (Kentrell Gransberry 21 and Aaron Holmes 20 vs. Winston-Salem State; Gransberry 20 and Jones 24 vs. Rutgers at home; and Gransberry 23 and Jones 29 vs. Syracuse at home).
RIVAS MAKING AN IMPRESSION
Junior transfer Alex Rivas continues to impress despite not being 100 percent healthy due to having rods placed in both tibias in May. Against UVa, Rivas posted career highs in points (10) and rebounds (9), just missing a double-double in his second career game at the DI level. He did sprain his right ankle late in the game and is doubtful for High Point.
HOWARD MOVING UP ASSIST LADDER
Junior guard Chris Howard had three assists at Virginia, giving him 235 for his career to move into 15th on the all-time USF list. He is 13 behind Lewis Card (248, 1982-83) for 14th place.
REBOUNDING BY COMMITTEE
The USF rebounding by committee approach continues to work through two games. The four post-players for the Bulls: Mobolaji Ajayi, Aris Williams, Eladio Espinosa and Alex Rivas, have combined for more than 20 rebounds in both games this season. Against Virginia the group pulled down 21 boards after hauling in 22 vs. SMU.
WILLIAMS MAKES THIRD CAREER START
Williams made just his third career start and the first since early in the 2006-07 season.
AJAYI MATCHES CAREER HIGH FOR REBOUNDS
Senior forward Mobolaji Ajayi led USF with 11 rebounds vs. SMU, matching his career high set last year vs. Seton Hall (2/26/08).
BULLS PUT FORTH TOP DEFENSIVE PERFORMANCE IN HEATH ERA
The defensive effort against SMU was the best of the Stan Heath era. The Bulls held the Mustangs to 27.7 percent shooting from the field which was the lowest in the 32 games since Heath has been head coach. And only one opponent last season, Rutgers in the BIG EAST opener, scored fewer than SMU's 46 points scored.
MAKING THEIR USF DEBUTS VS. SMU
Freshman Eladio Espinosa made his first career start vs. SMU, while freshman Justin Leemow, Gaby Belardo and junior transfer Alex Rivas Sanchez made their first appearances in a Bull uniform against the Mustangs.
HEATH WINS HIS 125TH CAREER GAME
The SMU win was Stan Heath's 125th career victory as a head coach. He is 125-97 all-time in his 8th season.
FIRST FOUR HOME GAMES CAN BE SEEN ON GOUSFBULLS.COM
The first two home exhibition games and the first two home regular season games this season are not televised but can be seen on GoUSFBulls.com.
FOUR USF STARTERS RETURN
The Bulls return four starters from last year's squad including All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention selection and All-Rookie team pick sophomore guard Dominique Jones. Other starters returning include senior guard Jesus Verdejo, senior forward Mobolaji Ajayi and junior guard Chris Howard. Also joining the Bulls at the conclusion of the first semester are Georgia transfer, junior guard Mike Mercer, and Maryland transfer, freshman forward/center Augustus Gilchrist. Both players will miss the first six regular season games of the season, becoming eligible for the Dec. 14 game vs. Niagara.
GILCHRIST GRANTED WAIVER
The NCAA has granted a waiver request for USF basketball player Augustus Gilchrist that will allow him to be eligible for competition after the fall semester of the 2008-09 academic year. Gilchrist will be eligible to begin competition as a freshman on Dec. 14 when USF hosts Niagara at the Sun Dome. The 6-10 forward/center transferred to USF from Maryland during the Summer of 2008. USF will have played six non-conference games when Giilchrist becomes eligible.
RIVALS.COM RANKS MIKE MERCER THE NO. 5 IMPACT TRANSFER
Rivals.com recently announced its top 10 transfers for the upcoming season and USF's Mike Mercer was ranked fifth. Mercer averaged 12.2 points and 3.6 rebounds in 51 career games for Georgia. He was averaging 13.6 points per game as a sophomore before being sidelined with a right ACL injury. Mercer will miss both exhibition games and the first six regular season games, becoming eligible for the Dec. 14 Niagara game.
USF GOES 2-0 IN EXHIBITION GAMES
In the final tune-up before the regular season, USF used a second half surge to pull away from intra-city foe Tampa and down the Spartans 79-64 in an exhibition on Nov. 10 at the Sun Dome.
Senior guard Jesus Verdejo led the Bulls with 27 points, going 8-15 from the field, including 4-7 from 3-point range. He notched 18 of his points in the second half. Junior guard Chris Howard poured in 18 and added five assists. Sophomore guard Dominique Jones struggled from the field but turned distributor and dished out a game-high 11 assists to go along with eight points and four rebounds. Freshman forward Eladio Espinosa and senior forward Aris Williams led USF with eight rebounds a piece. Senior forward Mobolaji Ajayi had nine points and seven rebounds.
Prior to Tampa, the Bulls downed the University of West Florida, 80-41, in the opening exhibition game of the season on Nov. 4 at the Sun Dome.
Nine Bulls played as every healthy player saw the court, including new walk-on, junior guard Ryan Kardok. Jones ended with a game-high 26 points, going 10-15 from the field. He connected on 3-7 3-pointers and also had a game-high nine assists and seven rebounds.
Senior Jesus Verdejo finished the night with 14 points and Eladio Espinosa was also in double figures with 11 points, including three thunderous dunks. Senior forward Mobolaji Ajayi led the Bulls with nine rebounds to go along with eight points. Junior guard Chris Howard had eight points, seven rebounds and three assists.
BULLS SIGN DUMARS AND NORIEGA
USF men's basketball coach Stan Heath announced on Nov. 12 the signing of guards Jordan Dumars and Shaun Noriega to NCAA Letters of Intent during the November signing period. The signing period runs through Nov. 19.
Dumars (6-5, 225) and Noriega (6-4, 195) will join USF as freshmen for the 2009-10 season and bring with them sharp-shooting skills and perimeter size. Noriega is already North Port High School's all-time leading scorer in just three seasons with 1,282 points, while Dumars holds perennial high school power Detroit Country Day's single-game record for 3-point field goals made with nine.
“We felt we needed to address our perimeter shooting and both Shaun and Jordan are very skilled players that can stretch the defense and consistently knock down 3-point shots,” said USF Head Coach Stan Heath. “We also felt both players had very high basketball IQ's and will be players that will make good decisions and be good teammates. Both players come from winning programs and have very strong academic backgrounds.”
RECORD SEVEN BIG EAST TEAMS WERE RANKED IN ESPN/USA TODAY PRESEASON COACHES' POLL
The BIG EAST has seven teams ranked in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' poll and the Associated Press poll. The seven ranked teams are the most ever for one conference in the Coaches' poll, besting the previous all-time record of five.
WALK-ON ADDED TO ROSTER
Junior college transfer Ryan Kardok has been added to the 2008-09 roster as a walk-on. Kardok spent two years playing at Broward Community College. He attended Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., where he averaged 17 points and six assists per game as a senior.
BULLS PICKED TO FINISH 16TH IN BIG EAST PRESEASON COACHES' POLL
The Bulls were picked to finish 16th in the BIG EAST Preseason poll.
BIG EAST FIELD TO INCREASE TO 16 FOR 2009
The Presidents of the BIG EAST Conference voted to include all 16 member institutions in the men's and women's basketball championship tournaments beginning in 2009. The Presidents took this action at their annual meeting, which was held Nov. 6 in Philadelphia.
Previously, on the top 12 teams in the final regular-season standings advanced to participate in the men's and women's championships. The men's championship is held in New York City at Madison Square Garden. The women's championship is held in Hartford, Conn., at the Hartford Civic Center.
TV ALL THE TIME
In 2007-08, the BIG EAST began a new multiyear agreement with ESPN that brought the national television exposure for the league to unprecedented levels. That coverage continues this season. For the second straight year, every conference regular-season game will be televised.
The BIG EAST has always been considered a leader in TV. Twelve of the 16 BIG EAST institutions are located in the top 34 media markets in the country. Some of the highlights of the current agreement:
ESPN, Inc. will produce 140 of the 144 regular-season conference games this season. The four remaining games will be carried by CBS Sports.
ESPN and ESPN2 will telecast a minimum of 60 games each year. In 2008-09, ESPN or ESPN2 will televise 45 regular-season league games, 11 games of The BIG EAST Championship and eight nonconference home contests.
ESPN Regional will carry a minimum of 67 games under the banner of The BIG EAST Network and continue to produce its weekend Game of the Week package, which reaches over a third of the nation's homes and has a household reach of more than 38 million. Most games offered by ESPN Regional are also available nationally as part of ESPN Full Court, the pay subscription college basketball outer-market service.
A record 45 conference contests will be carried on ESPN or ESPN2. CBS Sports will televise 10 more games involving BIG EAST teams. ESPN will continue to televise The BIG EAST Championship from Madison Square Garden in New York. The dates are March 10-14.
In total, 70 of the 144 regular-season BIG EAST games will be on national television, which includes 21 that will be carried on ESPNU. The remaining games will be carried on ESPN360 or the BIG EAST Network, which is produced by ESPN Regional Television.
