TAMPA -  The USF men's basketball team will face the No. 1 ranked team in the country for the third time in history when it travels to Pittsburgh on Wednesday, Jan. 14.

The game is nationally televised on ESPNU and tips off at 7 p.m. at the Petersen Events Center. The two previous matchups for USF against the top-ranked team in the country were at North Carolina and Michael Jordan on Dec. 12, 1981, and at Cincinnati and Kenyon Martin on Jan. 29, 2009.

It will be just the fifth time overall, men's and women's, that the Bulls have taken on the No. 1 ranked team. The USF women took on No. 1 ranked Connecticut at home earlier this season and traveled to No. 1 UConn last season.

After Wednesday's game, USF will remain in Pittsburgh before heading to Morgantown, W. Va., to take on the Mountaineers on Saturday, Jan. 17, at Noon. The WVU game is the BIG EAST Network Game of the Week and will be shown locally on WFTS ABC and around the East and Midwest on other TV outlets.

Both games can be heard on WNHZ 1250 AM and GoUSFBulls.com. A live blog will also be ongoing during the games on GoUSFBulls.com.

The Bulls are 6-9 on the year and 1-2 in BIG EAST play after downing DePaul 80-58 Saturday in Chicago. It was just the second road win in league play for USF in its three-plus years in the conference. Dominique Jones scored 22, Jesus Verdejo 18 and Augustus Gilchrist 16. Chris Howard added 12 points and 10 assists with zero turnovers.








SETTING THE SCENE
Date:  Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2009
Tip-off:  7 p.m. ET
Location:  Pittsburgh, Pa. - Petersen Events Center (12,508)
Television: ESPNU with Dan McLaughlin and Mike Kelley calling the action.
Radio: 1250 AM with Jim Lighthall handling play-by-play and Todd Kalas as color analyst.
Webcast: GoUSFBulls.com (audio)
USF's Last Time Out: Defeated DePaul 80-58 on Jan. 10 in Chicago.
Pitt's Last Time Out: Defeated St. John's 90-67 on Jan. 11 at home.
Series History: Series tied 2-2
Last Meeting:  Pitt won 79-66 on Jan. 9, 2009 at the Sun Dome.
Website:  PittsburghPanthers.com
USF Tickets: 1-800-GoBulls

LEADING THE BULLS
 Sophomore guard Dominique Jones leads USF at 17.0 points per game, with senior guard Jesus Verdejo right behind him at 15.2 an outing. Freshman forward Augustus Gilchrist leads the team at 4.7 rebounds per game and Chris Howard leads in assists at 4.1 a game. Jones leads the way with 26 steals and Gilchrist with 12 blocks.

YEAR TWO OF THE HEATH ERA IS UNDERWAY
 This season marks 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 PITTSBURGH
 The Bulls will be facing the No. 1 ranked team in the country when they travel to Pittsburgh on Wednesday, Jan. 14, at 7 p.m. on ESPNU. The Panthers are coached by Jamie Dixon who is in his sixth season as a head coach, all at Pitt. They are 15-0 overall and 3-0 in BIG EAST play after beating St. John's 90-67 on Sunday, Jan. 11. Senior forward Sam Young leads Pitt at 19.0 points per game. Sophomore DeJuan Blair averages a double double at 14.8 points and 12.6 rebounds, while senior point guard Levance Fields is at 10.3 points and 6.7 assists a game.

THE PITT SERIES
 USF and Pittsburgh have met four times previously, with the teams splitting the four meetings. They have met just twice as BIG EAST opponents, with Pitt winning both games. They did not meet during the 2005-06 conference season. USF won the first two meetings at neutral sites. The first meeting was during the 1975-76 season and they met again in the 2001-02 season. It is the second meeting to be played in Pittsburgh.

UP NEXT: WEST VIRGINIA
 The Bulls will remain in the Midwest after facing Pittsburgh on Wednesday, Jan. 14, and head to Morgantown on Friday instead of returning Tampa. USF faces West Virginia on Saturday, Jan. 17, at Noon in the BIG EAST Network Game of the Week. The Mountaineers are coached by Bob Huggins who is in his 23rd year as a head coach and his second at WVU. West Virginia is 11-4 overall and 1-2 in BIG EAST play after a 75-53 loss at Marquette on Jan. 10. They play host to Marshall on Wednesday, Jan. 14, before facing the Bulls. Senior guard Alex Ruoff leads WVU in scoring at 16.5 points per game, with junior De'Sean Butler right behind him at 15.6 a game. Butler also pulls down 6.0 rebounds a game.

USF FACING NO. 1 RANKED TEAM FOR JUST THIRD TIME IN HISTORY
 It will be just the third time in USF history facing the No. 1 ranked team in the country. The Bulls faced No. 1 North Carolina and Michael Jordan on Dec. 12, 1981, and No. 1 Cincinnati and Kenyon Martin on Jan. 29, 2000, losing both games on the road.
 It will be just the fifth time overall, men's and women's, that the Bulls have taken on the No. 1 ranked team. The USF women took on No. 1 ranked Connecticut at home earlier this season and traveled to No. 1 UConn last season.

JONES GETS HELP IN LEADING BULLS PAST DEPAUL ON THE ROAD
 Sophomore guard Dominique Jones led four Bulls in double figures with a game-high 22 points at DePaul, going 7-14 from the field and 5-10 from 3-point range. He also hauled down eight rebounds, tied for game-high and a season high for him. It is just the fifth time in his career with eight or more rebounds.

VERDEJO HAS ONE OF HIS BEST ALL-AROUND GAMES OF HIS CAREER
 Senior guard Jesus Verdejo dropped in 18 points, had eight rebounds and six assists against DePaul. The eight boards are the second most of his career, bested only by the nine he had the previous game vs. Louisville (1/4/09). The six assists are tied for second most of his career, with his high being seven last year vs. Seton Hall (2/26/08).

HOWARD NOTCHES SECOND CAREER DOUBLE-DOUBLE
 Junior guard Chris Howard notched his second career double-double with 12 points and 10 assists at DePaul. His other double was last season on 11/17/07 vs. Florida Atlantic when he had 18 points and a career high 11 assists. It is the third time in his career with 10 or more assists. His other 10 assist game was last year vs. West Virginia (1/20/08).

GILCHRIST NETS CAREER HIGH 16
 Freshman forward Augustus Gilchrist tallied a career high 16 points against DePaul, shooting 6-8 from the field and 4-4 from the line. His previous high was 12 vs. Vanderbilt (12/16/08). He has scored in double figures in four of his nine career games. He also added two blocks and has seven blocks the past two games.

JUST SECOND BIG EAST ROAD WIN FOR USF
 The win at DePaul was just the second BIG EAST road win in USF history and the second in three games. The Bulls defeated Rutgers 54-52 on March 1, 2008 after starting BIG EAST play 0-23 on the road all-time. They sit at 2-24 all-time.

BEST OVERALL SHOOTING DAY OF SEASON AT DEPAUL
 Despite snowy, blustery weather outside at DePaul, the Bulls were on fire inside Allstate Arena and had their best overall shooting day of the season. USF shot 86.7 from the free-throw line, going 13-15. It was the highest free throw percentage of the year for USF and the highest in two seasons under Stan Heath.
 USF also shot 51.7 percent from the field, its second highest of the year and just the second time shooting better than 50 percent in a game this season.
 The Bulls also shot 41.2 percent from the 3-point line, only the fourth time this season shooting better than 40 percent from 3-point range.

ON THE BOARDS VS. BLUE DEMONS
 The Bulls out-rebounded DePaul 40-22. The +18 margin on the boards is the best this season.

JONES CONTINUES TO MOVE UP SCORING LADDER, NEARS 800
 Dominique Jones' 22 points at DePaul moved him just 14 points shy of the 800 career point plateau. He ranks 32nd on the all-time USF Scoring list with 786 points and need just 26 points to pass three more players and move into 29th on the all-time list.

VERDEJO CLIMBING SCORING LADDER TOO, GOES OVER 700
 Jesus Verdejo went over the 700 career points mark with 18 at DePaul. He has 703 career points, and moved past two players into 40th on the all-time USF scoring list. Just five more points will move him into 39th all-time.

HOWARD MOVES INTO 10TH ALL-TIME ON USF ASSIST LIST
 With 10 assists at DePaul, junior Chris Howard has 293 career assists, which moved him into 10th on the all-time USF assist list. He is 21 assists behind Brian Lamb for 9th all-time.

VERDEJO IS SHOOTING WELL FROM DOWNTOWN, IS 10TH ALL-TIME AT USF FOR 3-POINT FIELD GOALS
 Jesus Verdejo has started out the season strong shooting the 3-pointer. He has connected on 39 3-pointers and is averaging 2.6 per game. Verdejo has 39 in 15 games this season after making 42 in 30 games last season.
 He is also moving up the all-time 3-point made list at USF. The senior has 96 career 3-pointers, good for 10th on the all-time list, and 11 out of ninth.

CRATER TRANSFERS FROM OHIO STATE, IS ENROLLED IN CLASSES
 Men's basketball coach Stan Heath announced Jan. 5 that freshman guard Anthony Crater has signed a Grant-In-Aid with USF, is enrolled in classes and practicing with the team.
 Crater was granted a release from Ohio State after playing 10 games with the Buckeyes this season. The 6-foot-1 guard will sit out the rest of this year and have two-and-a-half years of eligibility remaining and become eligible as a sophomore at the end of the first semester on December 12, 2009.
 “We are very excited to add Anthony to our basketball team,” said Heath. “I've had the opportunity to watch him play as young player through the years. We felt the need to strengthen our guard play and Anthony's ball skills, quickness and playmaking abilities will be a welcome addition to our team.”
 The Flint, Mich., averaged 13.1 minutes a game at OSU and averaged 1.2 points and had 19 assists to just nine turnovers.
 Crater was highly touted coming out of high school. He was a two-time All-Michigan performer and was voted Class B Player of the Year by the Associated Press following his junior year. He averaged 16.2 points and more than eight assists as a junior and was named an all-league and all-city selection each of his three years at Flint (Mich.) Southwestern Academy.
 Crater led SWA to three city titles and two Michigan Class B final four appearances as a sophomore and junior, helping the Knights finish with identical 24-3 records in 2006 and 2007. After three years at SWA, Crater transferred to Brewster (N.H.) Academy to complete his high school eligibility at the prep school. While at Brewster, the team captured its first New England Class A title and advanced to the national final four with a school-record 31 victories (31-4). He averaged 16 points and 8.0 assists at Brewster.
 He was rated the 21st best point guard in the country by Scout.com after his senior year. Crater is the son of Lisa Jimerson and Anthony Crater Sr. He has a brother, Treyvon, and a sister, Kyla.

MERCER OUT WITH TORN RIGHT ACL
 USF men's basketball coach Stan Heath announced Dec. 28 that junior guard Mike Mercer has a torn right Anterior Cruciate Ligament and will miss the remainder of the season. He had surgery on Jan. 8.
 Mercer suffered the injury during USF's game vs. Wright State on Dec. 21. He had played in just four games after sitting out the past year as a transfer from the University of Georgia. It is the second right ACL tear he has endured after injuring it late in the 2006-07 Georgia season.
 “We are extremely disappointed for Mike,” said Heath. “It is an unfortunate injury and we will do everything we can to support him throughout his rehabilitation. Mike has been through this before and we are confident that he will fully recover fully from this injury.”

VERDEJO PULLS DOWN CAREER HIGH NINE REBOUNDS VS. LOUISVILLE
 Senior guard Jesus Verdejo notched a career high nine rebounds vs. Louisville, smashing his previous high of six done twice previously (3/8/08 vs. Notre Dame last time). He also had eight points, just missing a double-double.

AJAYI NOTCHES CAREER HIGH 15 AGAINST SYRACUSE
 Senior forward Mobolaji Ajayi tallied a career high 15 points vs. the Orange, going 7-10 from the field. His previous high was 12 which he has reached twice the last being last year against Notre Dame (3/8/08).

SYRACUSE SECOND LARGEST SUN DOME CROWD SINCE ENTERING BIG EAST
 The crowd of 8,350 against Syracuse was larger than any home game at the Sun Dome last season. It is the second largest Sun Dome crowd since USF joined the BIG EAST. The only crowd larger was on March 1, 2006 vs. UConn with a crowd of 9,636.

JONES EXPLODES FOR CAREER-HIGH 36 VS. IONA
 Sophomore Dominique Jones exploded for a career high 36 points vs. Iona, shooting an efficient 12-16 from the field, 7-9 from 3-point range and 5-6 from the free throw line. The 36 points bested his previous high of 31 done twice previously (12/6/08 at UCF and 2/26/08 vs. Seton Hall). He also finished with five assists, accounting for at least 46 of USF's 68 points. He began the assualt with a 17-point first half, hitting 6-8 field goals, 3-4 3-pointers and 2-2 from the free throw line.
 It was his fifth career game with 30 or more points, which is second all-time at USF. Only Charley Bradley, with 24, has more games with 30 or more points scored at USF.

JONES' 36 TIED FOR FIFTH ON USF SINGLE-GAME SCORING LIST
 Dominique Jones' 36 point outburst vs. Iona is tied for fifth on the all-time USF single-game scoring list. He is tied with five other players for fifth. The record is 42 by Charlie Bradley vs. Florida State on 12/10/82.

JONES HITS CAREER HIGH SEVEN 3-POINTERS VS. IONA
 Jones' seven 3-point field goals was also a career high, surpassing his previous high of five, done twice.

VERDEJO NAMED TO ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM IN PUERTO RICO
 Jesus Verdejo was the only Bull named to the All-Tournament team in Puerto Rico after averaging 17.7 points in the three games. He matched his career high with 26 against Wright State, had nine vs. Murray State and 18 vs. Oral Roberts.

VERDEJO MATCHES CAREER HIGH VS. WRIGHT STATE
 Senior guard Jesus Verdejo tallied 26 points vs. Wright State, matching his career high from earlier this season on Dec. 3 at UAB. It was his fourth game this season scoring 20 or more points, after going for 20 or more just twice the two previous seasons (one each season).

EMORY DOES NOT RETURN
 Freshman walk-on Mitch Emory has decided not to return to the team for the second semester. Emory is focusing on his acedemics at USF.

MERCER AND GILCHRIST MAKE DEBUTS, AS DOES DANIELS
 Sunday, Dec. 14, vs. Niagara marked the debuts of two key transfers in junior guard Mike Mercer and freshman forward/center Augustus Gilchrist. Mercer, 6-4, and Gilchrist, 6-10, will add some much needed experience, talent and depth to the team. Mercer averaged 12.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 51 career games for Georgia, which included 27 starts. Glichrist was one of the top-rated post players in the country coming out of high school in the 2007 class.
 Against Niagara, both Mercer and Gilchrist started with Mercer notching 12 points and Gilchrist eight points and six rebounds. Freshman guard and scholarship quarterback B.J Daniels also made his USF basketball debut midway through the first half vs. Niagara. Mercer tore his right ACL on 12/21 vs. Wright State and will miss the remainder of the season.
 Daniels joined the roster on Friday, Dec. 5. Daniels was a first-team Class 5A all-state selection last year and averaged 27 points per game. He did not travel to West Virginia with the football team for their last regular season game and will not re-join the football team for its bowl game. He is applying for a redshirt.

JONES GOES FOR 30 OR MORE FOR SECOND TIME VS. UCF
 Sophomore guard Dominique Jones matched his then career high with 31 points at UCF, going 11-17 from the field and 2-5 from 3-point range. His previous 31-point outing was last season vs. Seton Hall (2/26/08). Jones also had 30 points in a USF win over UCF last season.
 
VERDEJO FIRES AWAY FOR CAREER HIGH 26 AT UAB
 Senior guard Jesus Verdejo led USF with a game and career-high 26 points at UAB, besting the 22 he had at Virginia earlier this year (11/19/08). He was 10-20 from the field buried a career high six 3-pointers on 12 attempts. His previous best was four 3-pointers made three times previously.

LEEMOW GOES FOR CAREER HIGH NINE, HITS THREE 3-POINTERS AT UAB
 Freshman guard Justin Leemow had a career-high nine points at UAB, going 3-3 from 3-point range, also a career best.

UAB JUST SECOND OT GAME OF THE HEATH TENURE AT USF
 The UAB game was just the second overtime game played for Stan Heath while at USF. The other OT game was last season vs. UConn.

37 POINTS ALLOWED VS. NORTHEASTERN SECOND LOWEST IN USF HISTORY
 The 37 points that USF held Northeastern to is the second lowest defensive performance in the 38-year Bulls history and only the fifth time in history holding an opponent to less than 40 points. The record is 34 in a 45-34 win over St. Peters on Dec. 4, 1985. Only one opponent last season, Rutgers 45 in the BIG EAST opener, scored fewer than 46 points scored in a game. This season has seen three teams score 46 or less against the Bulls.

USF HOLDS NORTHEASTERN TO 11 HALFTIME POINTS
 The 11 points that Northeastern scored in the first half is the lowest defensive half under Stan Heath. The previous low half was the last half USF played, the second against High Point where they gave up 18.

WILLIAMS MATCHES CAREER HIGH IN TWO STRAIGHT GAMES
 Aris Williams matched his career high with 11 points vs. Northeastern, which he set Nov. 25 vs. High Point. He also pulled down seven rebounds.

ANOTHER LOW IN HEATH ERA
 USF's 24.1 percent field goal percentage defense vs. NU was the lowest in the Stan Heath era, besting the 27.7 against SMU in the season opener.

WILLIAMS NOTCHES CAREER HIGH VS. HIGH POINT
 Senior forward Aris Williams posted a career high 11 points vs. High Point, including eight in a 10-2 USF run that gave the Bulls their first lead of the game, 34-32, at the 14:14 mark of the second half. Williams also finished with six rebounds, three blocked shots, an assist and a steal.

ESPINOSA PULLS DOWN CAREER HIGH 10 BOARDS VS. HIGH POINT
 Freshman Eladio Espinosa grabbed a game and career high 10 rebounds vs. High Point and added nine points, just missing his first career double double.

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).

AJAYI MATCHES CAREER HIGH FOR REBOUNDS AT UVA
 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 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 ran through November 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 mark 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.”

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.

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.