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CHARLESTON, S.C. - Junior Dominique Jones poured in 28 points and the University of South Florida men's basketball team earned a 74-66 victory over UNC-Wilmington Sunday in the consolation game of the Charleston Classic at Carolina First Arena.
Jones fell two points short of his eighth-career 30-point game, but the two-time All-BIG EAST player did lead USF to its highest scoring output in 20 games, dating back to an 80-58 win at DePaul on Jan. 20, 2009.
Jones played well on both ends, including tight defense on the Seahawks' shooting guard Chad Tomko, as Jones got his his hand on numerous passes and ended the day with a career-high six steals. He earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team for his efforts over the past three games.
Sophomore Augustus Gilchrist and junior Jarrid Famous chipped in with 14 and 13 points, respectively, while Gilchrist and freshman Toarlyn Fitzpatrick had a team-high six rebounds.
USF shot 51.9 percent from the floor, although the Seahawks fared well, shooting 47.5 percent.
After going up early, 5-2, the Seahawks went on a 12-4 run to take the lead at 14-9 at the 14:12 mark. USF countered over the next several minutes, as the Bulls were able to take a three-point lead on a layup by Jones followed by a dunk from Famous.
An 11-5 run by UNC-Wilmington gave the Seahawks the lead back at 31-26 with 5:42 remaining, but USF closed out strong as the first half came to a close.
With an acrobatic layup between three defenders, Jones gave USF a 37-31 lead with 40 seconds left in the first half, USF's largest lead of the half. USF took a five-point lead into the half at 37-32.
Gilchrist was held scoreless in the first half, but knocked down USF's first two buckets of the second half to get back into his rhythm.
UNC-Wilmington was unable to gain the lead back throughout the first part of the second half, as USF held the Seahawks at bay.
USF was unable to push the lead past six until eight straight points by the Bulls got the lead into double digits. Jones sank a free throw after getting fouled and scoring on a drive to the baseline to give USF a 10-point lead, then followed that up with another layup to make it 64-52 with 4:52 remaining.
A three-pointer with 39 seconds remaining trimmed the lead down to four, but USF sank 4-of-6 free throws from that point on to seal the victory.
USF returns to Tampa for a five-game homestand beginning with Kent State on Wednesday at 7 p.m., followed by FAU on Nov. 27 and Hampton on Wednesday, Dec. 2.
