Charlie Bradley Talks About Jones' Record-Breaking Performance
January 25, 2010 | Men's Basketball
GoUSFBulls.com asked Charlie Bradley, former USF record holder for most points in a game, about Dominique Jones' recent record-breaking game at Providence.
GoUSFBulls.com: Where were you when you heard that Dominique Jones had broken your record?
Charlie Bradley: I was watching it there for a while at my house, but then I had to go pick up my daughter at a dance competition at the beginning of the second half. Driving back, I was listening to it in my car on the radio and that's when he was able to break it.
USF: What was your first reaction to the news?
CB: My youngest daughter kept hearing my name spoken during the game on the radio and kept asking why they were saying my name. She was more excited than I was. Now she keeps telling everyone, "Dominique Jones broke my dad's record!" It's great to have him break it, especially since it helped to win the game in the BIG EAST. That adds a little extra to it. He definitely had a great game; he nearly had a triple double on top of it. He's very deserving of the record.
USF: Are you surprised at how long your record stood up at USF?
CB: It was definitely overdue. Records are made to be broken. I can't believe it's lasted over 20 years now (27 years). I still remember it like it was just last year. It is a record that's been great to have, but it's even more impressive on how he went about breaking the record.
USF: When you first saw Dominique Jones as a freshman, did you think he'd be the one to break your record?
CB: It's amazing to see the ability he has. When I came to school, I played center. I think I averaged five points a game as a freshman. To see him come in as a freshman and average 18 points a game, I thought to myself, he is going to do some damage to school records and conference records as well.
USF: How hard is it to score 42 or 46 points?
CB: I remember we played against Florida State. They were a great team back then. For Jones to do it against a BIG EAST opponent on the road, where I did it on a neutral site, that's pretty big. The most impressive part was that he did it within the system and the flow of the game. It wasn't like he was just launching up 3's. He had an awesome game, but the entire team played well too. They had five guys in double figures. It would have been awesome if we had a line like that when I played.
USF: What do you remember about the night you scored 42 against Florida State?
CB: I don't even know what I shot. I know I did have a great shooting night. Back then they were just starting to use the 3-point line. I'm not even sure if we even used it during that game. Some conferences were experimenting with it, but can't remember if they had it or not. I know I shot the ball fairly well. To top it off, we won the game too. The way we did it, beating Florida State, makes it so much more special, as it does when you beat a BIG EAST team. I was hoping he'd break the BIG EAST record. He's still got time to do it.
USF: How does your performance compare to Jones' recent outing?
CB: In the BIG EAST, scoring 46 points is unheard of. It's a great accomplishment from Dominique. I think that maybe 46, even 50 is going to be coming up again for him. And the way he did it, he was so relentless, and he was shooting the ball so well. In a game like that, it gets easier to score. The hoop looks like it gets bigger and the ball feels like it gets smaller. The game comes easy to him. He really gets into the flow of the game.
