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Postgame Notes
PHILADELPHIA - The University of South Florida men's basketball team found itself down by just six early in the second half, but No. 7 Villanova took control the rest of the way and defeated the Bulls, 74-49, Wednesday night at the Pavilion.
Junior Dominique Jones led the Bulls with 12 points and added seven rebounds, while senior Mike Mercer was the only other Bull in double digits with 11.
Sophomore Augustus Gilchrist added a game-high eight boards for USF, which fell to 16-11 overall, 6-9 in the BIG EAST.
Villanova (23-4, 12-3) was led by Scottie Reynolds, who posted 21 points as the Wildcats shot 47.4 percent for the game, compared to just 38.1 percent for the Bulls.
Villanova held a 40-18 edge in points in the paint and also scored 30 points off 23 USF turnovers, a season high for the Bulls.
After being down by 11 at the half, the Wildcats pushed the lead to 14 early in the second half. The Bulls went on a 12-4 run to get the deficit down to six at 43-37, after Jones hit a 3-pointer with 14:36 on the clock.
After Mercer hit a jumper to make it 48-41 with 9:24 left in the game to again get the Bulls to within striking distance, Villanova would go on to outscore the Bulls, 26-8, the rest of the way for the final 74-49 score.
The Wildcats opened up the game by scoring the game's first eight points of the evening before Jones hit a pair of free throws to get USF on the board.
Senior Chris Howard made it 8-6 early on with 13:52 to go as he found the bottom of the cylinder with a layup, and over the next several minutes USF kept the game close.
Gilchrist put back a tip-in off a missed jumper by Mercer at the 10:16 mark as USF got the score to 16-14.
The Wildcats went on a 14-5 run as the second half came to a close to build the lead up to 14, but sophomore Anthony Crater hit a 3-pointer as time expired to put the Bulls down by 11 at the half, 36-25.
USF will be back in action Saturday night at home when the Bulls face Providence. First tip is set for 7 p.m.
Team
- Tonight's starters were Chris Howard, Dominique Jones and Mike Mercer at guard, Toarlyn Fitzpatrick at forward and Alex Rivas at center. It marked the first time that lineup was used this season.
- The Bulls committed 23 turnovers on the night, a season high for the team. The last time USF had more than 17 turnovers was 18 against Rutgers Jan. 16 and UCF Dec. 16. USF's season worst had been 21 at Louisville Dec. 30.
- The Bulls set a season low for points with 49, one less than the team's previous low of 50 against West Virginia Jan. 13.
- The game marked the third of the season for the Bulls that the team faced a No. 7 team on the road. USF previously played at No. 7 Syracuse Jan. 10, an 82-65 loss, and at No. 7 Georgetown Feb. 3, a 72-64 win.
- The 25-point loss was the worst of the season for the Bulls, following a 21-point setback at Louisville Dec. 30.
Individual
- Junior forward Jarrid Famous did not start after missing practices due to the birth of his daughter, London Lynnae Famous, on Monday.
- Mike Mercer has scored in double digits in three-straight games. He had 11 at Villanova, 17 against St. John's and 12 vs. Cincinnati.
- Senior guard Chris Howard reached a milestone on Feb. 13 by playing in his 100th career game. Tonight, Howard's start against Villanova was his 99th career start.
- With eight rebounds, sophomore Augustus Gilchrist was one board shy of his season high of nine, which he grabbed at SMU on Nov. 13.
- After not playing for seven-straight games, freshman Mike Burwell played three minutes against Villanova.
- Ryan Kardok scored for the first time since Seton Hall on Jan. 28 on a pair of free throws with 56 seconds left. They were also his first two career free throws at USF.
- Jones was 0-5 from the floor in the first half. All four of his points were from the free throw line. The last time he was held without a field goal in the first stanza was Dec. 22, 2008 against Oral Roberts in Puerto Rico. He was 0-1 in the first half from the field that night with no points. He ended that game scoreless as well.
- With his 12 points on the night, Jones moved into sixth on the single season scoring list with 574 points, passing Altron Jackson's 565 points during the 1999-2000 season. Up next is Jackson again for fifth place with 587 points during the 2000-01 campaign.
