Down by four at the half, the Toarlyn Fitzpatrick-led Bulls stormed out of the break on a 22-6 run and they never looked back en route to more USF history in a 58-44 victory over the fifth-seeded Owls in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
"I've got to give our players here just a lot of credit," head coach Stan Heath said. "I'm so proud of them, to be so resilient and come back and fight and scratch and claw and give everything you have, just shows the kind of character these kids have. I'm very blessed and God has been good to me with having guys like this on my team."
This version of the Bulls booked the program's first trip to the dance in 20 years and now has USF's only two NCAA tournament victories thanks to a long-range assault on the Owls. Fitzpatrick nailed two of the Bulls' four 3-pointers during the huge second-half run after USF made just three field goals in the opening period.
The Bulls now get to keep their suitcases open and remain in Nashville for Sunday's third-round test against Ohio after enduring a late push by Temple. USF led by as many as 14 after the break until the Owls went on an 11-0 run to cut their deficit to 41-38 with 5:45 remaining.
Victor Rudd Jr. fired back with two 3-pointers and the Bulls never led by fewer than six points the rest of the way. Rudd Jr. and freshman star point guard Anthony Collins each scored 17 points apiece for USF (22-13) that matched a school record for victories in a season.
"Our guys talked about leaving some footprints in the sand, and I told this group that we've already done a little bit but let's try to make it bigger," Heath said.
USF's red-hot first half against Cal on Wednesday was a much different story for the Bulls' opening tangle with Temple, which led 19-15 at the break.
Rudd Jr. gave USF its first-ever score in a second-round NCAA tournament game with a 3 for the game's first points but the Bulls were on the comeback trail shortly after.
Temple (24-8) followed with a 15-2 run while USF started 2-for-16 from the field and didn't get another score until there was 7:33 left on the clock, when Hugh Robertson made a pair of free throws.
A Fitzpatrick free throw got USF into double digits with 3:53 remaining in the half and Augustus Gilchrist hit two more with 2:35 left to cut the Bulls' deficit to 19-12.
Sharp shooter Shaun Noriega officially woke up the Bulls' offense with a 3-pointer 16 seconds later to end their drought of 15 minutes, 57 seconds without a field goal. One notable thing about Noriega was the fact that the little-used junior was pumping himself up on the bench for most of the half until being inserted into the game late for a two-minute burst on the court.
"He's our 3-point specialist, and the guys have a lot of confidence in him," said Heath of Noriega, who went 2-for-3 from 3-point range.
Defense was USF's saving grace and deserved all the credit by holding Temple to just five field goals - two more than the Bulls - and forcing six turnovers.
USF and Temple combined to finish six points shy of tying an NCAA tournament record for fewest points in a half of a first, second or third-round game.
"To be down only 4 points like the coach is saying only made three shots the whole 20 minutes was incredible," Collins said.
The Bulls regrouped big-time in the second half with Collins sparking a 4-0 run with a thunderous Robertson dunk that tied the game at 19.
A Khalif Wyatt jumper gave Temple a brief lead and Collins followed with another quick move and bucket in the paint to equal USF's field goals for the entire first half less than 3 minutes into the second period.
Another 3-pointer from Noriega, another Robertson dunk and another jumper by Collins in the paint propelled USF to a 13-4 run at the first timeout of the second half with the Bulls ahead, 28-23, with 15:07 left to play.
Fitzpatrick heated up when play resumed with a jumper and two 3-pointers that ignited the crowd and lifted the Bulls to their largest lead of the game, 36-25, with 13:13 remaining. The USF lead grew to 39-25, thanks to Fitzpatrick's hot hand and other 3-point daggers by Noriega and Rudd Jr.
Micheal Eric kept Temple within striking distance with two fade-away shots to close the gap to 41-31 and a bucket by Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson and another from Wyatt got the Owls within six with 6:48 to go.
Temple wasn't finished and cut USF's lead to 41-38 on a 3-pointer by Ramone Moore but Rudd Jr. had a big answer with a 3-pointer of his own with 5:12 to go. Rudd Jr.'s bank-shot fueled a 9-2 run that gave the Bulls a 50-40 lead with about 2 minutes to go.
A trademark Collins floater in the paint cranked the score up to 52-42 with 1:29 remaining and USF's storybook season lived on with the final touches at the free throw line.
Temple finished shooting 35 percent (5 percent below season average) and ended up 28 points below its season scoring average.
"I'll have to say I think they're the best defensive team we played against all year," Moore said. "Coming in, we knew those guys would hold their own on the defensive end. They take pride in stopping their man."
