By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, JAN. 28, 2014 – USF bounced back against SMU in a big way before a crowd of 3,407 at the Sun Dome on Tuesday night.
Senior Victor Rudd passed the 1,000-point mark as a Bull with a team-high 21 points and USF shot 53.1 percent from the floor in a 78-71 victory that halted the Mustangs' winning streak at five games.
USF (11-10, 2-6) avenged a 71-54 loss in Dallas on Jan. 15 by flipping the script on the Mustangs defense that headed to Tampa ranked second in the NCAA by limiting opponents to 36.2 percent from the floor. The best shooting performance by an SMU opponent prior to Tuesday was 47.8 percent by Houston the last time out on Jan. 26.
"This is a good game to win because the way they beat us at SMU was pretty bad. We knew we could beat this team. We all played hard and we got the 'W,'" said Rudd after the Bulls snapped a four-game losing streak.
The Bulls dominated in points in the paint by a 38-28 margin and freshman center Chris Perry tied a career high with 18 points after going 6-for-9 from the field. The Bartow, Fla., native added a team-high eight rebounds to help the Bulls finish with a 29-24 edge on the boards.
Corey Allen Jr. also finished in double figures with 18 points after knocking down two clutch 3-pointers and going 6-for-6 from the free throw line. The Bulls went 23-for-29 from the charity stripe overall and made 15 straight free throws down the stretch to hold off the Mustangs (16-5, 5-3).
"Our guys must have been chirping at them when we played them in Dallas because their energy was amazing," SMU head coach Larry Brown said. "I thought they did an unbelievable job. They outcoached us and they outplayed us."
SMU started the first meeting of the season on a 13-0 run and never looked back, but the Bulls proved to be ready the second time around. The Mustangs jumped out to an 8-2 lead but went nearly nine minutes without a field goal while USF caught back up with a Rudd layup at the 9:35 mark.
A pair of threes from Keith Frazier and Nic Moore put SMU back ahead, 16-10, and USF answered back with a 7-0 run to grab its first lead on a goaltending call. The lead changed hands three more times before the Bulls pulled back ahead shortly before the buzzer. Shemiye McLendon broke up a 26-26 tie with an acrobatic layup and Allen's jumper with 32 seconds remaining helped the Bulls head into halftime with a 30-29 advantage.
"I thought in this game we really channeled all of our energy towards SMU," said head coach Stan Heath, who is one win away from No. 100 with USF. "I thought tonight it was positive energy and total focus towards what we needed to do - find a way to win against SMU."
Tuesday's game wound up featuring a ton of twists and turns in the form of 17 lead changes and 14 ties, and the teams were knotted at 55 with 5:31 remaining when USF made its move. McLendon's second free throw put the Bulls ahead and the lead grew to 11 with 54 seconds remaining on a free throw by Zach LeDay. USF closed the door on a Mustangs comeback by knocking down six straight free throws in the final minute.
Rudd made all four of his free throw attempts and became the Bulls' 18th 1,000-point scorer in program history.
"I work hard and this shows how hard I've worked," Rudd said.
Moore led SMU with a game-high 23 points, Markus Kennedy and Ben Moore added 11 points apiece, and Nick Russell finished with 10 points in the Mustangs' first loss since falling at No. 12 Louisville, 71-63, on Jan. 12.
"We beat a very good basketball team tonight and we need to build off this because we did some really good things as a team," Heath said.
USF looks to keep a good thing going Sunday at No. 13 Cincinnati in the second meeting between the programs this season. Tip-off is set for noon and the game will be broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network.
The Bulls return to the Sun Dome Saturday, Feb. 8 to host Rutgers at 8 p.m. Purchase tickets HERE and stay updated on the team all season long on Twitter @USFMBB.
