By TOM ZEBOLD

USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, NOV. 29, 2014 - Corey Allen Jr. caught fire with a career-high 29 points to lead the 5-1 Bulls to a 79-65 win over Jacksonville at the Sun Dome on Saturday afternoon.

Allen Jr. poured in a career-best four 3-pointers and went 11-for-17 from the field. The senior guard from St. Louis, Mo., has scored in double-figures in five games so far this season.

"Every time I shoot the ball I try to shoot with confidence. I guess I was just feeling it," said Allen Jr., who added four assists.

At 5-1, head coach Orlando Antigua is off to the best start to a debut season in USF history after other Bulls stepped up with strong games. Junior point guard Anthony Collins (Houston) scored 13 points, dished out seven assists and got his hands on five steals as USF turned the ball over just eight times.

Junior guard Nehemias Morillo (Dominican Republic) joined Allen Jr. and Collins in double figures with 12 points, while Bo Zeigler (Detroit) posted six points and eight rebounds in his second-career start. The Bulls got another gritty performance from 6-foot-11 freshman Ruben Guerrero (Spain), who registered six points, seven rebounds and four blocks in his second game back from a groin injury.

"We're happy we have him back practicing and being involved fully," Antigua said. 

USF continued on its hot start to the season after having to come back in the second half. Allen Jr. tied his previous career high with three 3-pointers to help the Bulls build a 14-point lead before they went into half trailing, 37-36.

"We had to get back to being who we want to be and I challenged them about that at halftime," Antigua said.

USF forced seven of its 15 turnovers after the break and allowed just seven field goals after Antigua's halftime speech on the way to improving to 4-0 at home this season. An increased effort on the defensive end helped spark a momentum-shifting 12-0 run that pumped the Bulls' lead up to 61-48 with 10:13 remaining. Allen Jr. scored nine points during the stretch, including seven in a row at the end of the decisive run.

"The past few days he's been shooting the lights out of the ball in practice and I didn't expect anything less. It doesn't surprise me," Antigua said.

Led by Andris Misters' 18 points, Jacksonville (2-5) finished with three players in double figures but became the fourth USF opponent to score 65 points or less this season.

"It was us not focusing on the score but focusing on how we wanted to play, how we wanted to defend and how we have to rely on our defense to be able to get us opportunities to get out in transition," Antigua said.

The Bulls look to keep a very good thing going on the road next week. USF plays at Alabama at 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 2 (TV: SEC Network) before facing Detroit on Saturday, Dec. 6 at 3 p.m. The Bulls return to the Sun Dome on Monday, Dec. 15 to host Georgia Southern at 7 p.m. and fans can purchase tickets HERE.