By TOM ZEBOLD

USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, NOV. 16, 2015 – Orlando Antigua's new-look Bulls continued to make progress in a 60-57 loss to the NJIT on Monday night at the Sun Dome.

USF (0-2) led by as many as 11 points in the second half and clung to a five-point advantage with less than two minutes to go before falling to a talented opponent.  Damon Lynn scored a game-high 27 points for an NJIT team that returned eight players, including all five starters, from last season's 21-win squad, which knocked off then-No. 17 Michigan.

“We've shown enough that we can take a lead,” Antigua said. “Now we have to continue to play, be smart and execute, so that we can finish off games. We have to put together a complete game if we're going to try to win.”

Roddy Peters helped put USF in a position to win by nearly posting a triple-double with 13 points, a game-high 10 assists and eight rebounds in his first start as a Bull. The sophomore guard from Washington, D.C., has been hampered by back spasms and showed improved mobility in 35 minutes of action.

“He's doing everything he can every day to prepare himself for practice and for games,” Antigua said. “It's a good sign. He did a lot of positive things.”

Freshman Jahmal McMurray led the Bulls with 14 points and made all three of his 3-pointers in the second half. McMurray's second 3-pointer sparked a 13-0 run that gave the Bulls a 49-38 lead with less than eight minutes remaining.

“He took the right threes and that was a big emphasis for us,” Antigua said. “For him, he grew today. He learned a lot.”

Senior Angel Nunez scored nine of his 11 total points in the first half as USF headed into the break with a 27-24 lead. Senior Jaleel Cousins stepped up on the defensive end with five blocks and six rebounds to help the Bulls finish with a 40-36 edge on the boards. 

The first-ever USF-NJIT meeting began with impressive runs by both teams and the Bulls jumped out to a big lead early.

Nine points from Nunez helped power USF's game-opening 19-6 run while the Bulls' defense brought the intensity right away. NJIT (1-1) committed seven turnovers and went 3-for-17 from the field in the first 12 minutes of action before the Highlanders ended a scoring drought that lasted nearly 8 minutes.

USF led by 15 with 6:29 to go before halftime, but NJIT responded with a 16-2 run and cut its deficit 25-24 with a 3-pointer by Lynn. Peters knocked down a jumper with 1:22 remaining and USF headed into the break with a 27-24 lead.

The lead changed hands four times in the first eight minutes of the second half and McMurray's second 3-pointer spotted the Bulls a 39-38 advantage with 12:18 to play.

USF continued on a 13-0 run and a thunderous dunk by Bo Zeigler pumped the lead up to 49-38 with 7:48 remaining. NJIT went nearly five minutes without a basket during the Bulls' hot stretch.

“That's what really kept us in the game was defense,” McMurray said. “We were getting multiple stops and everybody was playing together on offense.”

Just like the first half, NJIT responded and Lynn's fourth 3-pointer of the game cut the Highlanders' deficit to 55-51 with 2:43 to play. NJIT took a 58-57 lead on another 3-pointer by Lynn with 48 seconds remaining.

USF had multiple looks at a game-tying 3-pointer in the final seconds of a game that provided the Bulls with some teaching points.

“If you give anybody 21 extra possessions on turnovers, it's hard to beat a ball club that had 27 points off those turnovers,” Antigua said.

USF continues a string of four Hoophall Miami Invitational games in nine days with a home test against George Washington 7 p.m. Thursday. Reserve your Sun Dome seats at USFBullsTix.com.

The USF men's basketball team returns seven from last season's team including regular starters Ruben Guerrero, Chris Perry, Nehemias Morillo and Bo Zeigler. Orlando Antigua is in his second season as the head coach after spending the previous five season as an assistant to Naismith Hall of Fame coach John Calipari. USF's schedule is comprised of nine teams which had an RPI of 54 or better last season. The Bulls host 19 games, five of those teams made the NCAA Tournament last season.