Box Score
TAMPA, JAN. 10, 2016 – USF held Cincinnati to its worst shooting performance of the season, but the Bearcats overcame a late scoring drought to come away with a 54-51 win over the Bulls in front of 3,062 fans at the Sun Dome on Sunday.
USF (3-14, 0-4 American Athletic Conference) trailed by as many as 15 points in the second half, by a score of 53-38, with 10:07 remaining. The Bulls outscored the Bearcats 13-1 the remainder of the game and had a chance to send the game into overtime. After UC's Gary Clark missed the front-end of a one-and-one, USF had possession of the ball down three points with six seconds remaining. Jahmal McMurray found Nehemias Morillo open in the corner, but his 3-point attempt hit the front of the rim.
“I was proud of the way the guys battled in the second half to get us back so we were one possession away from tying the game,” said head coach Orlando Antigua. “We did a lot of good things and some things we have to work on.”
USF shot 51.1 percent from the field and held Cincinnati (12-5, 2-2) to a season-low 30.9 percent. The Bulls' defense also held the Bearcats to over 20 points under their season average point total of 76.2. However, the Bulls had 18 turnovers and allowed 14 offensive rebounds.
“Our goal is try to hold teams to under 40 percent,” said Antigua. “If you hold teams to 30 percent, you would think that would result in a win, but that didn't happen today.”
McMurray led the Bulls in scoring for the eighth time this season with 16 points by going 6-of-9 from the field including 2-of-4 from 3-point range. Overall, USF shot 22.2 percent from three, while UC shot 27.8 percent.
Senior center Jaleel Cousins recorded seven points, nine rebounds and two blocks. Junior Chris Perry came off the bench and scored eight points and grabbed five rebounds. Overall, UC edged USF on the glass 35-30.
“We gave them too many offensive rebounds,” said Antigua. “We take pride in rebounding the way we have been, but you have to give them credit. They were big and physical. We could have done a better job there.”
Cincinnati, which entered the game ranked 13th in the nation in defense, was led by Troy Caupain's 14 points including four 3-pointers. Clark led the rebounding effort with 11.
USF will have a quick turnaround as Tulane comes to the Sun Dome on Tuesday at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at USFBullsTix.com.
