MEMPHIS, Tenn., MARCH 1, 2018 – The Bulls put on a clinic the whole way in Memphis and never trailed, winning on Thursday night, 75-51. USF held a 22-point lead at the half and led by as much as 27 at one point in the second half, their largest lead in conference play this season. The win marks the first time the Bulls have defeated the Tigers in Memphis since 2003.

The Bulls scored 45 in the first half, which is the most in any first half this season for USF and the second-most in any half, behind 47 points in the second half against Bethune-Cookman on Dec. 14.

Individually, Payton Banks (Orange, Calif.) led the way with 19 points. Banks reached 1,000 for his career with his 16^th point of the night, which came on a basket with 12:07 left in the second half. Banks was 6-for-11 from the field, including 4-for-8 from three on the night. Banks opened the game on fire, hitting his first two attempts from three and scoring 15 in the first half on four made threes.

Malik Martin (Miami, Fla.) also had a dominant game, finishing with a game-high-tying 19 points and nine rebounds. He was 8-for-10 from the field, including 2-for-3 from deep.

Isaiah Manderson (Bronx, N.Y.) finished with his second career double-double, getting 10 points and 11 rebounds. Four of his 11 rebounds were on the offensive end.

Stephan Jiggetts (Forestville, Md.) was the fifth Bull in double figures, finishing with 12 points and five assists. He also had no turnovers in 38 minutes.

The Bulls had five players in double figures for the third time this season, with the last game coming in the first Memphis game of the season on Jan. 31.

Quotable
Head coach Brian Gregory on the overall effort:
"Today everything kind of came together, to be honest with you. We shot the ball well, we defended well, we rebounded well. We took care of the ball. Great floor game by Jiggetts. Great shooting by Payton. I thought Terrence was really good. Isaiah gave us a big lift. Again, with Nik and Isaiah, and obviously a huge lift from Malik. Active, aggressive, assertive. I liked him on the glass every bit as much as I liked his 19 points. We could use a lot more of that over these next three or four weeks."
Malik Martin on his confidence in the game:
"I got a big offensive rebound and one, and it just kept going from there. My confidence kept rising every time I got the ball."
Martin on his big three:
"I hadn't missed a three in a month. I know the numbers. I only take open shots. I work on my three ball a lot, I'm in the gym shooting threes a lot. If I'm open, I'm going to make them."

Key Stats
50.0 – The Bulls shot an even 50 percent (26-for-52) from the field in the game.
38-27 – USF was plus-11 on the glass tonight. The Bulls are 8-4 this season when winning the rebounding battle.

Notable

• The win gives the Bulls nine on the season, which is the most for USF since the 2014-15 season. The Bulls also surpassed their conference win total from last season with the victory.
• The 24-point victory is the largest for the Bulls in conference play since March 4, 2015, when the Bulls defeated UCF at home by 29.
• The Bulls are 4-2 on Thursday nights this season.
• The Bulls had eight steals on the night, including four from Payton Banks.
• Tonight marked 500 straight games called for USF radio play-by-play man Jim Lighthall. Lighthall last missed a game on March 2, 2002. During his 500 game streak, Lighthall has called games in 30 states, along with Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico, 74 cities, 87 arenas, and 141 different opponents.

Up Next
The Bulls return home for the final game of the regular season against SMU on Sunday. Tip-off is at 2 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPNews. The game is also Senior Day for USF, as the Bulls will honor Payton Banks, Stephan Jiggetts, Isaiah Manderson and Terrence Samuel in a ceremony prior to the game. Get your tickets for the regular season finale at USFBullsTix.com.
 
About USF Men's Basketball
The USF men's basketball team is led by head coach Brian Gregory. On March 22, Gregory was introduced as the 10^th head coach in program history. He previously led programs at Georgia Tech (2011-16) and Dayton (2003-11). Gregory spent nearly a decade as an assistant coach under Michigan State's Hall of Fame head coach Tom Izzo and helped the Spartans win the 2000 NCAA National Championship. Gregory brings nearly 250 career head coaching wins and six postseason appearances, including the 2010 NIT Championship, to Tampa.

USF has retired three numbers in its 47-year history: Chucky Atkins (12), Charlie Bradley (30) and Radenko Dobras (31). The Bulls have earned three NCAA tournament bids and appeared in the NIT eight times.

For tickets, contact the USF Ticket Office at 1-800-Go-Bulls or by going online to USFBullsTix.com.