GREENVILLE, N.C., JAN. 26, 2019 – Alexis Yetna scored a career-high 28 points and added 13 rebounds for his league-leading 10th double-double to lead USF to a 77-57 victory over ECU Saturday afternoon at Minges Coliseum.    

Justin Brown (Birmingham, Ala.) added 14 points and made four three-pointers and Laquincy Rideau (West Palm Beach, Fla.) finished with 10 points, 10 assists and four steals for his second double-double of the season.

Jayden Gardner led ECU with 15 points and 15 rebounds and Shawn Williams added 12 points on four three-pointers.

ECU (8-11, 1-6) built an 11-point lead six minutes into play before Yetna and Michael Durr (Atlanta, Ga.) reeled off nine straight points for USF to cut the deficit to two. Back-to-back three-pointers from Williams and a bucket from Gardner pushed the lead back to 10 with 7:33 before halftime.

Brown answered with three consecutive 3-pointers and Rideau capped an 11-0 run with a layup to give USF its first lead at 28-27. Brown struck again with another trey just before halftime to put USF ahead 36-34.

Dimitri Spasojevic gave ECU its final lead with a basket three minutes into the second half. USF answered with a 20-8 run to take a 61-48 lead with 9:27 remaining. USF would lead by double digits the rest of the game and go on to win by 20.

Quotable
Head coach Brian Gregory on the keys to USF's 20-point victory at ECU:
"I thought we probably won the game in the last six minutes of the first half. It was a really good response. (ECU) came out at home after a really tough loss the other night and they responded well. We just had to kind of hold the fort a little bit and we did. Then they went on a second run and we needed to respond again. The defense the last six minutes of the first half and the last 20 minutes was really, really good. We shut down what they wanted to get done. We guarded the three pretty well. We rebounded well and then the biggest thing for us was we took care of the basketball."
 
Gregory on the Bulls' offense and the team's mission of getting another road victory:
"It was probably the best offensive movement that we've had in a while – making the extra pass, making some shots when they presented themselves, which was big. I think Alexis and Mike were really, really good in the second half for us. We beat a team that's got some talented players and they're very explosive, as you saw in the first 10 minutes. I'm really proud of our guys. We said this was a response week. We win the game against Wichita State and now you go on the road. Our guys wanted nothing to do with anything other than getting the job done."
 
Key Stats
6 – USF committed just six turnovers and forced ECU into 16 miscues.   
41 – USF finished with 41 rebounds to mark the 10th game this season in which USF had at least 40 rebounds.   
17 – USF had 17 assists on 29 made baskets.    
42 – USF scored 42 points in the paint and added 17 second chance points.    

Notable

• USF has its most wins in a season since the 2011-12 season.
• USF improved to 9-8 all-time against ECU.
• Laquincy Rideau scored 10 points and needs 63 more points for 1,000 in his career.  
• Laquincy Rideau is three steals shy of a new USF single-season record.
• USF already has more league wins than it did a season ago.  

Up Next
USF continues league play Saturday at noon when the Bulls host Memphis at the Yuengling Center. The game will be broadcast live on ESPNU.  
 
To stay up-to-date on the latest USF men's' basketball news, follow the Bulls on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram).

About USF Men's Basketball
The USF men's basketball team is led by head coach Brian Gregory. On March 22, 2017, 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. In his first season at the helm of the Bulls, Gregory led the team to its first 10-plus win season since 2013-14. 

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.