Bulls at Houston - In Game Discussion (6:00 EST, ESPN2)

[Triple B]

Bulls Face Road Test Saturday at No. 8 Houston

February 22, 2019

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Matchup: USF (18-8, 7-6) vs. Houston (25-1, 12-1)
Date: Saturday, Feb. 23
Time: 6 p.m. EST
Location: Houston | Fertitta Center
TV: ESPN2 (Ted Emrich, Tim McCormick)
Radio: AM 820 | USF Bulls Unlimited (Jim Lighthall)
Follow: Listen | Watch | Live Stats | Twitter

TAMPA, FEB. 22, 2019 – The USF men's basketball team will play its final road game in the month of February on Saturday at 6 p.m. (EST) when the Bulls travel to No. 8 Houston for a matchup broadcast live on ESPN2.

USF (18-8, 7-6) enters the weekend coming off a 95-54 victory over Florida College on Tuesday in a game that took the place of the Bulls' regularly scheduled matchup at Charlotte that was cancelled on Dec. 9 due to Winter Storm Diego. USF has already won eight more games than it did all of last year and is four wins shy of tying the school record for the most single-season victories.

Five Bulls scored in double figures Tuesday against Florida College, including a career-high 16 points and nine rebounds from junior Antun Maricevic (Zagreb, Croatia). Junior Mayan Kiir (Bradenton, Fla.) added 15 points and eight rebounds off the bench and freshman Rashun Williams (Arlington, Ga.) finished with a career-high 14 points to go along with three rebounds and three assists.

Sophomore guard David Collins (Youngstown, Ohio) continues to serve as the offensive catalyst for USF and leads the team with 15.4 points per game. Collins has scored at least 20 points in four of his last five games and ranks 12th in The American in scoring. He also averages 2.1 steals per game and ranks 30th in the NCAA and fourth in the league. 

Redshirt junior Laquincy Rideau (West Palm Beach, Fla.) ranks second on the team with 13.8 points per game and scored 16 points against Temple on Feb. 16 to reach 1,000 for his career. Rideau is also one of the top defenders and distributors in the NCAA, ranking sixth nationally with 3.0 steals per game, and 32nd in the nation with 5.7 assists per game. 

Redshirt freshman Alexis Yetna (Paris) stands third on the team with 12.2 points per game while leading The American with 9.9 rebounds per game. Yetna also ranks 14th in the NCAA with 3.5 offensive rebounds per game and has pulled down a league-leading 10 double-doubles.   

THE OPPONENT
Houston (25-1, 12-1) has won 10 straight games and sits atop the league standings with a game lead over Cincinnati. The Cougars are a perfect 17-0 at home this season and own the nation's longest home winning streak at 32. As a team, Houston ranks first in The American in scoring defense by limiting teams to only 60.3 points per game. Additionally, the Cougars top the conference in three-point defense by holding opponents to 27.2 percent from beyond the arc.

Senior guard Corey Davis Jr. leads the Houston offense with 15.7 points per game while junior Armoni Brooks adds 14.1 points and a team-high 6.4 rebounds per game. Senior guard Galen Robinson Jr. paces Houston with 5.4 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

QUOTABLE
Head coach Brian Gregory on the matchup with Houston:
"They're very good. Obviously, at this point they've separated themselves at the top team in our league, and I think nationally they are about as good as anybody. They are a Final Four-caliber team. They have the experience, they have the size, they have the depth, and their perimeter players have been playing extremely well over the last few weeks. They get great production from every spot on the floor, so you have to play very, very well to beat them. You have to be great defensively, you have to be great on the glass and you have to do a really good job offensively when you get open shots. There is a reason they are at where they are at right now, because they are as good defensively and rebound as well as any team around."
 
NOTABLE
• USF is 12-17 against Houston in the all-time series that dates back to the 1976-77 season.
• USF is in search of its first win over a ranked team since defeating No. 19 Louisville on Feb. 29, 2012.
• USF is the only school in the NCAA to have its conference leader in rebounds, assists and steals.
• USF sophomore David Collins is averaging 19.8 points and shooting 53.7 percent over his last five games.
• USF redshirt freshman Alexis Yetna has more double-doubles (10) than seven teams in The American.
• Laquincy Rideau ranks sixth in the NCAA and first in The American with 3.0 steals per game. 
• Alexis Yetna leads The American and ranks 23rd in the NCAA with 9.9 rebounds per game.
• USF has taken the most free throw attempts in the NCAA with 730 and has made the 10th-most in the NCAA (465).
• Laquincy Rideau looks to become the first player in AAC history to lead in assists and steals in the same season.
• USF is 25-3 all-time under Brian Gregory when leading by 10 points at any time during a game.
• Five of USF's eight losses are by three points or less and the Bulls' eight losses are by an average of 5.3 points.
 

GoUSFBulls.com

[NewEnglandBull]

Ugh...got a faculty function that I can’t blow off so I will be off the grid until I get back home and watch the game on my DVR. Go Buls

[BDYZR]

Will be at the WBB game.  GO BULLS!

[DELdaBull]

16 minutes ago, BDYZR said:

Will be at the WBB game.  GO BULLS!

Same

[DaNewsBull]

Just got home from the Wofford/Furman game and have my drink and snacks ready for this game. Lets get it Bulls. 

[USFBulls12]

11-0 Houston...they can't miss.

[Shockley3333]

Have a feeling the crowd is going to sway the refs in this one....

[USFBulls12]

Rideau

[MikeG]

 

Edited February 23, 2019 by MikeG

[MikeG]

1 minute ago, MikeG said:

2 minutes ago, USFBulls12 said:

Rideau

yeah-- but he got mugged -- no foul and then the other guy barely gets touched and BAMM-- foul on USF immediately after

really hate the merge post feature