Depaul vs South Florida preview & game thread(BET special)

[Vega]

GAME NOTES: The DePaul Blue Demons and South Florida Bulls meet for the second time in a week, as they get the 2010 Big East Tournament underway today at Madison Square Garden. The winner of this first-round game will move on to face eighth-seeded Georgetown in the second round on Wednesday.

These two schools met exactly a week ago, with the Bulls picking up a 63-59 victory over the Blue Demons. It marked the third straight win in the rivalry for USF, which still trails DePaul, 7-15, in the all-time series.

The Bulls followed that victory over DePual with another against UConn in their season finale, as they enter the postseason riding a three-game win streak. USF is coming off its best showing since joining the Big East, finishing 9-9 in the conference to earn the ninth-seeded in this event. This is just the second appearance in the Big East Tournament for the Bulls, who were defeated by Seton Hall in the first round last season.

As for DePaul, it is seeded 16th for the second year in a row after finishing dead last with a 1-17 league record. The Blue Demons though, are looking for a repeat of last year's first round game, when they upended ninth-seeded Cincinnati. A win however, is unlikely considering the team's current 12-game losing streak.

The Blue Demons have struggled for most of the season on offense, managing just 61.4 ppg. Poor free-throw shooting has really hindered the team's production, as DePaul is making just 58.5 percent of attempts at the line. Mac Koshwal missed 12 games due to injury this season, but he is the team's top player, averaging a double-double with 16.0 ppg and 10.1 rpg. Will Walker is the only other threat for DePaul, as he checks in with 16.0 ppg, despite shooting only 36.0 percent from the field.

The Bulls are paced by one of the top players in the conference in Dominique Jones, who won the Big East scoring title with a 23.3 ppg average in league play. A first-team all-league choice, Jones can do it all with 21.3 ppg, 6.1 rpg and 3.7 apg on the season. Augustus Gilchrist missed half the season with injury, but he got healthy down the stretch and that was key considering his production of 14.9 ppg and 6.2 rpg. Jarrid Famous adds 10.7 ppg and a team- high 7.6 rpg to the mix, while Chris Howard contributes 10.6 ppg and a team- best 3.8 apg.

USF is simply the better team, and Jones should have his way in taking the Bulls to the next round.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2010/03/09/1301014/depaul-8-22-vs-south-florida-19.html

[callmesuperman]

Huge game! A chance to win our 20th game of the season, our first BE tournament game ever, and keep our NCAA tournament hopes alive. Won't be easy since Depaul is much better then their record would indicate. Depaul shocked the nation last year in the first round; if we are not carefull it could happen again. We need to play with confidence, play good defense, and minimize turnovers in order to win.

Go Bulls!!!

[outrunner]

Both teams with jitters early. Bulls starting to calm down and making shots now.

[Vega]

Man we would be so much better if we had a defensive center

[Paisa el Toro]

Is anyone else having problems listening to the internet stream on 1250 am WHNZ. They have some medical show on right now.

[DELdaBull]

Nice start!  Keep it up

[BullDoug]

Is anyone else having problems listening to the internet stream on 1250 am WHNZ. They have some medical show on right now.

yes I was too.  any other internet feed out there.  someone gotta link?

[outrunner]

Is anyone else having problems listening to the internet stream on 1250 am WHNZ. They have some medical show on right now.

Sporting events are typically blocked on internet streams. Has to do with copyright and market contracts.

[BullDoug]

try the BE website

http://www.bigeast.org/liveEvents/liveEvents.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=19400

[outrunner]

"Y'ALL COME WATCH DOMINIQUE JONES PLAY!"

Jones with a steal, basket, AND ONE!