Bulls Dunk DePaul by 86-76

By on February 27, 2011

By: Larry D. Lieberman (RSE -USF Bulls Correspondent)

Rosemont, Il. – (RSE) The South Florida Bulls made the most of their size advantage in winning for the first time on the road all season by a count of 86-76 against the DePaul Blue Demons on Saturday afternoon in Chicago at Allstate Arena.

With Cleveland Melvin – DePaul’s leading scorer and lone post threat – sidelined with a sprained left thumb, the Bulls had a ridiculous height advantage in the paint. And once DePaul center Krys Faber earned himself bench time with foul issues, the Blue Demons had no one over 6’6” to stop South Florida from owning the prime real estate around the hoop.

The result was a 30-17 rebound advantage for South Florida, which translated into 8 USF dunks and a career-high 32 points for Bulls big man Augustus Gilchrist. Center/forward Jarrid Famous also added 15 points in the 86-point outburst for the Bulls – a season high in points scored.

DePaul was led by Brandon Young’s 23 points and 16 from Moses Morgan as the Blue Demons fought admirably against the Bulls’ gene pool/roster of big and tall shoppers.

To South Florida’s credit, they managed to not squander a solid lead; nor a physical advantage. They kept their turnover numbers down against DePaul’s press, having 13 on the day, and managed 58.3% from 3-point range and 74.2% from the free throw line.

More impressively, the Bulls were cold-hearted in taking advantage of their height around the hoop. Famous, Anthony Crater and a host of teammates showed the sociopathic tendencies needed to win in The Big East by earmarking passes in the paint for uncontested dunks and lay-ins.

You can’t have a heart if you want to win in The Big East Conference, where even women and children would be denied access to lifeboats in icy waters.

The win was the most complete effort of the season for South Florida. Only an overtime loss to BYU can compare in effort. Save for Jawanza Poland’s head-scratching 3 points, which added to a stretch of infamy for the Bulls’ best athlete, every man on the squad had reason to smirk (and shiver in Chicago’s weather) after the win. The Bulls handled the press fairly well – for once – and lived up to their potential physically – for once again.

Beating a Melvin-less DePaul is hardly “tape over ‘Jersey Shore’” news, but all good teams build a base by beating teams they should. And the Bulls should have won this game.

And they did.

The Bulls come home for a 9 PM matchup with #6 Pittsburgh on Wednesday, 3/2. As you’ll soon read on RSEN’s mediums, USF basketball is a “best sports value” in Tampa for average fans – considering 17-and-under fans are free at The Sun Dome in Tampa.

Where else in America can a 16-year-old see the #6 team in America for free?

Updated news and notes on USF (all sports) is available on rocketsports-ent.com on a daily basis. Please listen to Rocket Radio on ESPN 1040-AM from 10 AM to Noon every Saturday for major Tampa sports news discussion.

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