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Gransberry, Bulls Upset Noles, 68-67

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By SEAN KERNAN, Tribune correspondent

Published: November 19, 2007

DAYTONA BEACH - South Florida came to the Glenn Wilkes Classic looking for its first win of the season. The Bulls ended up going home with two victories, including Sunday night's 68-67 upset of Florida State.

The Bulls, under first-year coach Stan Heath, sent the Seminoles to their second straight defeat. FSU was beaten 69-66 by Cleveland State on Saturday night.

USF's dramatic win capped the 12-game, three-day set of NCAA Division I men's basketball games at the Ocean Center.

Senior center Kentrell Gransberry scored a game-high 21 points to lead four Bulls in double figures. Sophomore guard Chris Howard added 12 points, freshman forward Orane Chin had 11 and freshman guard Dominique Jones chipped in 10 points for USF.

"This is a big win for us, a big confidence boost against a quality basketball team," Heath said. "We got off to a great start and got a lead. We grew up quite a bit today. We were able to get an early lead and even though we lost it a little bit in the second half, we came back and played with poise."

Gransberry missed two free throws with USF clinging to a 66-65 lead with 1:18 to play.

But when Howard got the chance to go to the line for the Bulls with 55.7 seconds remaining, he converted both free throws for a 68-65 advantage.

FSU's Jason Rich was 0-for-11 until he connected on a foul-line jumper with 40.9 seconds to play to make it a one-point game, 68-67.

Howard missed a shot inside the paint and FSU pushed the ball down court for a buzzer-beating 3-point attempt by junior guard Toney Douglas that was off the mark.

"Coach just told us to run the clock down as long as possible, get a shot up and get back in transition defense," Howard said.

USF (2-3) got its first win Saturday in a 100-69 rout of Florida Atlantic. But beating FSU (3-2) is a much bigger step in the rebuilding of the Bulls.

"I feel like our football team started out pretty big so we want to get some big wins against universities like Florida State," Howard said.

Gransberry agreed, saying: "It's a real big win. It lets teams know we're for real. It feels good. Last year we beat Wake Forest on national TV so we're 2-0 the last two times we played the Atlantic Coast Conference."

The Bulls held a 39-30 lead at the half behind Gransberry's 14 points.

Senior guard Ralph Mims led FSU with 16 points, including 12 in the second half.

"We held them in check," Gransberry said. "We let the lead slip away in the second half, but we got it back and kept it."

INSIDE THE GAME

PLAYER OF THE GAME: USF senior center Kentrell Gransberry had 21 points and eight rebounds.

TURNING POINT: When USF ran off three unanswered 3-pointers - two by Howard and the third by Solomon Bozeman - to take a 20-13 advantage just six-plus minutes into the game it showed the Bulls could play with FSU.

UP NEXT: USF hosts East Carolina at 7 p.m. Tuesday; FSU welcomes Georgia State at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

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