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USF Has No Trouble Beating DePaul

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By KENT McDILL

Tribune correspondent

Published: January 11, 2009

ROSEMONT, Ill. - Perhaps it was a sign of things to come.

The South Florida Bulls had no trouble flying into snowy Chicago on Friday night, and they had little difficulty getting to Allstate Arena on Saturday morning despite an eight-inch overnight snowfall.

"We actually landed early," USF coach Stan Heath said.

As easy as the travel was, the game was even easier. Dominique Jones led four players in double figures with 22 points and the Bulls (6-9 overall, 1-2 Big East) led from start to finish, recording their first Big East win of the season with an 80-58 decision against the DePaul Blue Demons.
Jesus Verdejo added 18 points and freshman Gus Gilchrist had a career-best 16 points, making six of eight shots, as USF won its first conference game after home losses to ranked opponents Syracuse and Louisville.

Heath had a little bit of trouble explaining how his team played as well as it did, shooting 52 percent from the field, 41 percent from 3-point range and 87 percent (13 of 15) from the free-throw line. The rebounding numbers, which showed the Bulls with a 40-22 edge, were particularly puzzling.

"I can't really explain it," Heath said. "We haven't been lighting things up on the road lately, and we haven't been a dominating rebounding team. I know we work on it every day. Today our guys knew they had to get into position and fight for the loose balls. There was a good focus and emphasis out there today."

The Bulls host DePaul on Jan. 20, so the players were careful about expressing their enthusiasm for the win.

"It wasn't an easy game," said Chris Howard, who had 12 points and 10 assists. "They had chances to make shots but they didn't fall and they were obviously falling for us."
Gilchrist was especially active in the early going, and his 16 points were four more than his previous career high.

"Anybody who has followed us from a month ago to two weeks ago to today can see a different player," Heath said of Gilchrist, the transfer from Maryland. "We kind of knew he had some talent and skills to do that but this is his first year of college basketball and it has taken him some time. He is making steady improvement."

"I think everybody has grown," Gilchrist said. "We are getting experience. Game by game we are getting better, both individually and as a team."

Defensively, the Bulls did an impressive job. Mac Koshwal, who finished with a team-high 18 points, was the only Blue Demon to score through the first six minutes of the game. Leading scorer Dar Tucker got into early foul trouble, went 4-for-11 from the field, missed all five of his 3-point attempts and finished with eight points.

DePaul (8-9, 0-4) never really challenged the Bulls. South Florida enjoyed a 39-29 halftime lead and never led by less than seven points in the second half. DePaul scored seven straight points to pull within seven at 51-44 with 11:21 left, but the Bulls got baskets from Jones and Verdejo to start a 14-0 run that put them back ahead 65-44 with seven minutes remaining.

"They were making a run and I felt momentum was shifting," Heath said. "But we came back and made a nice run to get the lead back up and that was a key moment in the game. We stayed composed and grew up a little bit right there."

Reality struck the Bulls almost immediately after the game as they headed to O'Hare Airport to catch a flight to Pittsburgh, where they will play the top-ranked Panthers on Wednesday.

"We have to be careful," Heath said. "We win this game and we think we have arrived, and we have Pittsburgh next. As coaches, we have to keep our guys moving forward."

NOTABLE: While many of the players were unaffected by the huge snowdrifts surrounding Allstate Arena, Jones, a Florida native, was displeased. "I hope I never live in a city where it snows," Jones said. "I saw cars with a lot of snow all over them. I like my ride clean."

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