Bulls cruise past Hampton, 74-55

The game between Hampton and South Florida started at 7 Wednesday night, but it looked as if maybe Hampton's players had read the Pirates' game notes, which listed tipoff at 7:30.

By the time 7:30 rolled around, USF owned an 18-point lead on the way to an easy 74-55 win at the Sun Dome. The Bulls led by as many as 31 points against a Hampton team still mourning the loss of former Bloomingdale High standout Theo Smalling.

As for the Bulls, Coach Stan Heath was impressed the way his team took control from the opening tip. Other than for a brief lapse late in the first half, USF (7-1) cruised to a season-high fourth consecutive win.

"I didn't think we were a Big East team for 40 minutes," Heath said. "I thought we were a Big East team for about 30 minutes. I really liked the way we started out. We defended, we shared the ball, we attacked them very well."

USF scored the game's first nine points and led 24-6 after a jumper by Gus Gilchrist with 8:28 left in the first half. The closest Hampton (2-6) got the rest of the game was 29-19 late in the first half.

"(Getting a big lead early) makes it a lot easier," guard Chris Howard said. "We talk about that all the time as a team. We definitely want to come out and make a statement and get ahead."

Hampton had won two in a row, including a victory at Wyoming, entering the game. But the Bulls' size and the emotional toll of playing in Smalling's home county - the senior team captain was killed by an accidental gunshot wound in late October - were too much for the Pirates (2-6).

"I think (playing here) brings a little bit of closure for everybody," Hampton coach Edward Joyner Jr. said. "He'll never be forgotten. He'll be with us the rest of the year. I think if Theo is with us now, it's a different outcome. Now we can move on with the rest of the season."

Jarrid Famous led the Bulls with 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Howard and guard Dominique Jones each chipped in 13 points. Toarlyn Fitzpatrick led USF's bench with 11 points.

USF hit six of its first seven shots of the game and outrebounded Hampton 43-33.