USF Bulls outlast rival UCF in NIT opening round in Orlando

ORLANDO — They had valid reason to mail in this abridged version of March Madness.

Even with a conference title in hand, USF’s men had been spurned by bracketologists, snubbed by the NCAA selection committee and — as a final slap — sent across the peninsula to their rival’s gym by NIT organizers.

Turned out, none of those affronts caused the Bulls to lose their edge. Or their 3-point touch.

Flourishing from long range most of the night, and from the free-throw line down the stretch, the Bulls outlasted UCF 83-77 in a highly intense NIT opener Tuesday night before a raucous Addition Financial Arena audience of 4,164.

“What a fun game to be a part of,” Bulls coach Amir Abdur-Rahim said. “Really cool to see two teams that compete at a high level with two passionate fan bases behind them to support them. I’m just thankful that we came out victorious.”

In a vintage mid-March clash that delivered its share of shining moments and a couple of scrappy ones, USF established a program single-season record for victories. It faces the winner of Wednesday night’s game between Villanova and Virginia Commonwealth in the second round at a date to be announced.

USF would host if Virginia Commonwealth advances, Bulls athletic director Michael Kelly indicated.

The Bulls (25-7) could be headed to Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis — site of the NIT semifinals and title game — if they can maintain their perimeter proficiency. On a night when UCF (17-16) finished with a 14-4 advantage on the offensive glass and 34-20 advantage in points in the paint, the Bulls hit 13-of-24 3-pointers (54.2%).

“I think the biggest thing for us was, yeah we feel like we should’ve been in (the NCAA Tournament), but this is still a great opportunity for us,” said Bulls senior guard Jose Placer, an Orlando high school product who scored 12 of his 14 points in the first half.” I think that’s the just the biggest thing, staying focused, being in the moment. We’ve still got a lot more games to go win.”

Perhaps the most critical 3-pointer: a baseline trey by guard Chris Youngblood with 4:53 remaining to give USF a 74-67 lead. UCF wouldn’t come within four points the rest of the way as the Bulls hit nine of 12 free throws in the final two minutes to seal things.

“To be able to respond in this environment against that team, that coach (UCF’s Johnny Dawkins), man, I’m really proud of them,” Abdur-Rahim said.

The Bulls built an early double-digit lead on the strength of the long ball, going 4 of 5 from 3-point range during a 16-6 first-half run that gave them a 27-14 lead. While UCF tried to chip away at its deficit on the interior (a 24-10 first-half advantage in points in the paint), USF always seemed to answer from the perimeter.

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By intermission, Placer was perfect on three 3-point tries. Senior Selton Miguel was 3 of 5, including a 35-footer at the first-half horn to give the Bulls a 49-35 lead.

UCF responded early in the second half with an 18-5 run — capped by junior Darius Johnson’s 3-pointer — that cut the Bulls’ lead to 57-55.

From there, the Bulls and Knights stood toe-to-toe offensively, with USF unable to pull away as the teams exchanged baskets and even technical fouls. Twice down the stretch, players from both teams were assessed offsetting technicals after skirmishes under the basket.

But after Marchelus Avery’s 3-pointer cut UCF’s deficit to 74-70 with 2:38 to play USF — which ended the regular season with the best free-throw percentage (74.1) in program history — answered from the stripe to put the game away. Freshman Jayden Reid and junior Kasean Pryor both went 4-for-4 from the line in the final 89 seconds.

“When you work as hard as we work and did the things that we did and you don’t get the invite to the tournament that you wanted, it stung a little bit,” Abdur-Rahim said. “The way we deal with it is, we get back to work. And they came into practice man, we didn’t have to fight them on their energy, their effort, their enthusiasm. They were ready to roll.”

Contact Joey Knight at jknight@tampabay.com. Follow @TBTimes_Bulls

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