USF Bulls beat SMU Mustangs in last minute comeback, 61-60
TAMPA—
The University of South Florida Bulls reverse a seven point deficit in the very last minute of the game to beat the Southern Methodist University Mustangs, 61-60 on Saturday night. The Bulls avenged their humiliating 18 point loss to the Mustangs earlier this season with strong performances by the seniors on the team, who have played the final home game of their collegiate careers.
Early in the first half, it looked as if the game was a replay of the first meeting of these teams, this season. SMU opened the game with at 10-0 scoring run through the first three minutes of play. Six minutes in, The Mustangs had an 11-point, 15-4 lead. Things turned quickly as the Bulls went on a 16-4 run of their own, taking 20-19 lead with a little over five minutes remaining in the first half. The lead was short lived, but the period finished in competitive fashion, with the Mustangs taking a 27-24 advantage into halftime.
The second half began in the same fashion as the first ended, very competitively. Both teams would trade leads many times, with a tie score four times. Neither team would lead by double-digits, but Mustangs did lead by as many as nine on multiple occasions, including a 55-46 lead with 2:01 remaining in the game. SMU held a seven point, 60-53 lead with just 42 seconds remaining in the game.
David Collins would go to the free throw line with 24 seconds on the clock and make both shots to close the gap to 5, 60-55. Around the 13 second mark, Justin Brown is fouled while making a layup, that made the score, 60-57, SMU. Brown made his one free throw, cutting the SMU lead to just a pair, 60-58.
Collins fouled Tyson Jolly to stop the clock at 8 seconds. Jolly missed both of his free throws, the second of which was rebounded by Isiaha Mike for SMU. Mike attempted the put-back, but that was rebounded by Collins, who passed to Rideau. Rideau, playing in the final seconds of his final regular season came of his collegiate career, made a three-pointer through solid defense to give the Bulls a 61-60 lead as time expired.
Officials reviewed the video and reset the game clock to 0.6 seconds, allowing SMU one last chance to score. The inbounds pass fell into the hands of Xavier Castaneda, sealing the win for the Bulls.
USF head coach, Brian Gregory, spoke with the media after the game.
“Senior days are always emotional and difficult,” said Gregory. “And this one was as well. But, the sadness and the emotion of those guys never playing here again kind of gets wiped away by the way the game ended. I tried to cry, I wanted to cry, but it was hard. I was feeling so good about it.”
“Unbelievable credit goes to Laquincy and Antun,” said Gregory. “As I said the other day, and you saw it today, those guys have changed the perception of this program. They’ve changed the expectations of this program.”
Rideau finished with 12 points, five rebounds, and six assists, third on the team in scoring. Maricevic’s 14 points is a career high.
“You saw today that Florida State wins the ACC,” said Gregory. “Utah State wins the Mountain West in the tournament. Those guys wanted to play high level teams in the non-conference. We did that. We keep scratching and clawing within the league, even with all of the adversity that we’ve faced. And those two guys brought it every single day.”
The Bulls lost to Utah State in overtime and by just six points to FSU, a game they held double-digit leads in late into the second half.
“I challenged the underclassmen to make this day a memorable day for those two seniors, something for them to remember for the rest of their lives,” said Gregory. “I think they will.”
USF will play in the American Athletic Conference tournament beginning next week, but the dramatic win with a last second shot by Rideau in his last home game will be hard for the senior to forget.
“I’m just telling you, it’s one of those things,” said Gregory. “As soon as he let go of the ball, it was in. You could tell it was in. What a way to end it. He’ll remember that one for his whole life.”
Gregory was asked about Antun’s career-high performance.
“We don’t get to that point without Antun,” said Gregory. “I was mad at him. He missed two shots. The first two shots of the game were right around the basket. I said, ‘come on, it’s your senior night, you’ve got to make those.’ Then, he doesn’t miss for the rest of the game.”
The two seniors were not the only Bulls who had a good game. Collins finished the game with leading USF with 15 points and six rebounds.
For the Mustangs, Ethan Chargois had a very good performance, scoring 20 points and bringing down nine rebounds. Tyson Jolly had a double-double, with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Isiaha Mike also had a double-double, with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
SMU slips to 19-11 (9-9) with the loss. The Mustangs will play their next game in the conference tournament, which has yet to be determined.
The Bulls improve to 14-17 (7-11), one conference win shy of last year’s total, when they were invited to the CBI tournament. The seedings have yet to be determined for the conference tournament as half of the league will play their final games tomorrow.