What To Watch For: USF vs. Tulsa
For the first time this season, South Florida will host its second American Athletic Conference game in a row when they take on Tulsa Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. It is the only time this season that USF will play back-to-back home games during conference play.
The Bulls, who have a 6-8 home record, are coming off of an 86-74 loss to Memphis on Wednesday, while Tulsa defeated SMU 76-67 on Thursday.
Payton Banks (12.4 ppg) and Stephan Jiggetts (12.0 ppg) lead the Bulls in scoring, while Malik Martin (4.7 rpg) and Isaiah Manderson (4.1 rpg) are the team's leading rebounders.
RunningTheBulls.com has your quick facts and what to watch for against Tulsa:
Quick Facts
Matchup: Tulsa (12-180, 5-5 AAC) at USF (8-15, 1-9 AAC)
Date: Sunday, Feb. 4
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Tampa, Fla. | USF Sun Dome
Watch: ESPN3 (Bernie Guenther, Mark Wise)
Radio: AM 820 | GoUSFBulls.com | USF Bulls Unlimited (Jim Lighthall, Neil Solondz)
History: This will be the sixth meeting between Tulsa and USF. The Golden Hurricane have won each of the five previous meetings by an average of 12 points.
The Opponent: Tulsa is the second most experienced team in the AAC with 72 percent of last season’s offense back including four starters. In their Thursday win over SMU, Tulsa senior shooting guard Corey Henderson, Jr. had 18 points while senior forward Junior Etou had a double-double of 17 points and 15 rebounds.
Etou is their best player. The Rutgers transfer is a matchup problem because he can post up and he can make three-pointers. There are not many fours in the AAC who can do that. Because of his ability to make perimeter shots, it is difficult for teams to double down when the ball goes into the post when the ball goes inside to sophomore center Martins Igbanu. Tulsa does a very good job of getting him in spots where he can exploit the defense. Etou has five double-doubles this season, four during conference play.
Igbanu uses his 6-foot-8, 244-pound frame, and elbows, inside to score. He has a nice step through move and is an excellent offensive rebounder. Henderson is a streaky shooter but when he is feeling it, look out. The Bulls must run him off the arc. He comes to Tampa shooting 39 percent beyond the arc for the season, but 44.9 percent during conference play. Henderson has made at least four three-pointers in a game seven times, including five times since the start of conference play.
Sterling Taplin is a solid point guard for Tulsa. He is not great at any one thing but he is very good at multiple things like facilitating (he is top five in the conference in assists), perimeter shooting and rebounding.
Outlook: Tulsa uses a matchup zone defense for slightly more than half of the game and they have active hands. The Golden Hurricane will also use a soft contain press off of made baskets and out of timeouts. Tulsa is reliant on three-point shots, they’ve been living there lately.
USF must defend the three-point line, rebound as a team, have good ball movement against the zone, and avoid fouling because Tulsa is good at getting to the free throw line. Tulsa will try to use its depth -- ten players are averaging 13 minutes of playing time – to wear USF down so the Bulls need to control the tempo.
Prediction: USF 62 Tulsa 71