Cincinnati 61, South
Florida 53 (OT):
Cashmere Wright scored 15 points as the host Bearcats rallied from a late
eight-point deficit in regulation to defeat the Bulls.
JaQuon Parker added 14 points for Cincinnati (21-10, 9-9 Big East), which closed regulation on a 10-2 run and outscored South Florida 14-6 in overtime to clinch the No. 9 seed in the Big East tournament. Sean Kilpatrick scored 13 points for the Bearcats, who will play eighth-seeded Providence in Wednesday's quarterfinals.
Victor Rudd had 22 points and six rebounds to lead the Bulls (12-18, 3-15), who will face Seton Hall in the first round Tuesday. South Florida did not trail in the first half, running out to a 9-2 lead before settling for a 28-23 lead at halftime.
Wright
and Kilpatrick made 3-pointers as Cincinnati opened the second half on a 12-2
run to take a 35-30 advantage with 12:44 to go. After Martino Brock made two
3-pointers in South Florida’s 15-2 response to give the Bulls a 45-37 cushion
with 5:45 left, the Bearcats closed regulation with 10 of the final 12 points in
regulation - capped by a free throw from Wright with 14 seconds left - to force
overtime.
Cheikh
Mbodj went 4-for-4 from the foul line as Cincinnati scored the first seven
points of the extra period to open a 56-49 lead with 1:16 to go. Rudd made four
free throws to cut the South Florida deficit to 58-53 with 58 seconds left, but
Kilpatrick converted a three-point play 17 seconds later to seal the win.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Cincinnati has won 11 in a row at home against South Florida. … The Bearcats outrebounded the Bulls 35-24. … Cincinnati entered Saturday having lost four of its last five games and six of its last eight.
South Florida | Cincinnati | |
Victor Rudd 22 | Scoring | Cashmere Wright 15 |
Anthony Collins 6 | Assists | JaQuon Parker 3 |
Victor Rudd 6 | Rebounds | Cheikh Mbodj 9 |
Victor Rudd 4 | Free Throws Made | Cheikh Mbodj 6 |
Martino Brock 3 | Steals | Titus Rubles 2 |
Anthony Collins 1 | Blocks | Cheikh Mbodj 3 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
South Florida | 53 | 40.8 | 7-19 | 6-8 | 9 | 22 | 2 | 5 | 13 |
Cincinnati | 61 | 40.8 | 7-22 | 14-19 | 10 | 32 | 5 | 7 | 15 |