(Tampa, FL) Alexis Yetna led five Bulls in double figures with a career-high 18 points as USF held off hot-shooting Stetson, 75-71, at the Yuengling Center on Wednesday night.
Yetna also registered his third career double-double with a game-high 13 rebounds and his two free throws in the final 2:07 helped secure the Bulls’ 14th straight victory over the Hatters.
USF (5-2) has posted its most wins in the month of November since the 2014-15 season after withstanding a 56-percent shooting performance in the second half by Stetson (1-7).
Junior guard Laquincy Rideau scored all 12 of his points in the first half that saw the Bulls grab a 40-34 lead. Star sophomore guard David Collins scored eight of his 10 points after the break and his layup spotted USF its largest advantage, 64-54, with 9:45 remaining.
Senior guard T.J. Lang finished with 11 points and his second three-pointer of the night gave the Bulls a six-point cushion with 5:15 to play. Stetson pulled within two with 2:32 remaining but missed two threes in the final minute with USF ahead by three points. Yetna put the game away with two free throws in his fifth straight double-digit scoring performance.
Junior forward Antun Maricevic also was a key contributor, scoring seven of his career-high 10 points after the break and adding four rebounds to help the Bulls finish with a 42-31 edge on the glass.
“Give our guys credit in terms of doing just enough of what you need to do to get a win”, said Bulls Head Coach Brian Gregory. “I thought the three areas that won us the game – being able to switch into the zone. We’ve been able to get some practice time the last two days and I told our guys, ‘We need to be able to feel comfortable and confident if we go to the zone.’… The other thing was the rebounds, we were plus-11 on the glass, and we were plus-13 points from the free throw line. It makes a big difference.”
USF finishes up its four-game home stand Friday against Colgate at 8:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3).
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