Broncos and Bulls Throwdown for 3rd Place at Las Vegas Classic
By Josh Horton
Dec 19, 2013; Tampa, FL, USA; South Florida Bulls guard Corey Allen Jr. (4) reacts after he made a three pointer in the last thirty seconds of the game against the Florida A
Santa Clara vs. South Florida
Game Time: 5:00 p.m. PST
TV: CBS Sports Network
Radio: http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/santaclara.portal?mode=link#
LiveStats: CBSSports.com
Team Records: SCU – 6-6 – USF – 8-3
Leading Scorers: SCU – Clark 16.2 – USF – Rudd 15.8
Leading Rebounders: SCU – Brown 6.4 – USF – Rudd 7.2
Leading Distributors: SCU – Roquemore 3.8 – USF – Collins 5.9
Projected Starters
Santa Clara
Evan Roquemore
Brandon Clark
Jared Brownridge
Jerry Brown
Yannick Atanga
South Florida
Anthony Collins
Corey Allen Jr.
Victor Rudd
Chris Perry
John Egbunu
Santa Clara will look to come out of Vegas with atleast one victory and to retain their winning record, but will need to beat the South Florida Bulls of the American Athletic Conference first to do so.
South Florida played in the game prior to Santa Clara’s loss to UNLV, where the Bulls fell to Mississippi State by a score of 71-66. Victor Rudd led USF with a double-double (17 points, 11 rebounds).
This matchup will be for third place at the Las Vegas Classic.
The Opponent
AP Poll: NR
Coaches Poll: NR
RPI: 163
KenPom: 148
The Bulls are a veteran laden team that also features a couple impact freshman.
South Florida’s primary leader is senior forward Victor Rudd, who leads the Bulls in both scoring and rebounding (15.8 PPG, 7.2 RPG). The Bulls starting backcourt comprises of Anthony Collins and Corey Allen Jr., who are both juniors. Freshman big men Chris Perry and John Egnubu have inserted themselves in the starting lineup
South Florida, who is notorious for playing a slow brand of basketball that does not yield a ton of points, has been scoring a lot more. USF is averaging 70.7 points this season, which is way up from the 58.8 they averaged last season.
On the season, South Florida has losses versus Oklahoma State, Detroit and Mississippi State. Thier best wins have come against George Mason and Alabama.
Prediction
The Bulls have a ton of physically imposing players that possess a great deal of athleticism. The play of the Santa Clara backcourt will be crucial in this game.
All-in-all, the Bulls are little too much for Santa Clara.
South Florida 75, Santa Clara 70.