With a 58-50 victory over the East Carolina Pirates (7-8), the USF men’s basketball team earned their first conference victory with the help of Freshman Ruben Guerrero.
Matching his career high, the 6-foot-11 center from Spain had a team-high 13 points and seven rebounds for the Bulls.
Guerrero has steadily improved his game since asserting himself into Coach Orlando Antigua’s starting lineup, after recovering from a groin injury.
“I knew I had to change my game,” Guerrero said, at the post-game conference. “We’ve been working all together in practice these past couple days pretty hard, just getting stronger and more physical and I think that is what helped me today in the game.”
The Bulls (7-8) had 32 points in the paint, compared to the Pirates 18. Antigua’s team has outscored their opponents 478-391 in the paint area so far this season.
“We did a good job of getting on the glass, using our length to capitalize on some offensive rebounding opportunities,” Antigua said. “We certainly had a lot of them, so I’m glad we were able to get a few.”
Helping Guerrero as of late, has been forward Bo Zeigler, who was a key contributor down the stretch of Saturday’s game. The redshirt freshman from Detroit recorded nine points and eight rebounds.
Zeigler has 68 rebounds through 15 games this season, ranking third on the team.
“My redshirt year helped me out a lot with getting stronger and with experience, just watching how the game goes,” Zeigler said. “I just try to bring in energy and I think that helps me a lot, just crashing the offensive glass, getting on transition and running. I think that puts a lot of pressure on the defense, so I think that’s gonna help me a lot down the stretch.”
His five defensive rebounds took away the Pirates’ second-chance point opportunities, which proved to be key in a close game.
Senior guard Corey Allen Jr. had 12 points against the Pirates, bringing his season total to 229, leading the team.
Also, Anthony Collins had seven assists against the Pirates, making him fourth all-time on the career assist list in school history with 492.
Now 1-1 in the conference, the Bulls are set to take on the Connecticut Huskies (7-5), the reigning NCAA champion, on Jan 6 at home.
Kevin Ollie’s Huskie team is making .457 percent of their shots this season, shooting almost as well as Antigua’s Bulls at .462 percent. The Bulls are scoring an average of 67.5 points per game, compared to the Huskies’ 67.6.
“We know it’s going to be a tough game, but another great opportunity to come out and compete,” Antigua said. “And, you know, hopefully our students will be back on campus. We’ll get them back to come out, support, and watch a heck of a game. And if we come out with the same energy, same effort, same fight, we’ll see where the chips lie.”
