Articles

South Florida Holds on To Top Catamount Men 61-59

Details: Created on Sunday, 13 November 2011 05:28; Written by George Commo

Matt Glass game tying tip-in at the buzzer waived off

Courtesy Vermont Sports Information

TAMPA, Fla. – South Florida held off a late Vermont comeback bid to earn a 61-59 victory in men's college basketball action on Saturday night in the season opener for both squads. Catamount senior Matt Glass looked to convert a tip-in just before the buzzer sounded that would have sent the game into overtime, but the hoop was waived off and ruled after the horn. Freshman Four McGlynn paced Vermont in his debut with 17 points off the bench.

USF's Shaun Noriega made one of two free throws with 9.5 seconds left to give the home team a 61-59 lead. Following a timeout, Catamount sophomore Sandro Carissimo pushed the ball up the court and called a timeout with 4.3 ticks left on the clock so UVM could draw up one last play. On the ensuing possession McGlynn drove to the rim and tried to lay the ball in, but it just fell out and Glass was right there to tip it back in but it was ruled too late.

“It was a hard fought game tonight and I am really proud of our guys effort,” said Vermont head coach John Becker, who was coaching his first game for the Cats. “Obviously the play at the end of the game from my vantage point looked like it was good, but apparently there was no replay equipment here so we couldn't take a look at it. We had our opportunities and didn't capitalize on them and we will take a lot from this game moving forward.”

South Florida's size controlled the early going as they took a 19-14 lead with 8:57 left in the first half. Vermont answered with nine straight points over the next 2:24, spurred by five from McGlynn, to take a 23-19 edge. The Catamounts started out hot from the floor, making nine of their first 16 attempts.

The Bulls would respond to the Cats' run with a 12-2 push of their own to regain the lead at 31-25. A layup from senior Pat Bergmann would mark the final points of the half with 28 ticks on the clock, as South Florida took a 31-27 lead into the break. McGlynn paced all scorers at the half with 11 points.

South Florida started the second half on an 8-3 run to take a 39-30 lead after hitting a pair of 3-pointers, as the Bulls started the game 7-for-9 from long range. A 3-pointer from Blake Nash gave USF its biggest advantage of the game at 49-37 with 11:18 to go.

The Catamounts would not go away though and a 3-pointer from Glass cut their deficit to 55-51 with 6:35 remaining and McGlynn added his fifth three of the game to cut it to 58-56 with 2:44 left. Vermont trailed 60-57 when sophomore Luke Apfeld converted a layup and then the Cats were forced to foul with 10.5 seconds on the clock. Noriega then hit one of two free throws to set up the final series.

McGlynn had a great debut for the Catamounts as he finished 6-for-9 from the floor overall and 5-for-7 from 3-point range. Glass added 13 points and six rebounds, while Apfeld just missed a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds. Junior Brendan Bald added nine points, while sophomore Brian Voelkel posted game-highs for both rebounds (11) and assists (8).

The Catamounts outrebounded the taller Big East team 34-32 and used a 31-3 bench scoring edge, while shooting 46.9 percent from the floor. Ron Anderson Jr. led South Florida with 16 points, as the Bulls finished 8-for-13 from beyond the arc.

The Catamounts return to action on Wednesday when they travel to face Dartmouth starting at 7 p.m.

NOTES: The last time a Catamount hit five 3-pointers in a game came last season when Joey Accaoui '11 netted five in a win at Iona … Saturday was the first meeting between the two teams in men's hoops … UVM is now 26-26 in season openers since 1960 and 1-4 all-time against teams from Florida … The Cats play their first five games of the season away from home.