Bulls win DAMAGING....
Bulls rally for a damaging victory
Two starters go down in the 62-44 win over FAU, leaving USF with five healthy regulars.
By GREG AUMAN, Times Staff Writer
Published December 16, 2005
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TAMPA - For USF, the key number, good or bad, is five.
In the glass-half-full world, it's how many wins the Bulls have after a promising 62-44 victory Thursday night against upset-minded Florida Atlantic at the Sun Dome.
It's also how many healthy regular contributors USF has left after starters Melvin Buckley and Zaronn Cann left with potentially serious injuries.
Playing with no appreciable bench for most of the second half, the Bulls (5-3) rallied from a 12-point first-half deficit to dominate the Owls before 2,394 fans. Despite a considerable depth advantage, FAU (3-3) was the team showing fatigue, a testament to the conditioning USF has picked up by playing so short-handed.
"You have to just play hard and be mentally tough," said Bulls center Solomon Jones, who had game highs with 17 points, 15 rebounds and six blocks. "We had mind-sets that we had to get it in down low, and Melvyn Richardson and McHugh Mattis did a great job of stepping up in this game."
Both junior forwards had strong games off the bench, with Richardson hitting his first five shots for a season-best 10 points and Mattis adding nine of his 13 in the second half. Walk-on point guard Chris Capko had seven assists and seven turnovers.
With 7:28 left in the first half, the Bulls trailed 25-13, but they finished the half on a 12-2 run to trail 27-25 and never let up, outscoring the Owls 32-6 over a 19-minute span.
"Our matchup zone was the biggest difference in the game," coach Robert McCullum said. "It slowed them down, gave us momentum and clearly got us back into the game."
FAU had won three straight, including an upset Tuesday against Central Florida, but coach Matt Doherty said the quick turnaround left his team tired after its strong start.
"I thought we ran out of steam," Doherty said. "We as coaches want players to act like machines, and we're not. ... End of the first half through the second half, we tried, but I don't think we had a whole lot in the tank."
The Owls shot 18 percent in the second half and 23 percent for the game. Forward Rodney Webb led them with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
USF's depth issues continue to grow as the Bulls prepare to leave Saturday for Hawaii and the Rainbow Classic, where they'll play three straight days next week. USF played most of the second half Thursday with only three walk-ons and freshman center Frane Markusovic on the bench; none of the four has scored in his USF career.
The extent of the two injuries is unknown, but for a decimated squad that has already lost two starting guards, any missed time will be costly.
Buckley, the team's second-leading scorer, left the game grimacing in pain with a groin injury early in the second half and did not return, walking gingerly after the game.
Cann, a freshman from Brandon who made his first career start, re-injured a left knee that endured major arthroscopic surgery for torn ligaments in January 2004, as well as minor surgery in September.
McCullum said indications were that Cann had not torn his anterior cruciate ligament, but the severity of the injury won't be known until an MRI test today
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