by Carter Brantley

In an emotional night, the first USF Men’s Basketball regular season home game since the passing of head coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, the Bulls took home an 85-69 victory over the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions.

The Bulls jumped out to an early lead in the first half, going into the break up 50-34 and allowing the team some much-needed cushion, as the Bulls allowed the Golden Lions to play an even 2nd half, with both teams scoring 35 points.

Guards Jayden Reid and Kobe Knox were USF’s leading scorers, with 16 points each, and FSU transfer forward De’Ante Green managed a double-double with 10 points and 15 boards.

Reid was able to make his impact felt in more than just buckets; he also set up teammates on his way to 6 assists for the night, and crashed the boards when needed, hauling in 6 rebounds.

Golden Lions guard Dante Sawyer led the charge on the other side, with a team-leading 24 points, but the team couldn’t stay out of foul trouble, allowing USF to take 33 free throws for the game.

The Bulls also held the advantage in the turnover and rebounding battles, with 4 fewer turnovers and 8 more total rebounds, racking up a whopping 24 offensive boards compared to the Golden Lions’ 14.

Despite struggling over their first couple of games, the Bulls put together a solid performance in front of a home crowd eager to cheer on their Bulls.

USF went 15-3 last season at home and hopes to continue that success into this season despite the overturn in the roster due to the transfer portal.

The victory brought USF’s record to 1-2 for the year as they hope to build upon the positive momentum they managed to capture with their most successful regular season in school history.

USF takes on the West Georgia Wolves this Friday night in another matchup at the Yuengling Center, and they begin conference play against the East Carolina Pirates on at home on New Year’s Eve.