Amir Abdur-Rahim would have been proud at what the basketball world witnessed Sunday in his honor. USF and Kennesaw State -- the two programs where Coach Amir served as the head coach -- put on a spirited game in the first Love Wins Classic.
The Bulls won the game 108-89, but love won the day. Those two words summed up the late coach's approach to life, and new USF head coach Bryan Hodgson says he will try to build on what Coach Amir started.
"First and foremost, just honored to be able to play in this game, to honor such a great man and coach, Amir, and I got to coach against one of my best friends," Hodgson said on USF radio.
"You know, we're both very fortunate to be following his tenure at two institutions and two basketball programs of two communities that coach Amir left such a lasting impact on. So man, just, just really, really blessed to be in this position and have this opportunity."
Joseph Pinion had his second straight game with 24 points in just 19 minutes to lead the Bulls. That gained him the American Conference Player of the Week honor. Josh Omojafo added 20 points, and Isayiah Nelson added 18 points and 11 rebounds as the Bulls improved to 3-1.
USF also set a school record by breaking the 100-point mark for the third time in four games.
There was one area of concern, however. Kennesaw outrebounded USF 45-41.
"They kicked our butt on the glass. I mean, we, I mean, It drove me nuts all game," Hodgson said. "It's unacceptable, so we've got to get fixed if we want to win games down the stretch."
The Bulls travel to Oklahoma State on Wednesday night. The game is at 8 p.m. on ESPN+
The USF women had a tough time on their trip to Las Vegas for the WCBA Challenge.
After opening the two-game swing with an 80-72 loss to Fairfield, USF was routed by UCLA 94-61. The undefeated Bruins, a Final Four participant last spring, raced to a 29-8 lead after one quarter and never looked back.
The Bulls settled down after that opening blitz and were only outscored by 12 points during the last three quarters, but the damage was done.
Katie Davidson scored 16 points to lead USF while Stefanie Ingram had 13.
USF's next assignment doesn't get any easier. The Bulls will host Duke at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Yuengling Center. The game is also on ESPN2.