USF shocks unbeaten Utah State 74-61 behind tough defense and Pinion’s 3-Pt barrage

Some nights it all comes together, and it just that in a huge way Thursday for the USF men's basketball.

Facing unbeaten Utah State at the Yuengling Center, the Bulls jumped to a 16-point lead in the first 10 minutes and never looked back, rolling to a decisive 74-61 victory.

It was a win with potential post-season implications for the Bulls. This was a Quad 1 win, which is a measuring stick the NCAA Tournament selection committee uses to choose the tournament field. The Aggies were 19th in the NET rankings entering the game.

"I'll be honest, with no disrespect to them at all. I know their entire coaching staff. I've known most of since I've in the business.," USF head coach Brian Hodgson said.

"Actually, we punked them from start to finish. Again, that's no disrespect to them. It's me talking about our team."

We usually think of USF's go-go offensive approach and video game point totals, but on this night it was as much about the Bulls' defensive as anything. They held the Aggies to 24 percent shooting on 8-of-33 in the first half, which ended with USF ahead 41-20.

The Bulls also held a 40-34 edge in rebounding.

"It started with our defense, obviously," Hodgson said. "I thought that we were locked in for two halves on the defensive end."

It was a welcome sight to see after the Bulls struggled last week in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the Bahamas. They lost two of three games there and Hodgson vowed to correct problems that cropped up there.

He was successful.

Joseph Pinion had 17 points to lead four double-figure scorers for the Bulls. He connected on five 3-pointers. Izayiah Nelson did the tough work inside, collecting 10 rebounds. He was also 7-of-8 from the foul line.

"These are the games you got to win. We obviously had a tough trip to the Bahamas, but you know, what happens after that, right? How do you respond as a program? And I thought our guys had a great couple days of practice," Hodgson said on Bulls Unlimited.

"They had a great team meeting, you know, all team staff included, just about what needs to change to meet our expectations. And so again, really proud of our effort. We just beat a really good basketball team."

The Bulls are off until December 10 when they host the College of Charleston at 7 p.m.