It was fugly. 65-54 and it wasn't that close.
Ugly, ugly, ugly. Just the way South Florida likes it.
The Bulls introduced the NCAA tournament to the Big East's nastiest defense Wednesday night, putting more than just a chill into a California team that never had seen anything like it. The Bulls allowed only 13 points in the first half and brushed their way to a 65-54 victory.
South Florida (21-13) will play No. 5 seed Temple in Nashville on Friday, a matchup of teams known for gritty defense. Few have been better than this one for the first 20 minutes on the NCAA stage.
The Bulls swarmed `em, bumped em' and swatted their shots away -- those that weren't air balls, that is.
California (24-10) didn't score over the last 8:55 of the first half, missing 10 shots and turning it over twice while South Florida pulled ahead 36-13.
Guard Jorge Gutierrez, the Pac-12 player of the year, was held to 10 points on 4 of 10 shooting.
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"There is no solution. They'll never fix anything."
“There is science, logic, reason; there is thought verified by experience. And then there is California.”
-Edward Abbey