South Florida @ East Carolina preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 10, 2019 ) East Carolina 68, South Florida 72

Coming off an assertive win against Connecticut to get back to .500 in the American Athletic Conference, South Florida travels to East Carolina on Tuesday looking for its third straight victory against the Pirates. But in order to do so, the Bulls will have to win for the second time this season away from the Yuengling Center.

The story for USF has been its defense as they are third in the AAC by allowing 62.4 points per game, have held opponents below their season scoring average in 13 of 15 contests and are tied for second in the conference in turnovers forced per game (17.1). The Bulls, though, have struggled to defend the 3-point shot all season as they allow opponents to shoot 35.7 percent from beyond the arc - last in the AAC, but East Carolina is the conference's worst shooting 3-point team at 28.5 percent. The biggest task for USF will be stopping Jayden Gardner, the AAC's leading scorer who has totaled more than 20 points in each of the six games and is coming off a season-high 29 in a 75-69 loss to No. 23 Wichita State on Wednesday. The Pirates are still looking for their first win in the conference after taking Wichita State to its limit but falling despite outshooting the Shockers.

TIME: 7 p.m. ET. TV: None

ABOUT USF (8-7, 1-1 AAC): Leading scorer David Collins has been steady, scoring in double figures in seven of the last eight games, though he struggled a bit shooting in his last two by connecting on 33 percent of his field goals in that span - well off his season average of 46.5 percent. In addition to average more than 13 points, senior Laquincy Rideau is third in the AAC with 4.3 assists and leads the way with 39 total steals and 2.6 steals per game. Junior guard Justin Brown's success coincides with team success as the Bulls are 15-4 dating back to last year when the southpaw outside shooter reached double figures, but he has failed to do so in the last five games.

ABOUT EAST CAROLINA (6-8, 0-1): Junior college transfer guard Tremont Robinson-White has established himself as the second-best scorer behind Gardner, reaching double figures in three straight games and five of his seven total games after missing the first seven contests of the season. Fellow junior college guard Tyrie Jackson has been all over the map, averaging double figures until the Wichita State contest when he shockingly had zero points and seven turnovers in 12 minutes as a follow-up to one of his best shooting performances when he dropped 16 points against Eastern Kentucky. Workhorse guard Tristen Newton is not the most prolific scorer (8.1 points) but has been an effective passer, leading the conference with a 2.1 assist-turnover ratio and is the second-best free-throw shooter (87.5 percent).

BUZZER-BEATERS

1. Bulls Gs Ezacuras Dawson and Xavier Castaneda are tied for seventh in the AAC with 42.5 3-point shooting percentages - the top duo in the conference.

2. East Carolina has used 10 different starting lineups this season.

3. USF averages 8.9 steals, second-best in the AAC, and has had at least eight in 11 games this season.

PREDICTION: USF 70, East Carolina 63