East Carolina @ South Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 26, 2019 ) South Florida 77, East Carolina 57

For the first time in 27 years, South Florida is 10 games above .500 after pulling out a last-second 67-66 triumph over SMU on Thursday. The Bulls set their sights on their first five-game conference winning streak since the 1991-92 season (Metro Conference) as they host East Carolina on Sunday, with the Pirates looking to even the score against their American Athletic Conference rivals after falling to USF 77-57 two weeks ago.

The Bulls barely pulled off their most recent victory, needing David Collins' clutch 3-pointer with six seconds remaining to lift them past the Mustangs, and they did it without the conference's top rebounder, Alexis Yetna (9.8), who sat out with a hamstring injury and is listed as day-to-day. "They really hurt us on the glass in the second half," USF coach Brian Gregory told ESPN afterward. "Without Alexis out there, we're just not the same rebounding team. We got just enough and made just enough quality offensive plays down the stretch to get a big win for us and our program." East Carolina would catch a break if Yetna is unavailable as he had 28 points and 13 rebounds in the earlier meeting between these teams, and the Pirates need a big win of their own following a dismal shooting (34.6 percent) and rebounding (minus-19 margin) performance in Wednesday's 65-49 loss to Wichita State. "Coach is disappointed in us, we're disappointed in ourselves," freshman Jayden Gardner told the media. "We let everyone down. We just can't play like that. We need to come out with effort and energy from the start."

TV: 5:30 p.m. ET, ESPN3

ABOUT ECU (9-13, 2-8 American): The Pirates have lost two straight and seven of their last eight, with the offense limited to 57 points or fewer in their last four of those setbacks. Gardner (15 points in the first meeting), who tops the team in points (18.0) and rebounds (9.0), combined with sophomores Shawn Williams (12) and Dimitrije Spasojevic (10) to score 37 of the team's 57 points on Jan. 26 versus the Bulls. The Pirates couldn't get much going in the loss to Wichita State either, limited to season lows of 18 field goals overall and 20 points in a half - recording the latter dubious mark after reaching that total before intermission Wednesday.

ABOUT SOUTH FLORIDA (16-6, 6-4): With Yetna out against SMU, Collins (team-high 15 points per game) spearheaded the Bulls' charge - just as he's done for much of this season - finishing with a game-high 23 points and three of the team's season-high 11 3-pointers. Sophomore guard Justin Brown had two of those treys - and four in the first meeting with East Carolina - and he's 11-for-18 from long distance as well as 14-for-23 overall from the field over the last three games. Guard Laquincy Rideau chipped in with 14 points, six rebounds and nine assists against SMU in addition to one steal that pushed his season total to a new school single-season record 69.

TIP-INS

1. The Bulls' earlier win over the Pirates gave them a 9-8 edge in the season series.

2. USF has won four in a row for the first time since the 2011-12 season and the Bulls already have six more wins than last season.

3. The Pirates are 0-8 on the road and they have lost 10 in a row on the road dating back to last season.

PREDICTION: South Florida 78, East Carolina 68