SoCon Monster Game of the Week Preview: Georgia Southern at South Florida

Time: 7:00
TV: ESPN3

I get it. South Florida hardly qualifies as a serious contender at the Big East. They are 3-2, after losing in overtime to a solid Old Dominion team, and then losing to Penn State by four.

Augustus Gilchrist is one of the Bulls most important players. He is averaging 6.8 rebounds and 11.6 points per game. He is 6-10. He is only shooting 40% from the field. Ron Anderson Jr. also scores 8.4 points per game and 7.2 rebounds per game. He is shooting 60% from the field for the year. These two are the two biggest players on the team and are two of the best players that the Bulls have to offer.

Victor Rudd is the leading scorer with 14.0 points per game, 4.2 rebounds per game, and shooting nearly 35% from three point range. Blake Nash is shooting nearly 57% from the field. As a 6-0 guard, that is shocking. He is averaging 10 points per game, and is shooting 41% from three point range.

The Bulls are not a great shooting team, scoring team, or a rebounding team. Yet here is South Florida, a 3-2 Big East team, who has lost two hard fought close games against decent teams.

Georgia Southern enters at 1-2. However, they have close losses to Valparaiso and Wake Forest. The top four players in scoring and minutes played all are shooting over 50% from the floor. Eric Ferguson, Jelani Hewitt, Ben Drayton III, and Willie Powers all are shooting very high. Ferguson is the leading scorer with 18.7 points per game, 8 rebounds per game, and 2.3 blocks per game. Drayton has 13.0 points per game, 2.3 rebounds per game, and 4.0 assists per game. Powers is averaging 11.3 points per game, 4.0 rebounds per game, 5.3 assists per game and two steals per game.

In other words, Powers is doing it all for the Eagles, and the rest of the team is benefitting from it. This team has struggled in recent years, but looks ready to make a big jump this year. This game could be announcing that arrival. They will face a stiff defensive test in South Florida though. That being said, the Bulls may have trouble keeping up offensively with Georgia Southern.

LEAD PIPE LOCK PREDICTIONS THAT ARE SURE TO GO WRONG
--South Florida will score more than they have been scoring.
--Georgia Southern will score plenty of points as well.
--Powers will leave the Big East school very impressed.
--Gilchrist and Anderson will be successful on the inside for the Bulls.
--Too many turnovers will be committed by the Eagles, something they are still trying to get under control.
--South Florida 78, Georgia Southen 74. Again, just too many turnovers for the Eagles. But they will serve notice that they are a team to be reckoned with in the SoCon. This team may not be ready to contend for a SoCon title this year, but they will be a darkhorse in Asheville, and this game will get some people to notice.