Tampa, Fla. –  In the first action for the program since March, 2020, Bethune-Cookman men's basketball showed promise in a hard fought, 75-54 loss to USF, Tuesday night in Tampa, Fla.
 
Summary
 
For a program that sat idle for over 600 days, the Wildcats (0-1, 0-0 SWAC) opened the 2021-22 season engaged, particularly on the defensive end. Head coach Reggie Theus set the Wildcats up in a 2-3 defensive zone that frustrated USF in the first half. The Bulls (1-0, 0-0 AAC) shot 2-10 from behind the arc in the half.

"I feel we've come a long way with only one exhibition game under our belts," Theus said. "I thought we played really hard and did a great job against a great rebounding team. Defensively we had a really great effort in the first half."
 
Bethune-Cookman led only once in the game, 2-0, but stayed within striking distance all night. The Wildcats trailed by as much as ten in the first half but rode a 13-2 run to knot things at 29-29 at the break.
 
The Wildcats kept things close in the second half, trailing only 51-58 before USF pulled away with a late scoring run.
 
Russel Tchewa led the Bulls with 16 points. Each of the ten USF players to see the floor scored at least one basket.

Four Wildcats scored in double figures on the night. Joe French led all Wildcats with 14 points. Dylan Robertson, Marcus Garrett, and Collins Joseph followed with ten points each.
 
Game Notes

• Joe French showcased his sharpshooting, going 4-9 from deep in the game
• Collins Joseph commanded the point with six assists in the game
• Kevin Davis had a strong night defensively, grabbing 11 boards and swiping two steals
• USF shot 23 free throws in the game to B-CU's 6 – 20 of those free throws came in the second half
• USF scored 23 points on the fast break to B-CU's 2
• USF scored 50 points in the paint

Up Next
 
The Wildcats will head right back out on the road again to take on Middle Tennessee State this Friday, Nov. 12. That game is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.