SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – A resurgent offense and staunch defense righted the ship for University of Sioux Falls Men's Basketball in their final game of the Puerto Rio Basketball Classic, winning 69-52 over University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez. The Cougars improve their overall record to 3-4 on the season and they will open their league schedule with Southwest Minnesota State at home on Tuesday, Nov. 29.
After a slow first two games by USF's offensive bell cows,
Drew Guebert and
Mack Johnson, the high-scoring USF duo combined for 36 points with Guebert recording a double-double at 19 points and 14 rebounds, a career high in the latter. On top of 17 points, Johnson dished out three of the Cougars' six assists.
Clint Thomas, whose three-point shooting was the catalyst in the Cougars' key second-half run, added 12 points and
Daniel Hurtt joined his three USF teammates in double figures with 10 points. USF shook off their environment-induced shooting woes with a 50 percent effort from the field tonight, and three different Cougars hit a 3-pointer as they connected on 6 of their 14 tries from behind the arc for a 42.9 percent percentage.
The Cougars opened a 4-0 lead after scoring on their first two possessions but Luis Lopez hit two of his three 3-pointers and gave URP-Mayaguez a 12-11 lead. Coming out of the media timeout,
Tom Aase hit a turnaround hook, Thomas hit a three and Guebert followed a missed layup with a putback to return the lead to USF at 18-16.
Guebert and Johnson stretched the lead for USF with a layup each, keeping the Tarzanes from a comeback at 27-22. Despite the scoring efforts from USF's duo, UPRM cut the lead at the break to 35-33 in favor of Sioux Falls.
Out of the intermission, USF was firing on all cylinders and Thomas was the main benefactor of the Cougars' ball movement at the start of the second half. In a quick burst, Thomas hit three 3-pointers and the Cougars got layups from
Zach Wessels, Guebert and Johnson to put USF up 50-36 just over six minutes into the half.
After Hurtt and Aase added buckets, including a big and-one from Aase, USF's lead reached 55-40. Wessels found himself under the basket all alone twice and he was rewarded with a pair of passes that gave him easy layups to keep the lead at 15 points, 63-48. Easily in control, the Cougars coasted to their win, never letting the Tarzanes back in the game, and USF secured the 17-point victory, 69-52.
