Tampa Set to Host South Florida in Cross-Town Exhibition Battle

TAMPA, Fla. - The University of Tampa's men's basketball squad will hit the hardwood to kick off the 2011-12 season on Saturday as it play host to neighboring and Big East Conference member, the University of South Florida in an exhibition contest. The game will tip-off at 7:30 p.m., at the Bob Martinez Athletics Center.

The Spartans look to come out strong for this exhibition contest after finishing last season 22-7 overall. Tampa enters the season ranked eighth according to the Sunshine State Conference preseason poll.

Coach Richard Schmidt and his squad enter the new season with two starters returning, Ashton Graham and Callum Townsend. Both players added just over eight points per game and capitalized on opponent turnovers as they finished the season with double digit steals.

Also retuning is senior and key reserve Osby Kelly, who played all 29 games last season, contributing points in almost all of the contests. The team also welcomes four new comers Jason Brown, Terrell Pritchett, Jon Riles and Brian Wright. Freshman Riles, who signed a NLI, was named the 2009-10 Defensive Player of the Year and won the City of Palms Skills Contest.

The Bulls finished last season with a 3-15 Big East Conference record (Div.1) and an overall record of 10-23. Coach Stan Heath enters his 11th season as head coach and steered his squad to an upset in the first round of the Big East Basketball Championship vs. Villanova last season. The Bulls are led by senior Augustus Gilchrist who averaged just over 13 points per game.

The Bulls lead the all-time series 2-2. The last regular season meeting was a 71-54 USF victory on Jan.23, 1989. The teams did meet in an exhibition game on Nov.10, 2008, with the Bulls winning by a 79-64 final.

This meeting will mark the first USF appearance at the Bob Martinez Athletics Center.

Tickets will be available at the gate for $8 (adults) and $5 (senior citizens and students). UT students and faculty/staff are admitted free with a valid UT identification card.

UT will offer live stats for the game through www.tampaspartans.com.

Tampa will open its regular season on Monday Nov.15, at home against Southeastern (Fla.) University.