USF set for a clash with Charlotte in the American Conference Semifinals
The Bulls will play their first tournament game against the a red-hot Charlotte team.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The Charlotte 49ers beat the UAB Blazers 83-78 on Friday to advance to the American Conference tournament semifinals.
Waiting for them is the top-seeded South Florida Bulls.
USF has won nine games in a row, including an 83-60 victory over Charlotte on Sunday to conclude the regular season.
Charlotte, the No. 5 seed in the tournament, has won back-to-back games in Birmingham. The 49ers defeated Tulane 74-60 on Thursday night after outscoring the Green Wave 56-40 in the second half. Charlotte shot 77.3% from the field during its second-half surge, an American Conference tournament record.
Against Tulane, the 49ers made 12 3-pointers. Charlotte followed that performance by hitting 14 3-pointers on 48.3% shooting in Friday’s win over UAB.
The 49ers shot 76.9% from the floor in the second half against UAB and made 14 consecutive field goals midway through the half.
Senior guard Dezayne Mingo has been one of the tournament’s top performers. Mingo had 19 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds against Tulane. He followed up that performance by scoring 33 points against UAB in the quarterfinals. On Sunday, USF held Mingo to just nine points.
Charlotte was picked to finish last in the preseason American coaches poll; now they sit two games away from the NCAA Tournament.
USF enters the American Conference tournament as the prohibitive favorite. FanDuel Sportsbook listed the Bulls at minus-125 odds to win the tournament before play began.
The Bulls are 1-3 in neutral-site games this season.
During the regular season, the Bulls led the conference in scoring, opponent field-goal percentage, total rebounding, offensive rebounding and assists.
USF is led by American Conference Player of the Year Izaiyah Nelson. The senior forward is averaging 15.8 points and 9.8 rebounds per game.
The Bulls are seeking their second conference tournament championship in program history and their first since winning the Sun Belt Conference tournament in 1990.
In the teams’ last meeting Sunday, USF’s defensive pressure was key. Charlotte committed 15 turnovers that led to 17 Bulls points. USF also scored 19 fast-break points in the game.
The Bulls boast a prolific backcourt trio. Senior guard Joseph Pinion and junior guard Wes Enis have each made a program-record 100 3-pointers this season. Enis led the conference with 3.4 made 3-pointers per game, while Pinion is shooting 37.7% from beyond the arc, fifth-best in the conference. Sophomore guard C.J. Brown directs the Bulls’ offense, averaging five assists per game, the second-most in the American Conference.
The only other time USF earned the No. 1 seed in the American Conference tournament was in 2024, when the Bulls lost to UAB in the semifinals.
Coach Bryan Hodgson and the Bulls hope for a better result Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Legacy Arena at the BJCC.