USF defeats Mason men's basketball, 68-66

Bryon Allen tied the game with a clutch three-pointer, but the Patriots ultimately lost to USF, 68-66 (photo by John Irwin).

The Mason men’s basketball team lost to the University of South Florida at the Patriot Center on Wednesday night, 68-66. With the score tied at 66, Corey Allen Jr. hit a fade away jumper with two seconds on the clock to seal the victory for the Bulls. Sherrod Wright led all scorers with 22 points. Bryon Allen contributed 14 and Marko Gujanicic tallied 11.

The Patriots opened the second half with a 16-7 run, and led by as many as 17 points with 12:19 on the clock, 53-36. Over the next six minutes of play, USF went on a 22-1 run of their own to retake the lead with under five to go in the game, 59-54. Allen hit a clutch three-pointer for the Patriots with 21 seconds left to tie the game, 66-66, but the Bulls would come out on top after a timeout with a last second jumper by Allen Jr. to win it with two seconds on the clock, 68-66.

The Bulls had 37 free throw attempts in the game, and shot at 73 percent from the line compared to 57.9 percent for the Patriots who attempted 19. USF also took advantage on points off of turnovers, capitalizing on 19-9 over Mason.  

To start the first half, the Patriots were down by four with 15:50 on the clock, but led by as many as 12 by the 2:43 mark. The Patriots shot a 45.2 field goal percentage in the first half, 60 percent from the free throw line and 42.9 percent from beyond the arc. The Patriots were up by only five heading into the locker room at the half, 34-29. 

“Obviously it’s a very difficult loss,” head coach Paul Hewitt said. “But we just got to bounce back.”