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USF Bulls Basketball

March 15, 2012 by · Comments Off on USF Bulls Basketball 

USF Bulls Basketball, Stan Heath hears the critics who say USF’s brand of defense-first basketball is downright ugly, and from where he’s sitting, preparing for the Bulls’ first NCAA Tournament appearance in 20 years, he appreciates the compliment.

“Ugly is in the eye of the beholder,” Heath said after a Big East tournament game last week. “I love the way we play. … I don’t apologize at all for how hard my guys defend. I’m proud of it. I think there’s probably 90 percent of the coaches that would love to do the same thing. So there’s no apologies.”

The Bulls (20-13) play tonight in the first round against fellow No. 12 seed California, whose coach, Mike Montgomery, can appreciate USF’s devotion to defense and the success that has come with it.

“I think it’s smart,” Montgomery said Tuesday. “You can win with defense. … Stan figured, ‘Look, let’s go defend first, let’s use our size, our strength, maybe our length, and try and defend and give ourselves the best chance to win.’ And that’s obviously worked for him.”

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