Austrie lifts UConn over Bulls in OT

Craig Austrie's 12-foot runner in the lane with less than a second left in overtime gave No. 17 Connecticut its ninth straight win, 74-73 over South Florida on Saturday.

A.J. Price scored 23 points, including the Huskies' first five in the overtime.

Dominique Jones converted his own miss with 6 seconds left to give South Florida (11-15, 2-11 Big East) a 73-72 lead.

Austrie, who had two points in the first 37 minutes, dribbled nearly the length of the court and made the game-winner for the Huskies (20-5, 9-3) with .2 seconds left.

Austrie made UConn's last two field goals in regulation on short bank shots in heavy traffic.

Reserve guard Doug Wiggins scored 20 points for UConn and Jeff Adrien added 12.

Kentrell Gransbury had 26 points and 15 rebounds for the Bulls, while Jesus Verdejo added 17 points, including a 3-pointer that forced overtime. Jones finished with 16 points after scoring 29 in the Bulls' victory over Syracuse last Wednesday.

Taking up where it left off in a rare conference win, USF led much of the first half until Wiggins' reverse layup gave UConn a 27-26 halftime lead. He scored eight points in the Huskies' 13-5 run over the last 7 minutes, helping his team stay close despite a 4-minute field goal drought to start the game.

A lack of depth has haunted USF all season, but this time the Bulls didn't wilt when it looked like UConn might take control of the game. An 18-8 run turned a 37-32 deficit into a 50-45 lead, but the Huskies battled back.

Price's 3-pointer and Wiggins' layup tied it, and UConn led 65-62 before Verdejo's contested 3-pointer tied it with 21 seconds left in regulation. A Connecticut turnover on the inbounds pass gave USF a chance to win it, but Jones misfired from just inside the 3-point line.

Gransberry, Verdejo and Jones scored in the opening minutes of overtime, opening a 71-67 lead. Price's three-point play and Stanley Robinson's rebound dunk put the Huskies ahead 72-71, setting the stage for the two lead changes in the closing seconds.

Connecticut finished with 11 blocked shots, eight by 7-foot-3 Hasheem Thabeet.