Cincinnati @ South Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 15, 2017 ) Cincinnati 68, South Florida 54

The moveable force meets, so far, the unstoppable force on Saturday night as 13th-ranked Cincinnati visits South Florida. The Bearcats enter the game undefeated in American Athletic Conference while USF has yet to find the win column since league play began.

Cincinnati has opened conference play with a stingy defense, allowing no more than 56 points in the first three contests while yielding 52.3 per outing. The Bearcats have limited opponents to 58.6 points per game (second nationally) and 36.7 percent shooting (third in the nation) from the floor. The Bulls have been struggling to find a consistent offense, averaging just 55.3 points in four league games while having been held to 60 or fewer in three of the past four games. USF has also allowed 80 points per game in AAC play.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPNews

ABOUT CINCINNATI (14-2, 3-0 AAC): Senior forward Gary Clark continues to be one of the nation's top rebounders, needing 47 more on the season to become the fifth player in school history to reach 1,000 for his career. His 953 rebounds rank first in AAC history and is the third most among active players in the nation. Clark has led the Bearcats in rebounds in 11 of the 16 games this season while averaging 8.4 - second in the conference.

ABOUT SOUTH FLORIDA (7-10, 0-4): Freshman guard David Collins, who missed time earlier this season with a knee injury, has seen his role increase as the Bulls have hit conference play. Collins is averaging 9.3 points during AAC games, second on the team, while logging 22.8 minutes per contest. "The heart that he plays with, the intensity level, the energy that he plays with are great character traits," coach Brian Gregory told the team's website. "You see it every day in practice. You see it in every workout and now you're starting to see it in live competition against some really, really high-level competition."

TIP-INS

1. Cincinnati junior G Jacob Evans, who was named the AAC Player of the Week, needs 14 points to reach 1,000 for his career.

2. USF has not won a game against a ranked opponent since Feb. 29, 2012, when it knocked off Louisville 58-51.

3. The Bulls expect to get leading scorer F Payton Banks (12.7) back in the lineup after the graduate senior missed three of the past four games due to illness.

PREDICTION: Cincinnati 89, South Florida 58