‘Good, experienced’ USF team hosts St. Mary’s in WCC opener

Randy Bennett looks at Kyle Smith’s USF basketball team and it all looks familiar. In fact, the Dons look a lot like the experienced, efficient St. Mary’s teams Bennett coached over the past two seasons.

“All those guys have played together. They don’t have anyone new in there,” Bennett said of the Dons. “Their leadership’s in place. They look like a good, experienced team. ... They’re doing stuff we’re not doing yet.”

Bennett and the Gaels will get a firsthand look at Smith and the Dons when the teams meet in a WCC opener on the Hilltop on Thursday night.

USF has put together a 12-2 record built on defense, rebounding and taking care of the ball. The Dons lead the WCC in field-goal-percentage defense (38.9), rebounding margin (+8.