With under 10 seconds remaining in the game, Perry Smith thought his 3-point shot to tie the score was certain.

Unfortunately for the sophomore guard, the ball rimmed out of the basket and ended the NIU men’s basketball team’s chances of pulling off the upset win over South Florida. Reggie Kohn added a free throw to give the Bulls the 79-74 win over the Huskies Tuesday at Chick Evans Field House.

“It was a contested three,” Smith said. “There is a 50-50 chance to be had every time you shoot. I was on the lower end of the 50 that time.”

With the Huskies falling behind a game-high 13 points halfway through the second half, 63-50, they relied on Leon Rodgers. The senior center scored nine of his 12 points in a 10-minute span.

Rodgers started the Huskies’ comeback with two dunks, pulling the Huskies within nine. Smith then scored the next two Huskie baskets on an alley-oop from Walt Thompson and a 3-pointer from the left corner. Rodgers then hit another three to pull NIU within six, 73-67.

After Jay Bates hit a free throw and Will McDonald hit a basket, giving the Bulls the 75-70 lead, NIU went on a mini-run, putting itself up for the win with 26.8 seconds, 75-73. After missing his first free throw, Kohn hit his second, setting up Smith’s missed 3-pointer.

“This team is going to grow,” said NIU coach Rob Judson. “We played with a lot of effort and we established a real competitiveness tonight. Now we have to play fundamentally. Then we have to learn to close games out. This team will learn.”

Will McDonald took advantage of the Huskies’ small lineup, scoring a game-high and career-high 28 points. The 6-foot-11 center went up against the 6-foot-6 Rodgers for the first half, and responded by scoring 12 points on 5 of 6 from the floor. The Huskies then went to a zone defense, but still could not contain McDonald as the junior center scored 16 in the second half.

“I was getting the ball more and I was ready for it,” McDonald said. “From the beginning, coach told me it was going to be a small lineup.”

But McDonald almost did not get the nod as the starting center. McDonald didn’t think he was going to be matched up against a 6-foot-6 center.

South Florida coach Seth Greenberg said the reason he started McDonald was because he was worried about the matchup with Rodgers.

“When I read in the paper today that they were going to match up Rodgers with B. B. [Waldon], I said, Will is a big target and I see how he throws our guys around,” Greenberg said. “He’s a huge man.”

The Huskies were led by sophomore guard Al Sewasciuk, who scored 15 points, going 5 for 12 from 3-point land. Sophomore forward Marcus Smallwood and Smith added 14.

But it was the play of Smith that impressed Judson.

“I told Perry at halftime that he was playing like a cannon-ball shot out of a cannon and then being hit by lightning on the way,” the first-year coach said. “I was glad that the bleachers were down on the south end because we could contain him in the bleachers down there.

“When Perry went flying down there, all I wanted to do was clap for him and give him a high-five. He is going to get under control. When he does, he is going to be a real special player.”