David Collins' Game-Winner Lifts USF over DePaul in CBI Championship 2019 Game 1

South Florida is one game away from the College Basketball Invitational Championship after a 63-61 win over DePaul in Game 1.

After DePaul tied the game with 12 seconds remaining, David Collins answered with the game-winning shot before time expired to give USF the win.

The CBI final consists of a best-of-three series for the championship, and the Bulls were able to take a 1-0 lead with a home victory Monday at the Yuengling Center in Tampa, Florida. Collins was the key to success throughout the game, finishing with 23 points and six assists.

Max Strus had 17 points for DePaul, but it wasn't enough to extend the team's three-game winning streak. Unlike most tournaments, however, the Blue Demons will have a chance to bounce back when these squads meet again in two days.

South Florida looked in control early in this game, as Collins appeared unstoppable:

On the other end of the court, DePaul couldn't get much going offensively while making just 30.8 percent of its looks from the field in the first half. The 25 points at halftime was the lowest mark of the year for DePaul, per the tournament's Twitter account.

The Blue Demons averaged 78.6 points per game, so they clearly expected better.

The only thing that kept the road team in the hunt at halftime was nine turnovers from USF, leading to a 31-25 score at intermission.

In the second half, it was more of the same trend, with Collins and South Florida knocking down threes to gain a double-digit lead but still unable to pull away.

Strus then helped turn things around after DePaul's leading scorer had just four points in the first half.

The senior tied the game at 51 with a layup with about six minutes remaining and then gave his team its first lead of the game on a three-pointer a couple of minutes later.

Meanwhile, the red-hot Bulls turned ice cold from the outside, missing four straight three-pointers after making nine of their first 17. Laquincy Rideau broke the streak to put USF back on top with less than two minutes remaining, but there was still plenty of time for drama.

Just like Strus, Eli Cain was dominant for DePaul in the second half while scoring 13 of his 19 points, including a game-tying three with 12 seconds remaining. He also made two free throws earlier to keep his team in the hunt.

It seemed like we were heading to overtime, but Collins had other ideas, as he knocked in the runner to give South Florida the victory.

Both programs are hoping to end this season on a high note after an extended stretch of futility. South Florida finally clinched a winning season for the first time in seven years, while DePaul had gone 11 straight years with a losing record before 2018-19.

Although the CBI is often overlooked compared to the NCAA tournament and NIT, a title could be a nice accomplishment for either program while potentially fueling the young players to success next season.

In the past few years, Nevada and Loyola of Chicago built off a CBI championship to have success in the NCAA tournament within the next few seasons.

USF has the early advantage to win the 2019 title, but it will need to win one of the next two games at McGrath-Phillips Arena in Chicago in order to bring home a trophy. Game 2 is set for Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET.