Down 71-68 after a coast-to-coast drive by Reid with 28.1 ticks left, Doumbia scored on a drive, and, after a South Florida turnover on an attempted ally-oop, the 6-foot-6 transfer from Norfolk State made a jumper near the free throw line with 6.8 seconds left for a 72-71 lead.
But Reid never gave up his dribble, streaking down the right side and pulling up for the game-winner.
After the officials reset the clock, the Raiders inbounded to halfcourt, and Norris missed a hurried fling.
The Raiders finished 1-2 in the event, including an 80-62 rout of Princeton and 77-74 loss to Bradley.
“It hurts, but the next tournament we play in, we’re going to win,” coach Clint Sargent said defiantly on his post-game radio show.
“Our guys fought to get back up one and executed late. They were playing tired (from three games in four days). But we’re not going to flinch from this.”
Doumbia had 18 points on 9-of-11 shooting and 10 rebounds.
Fellow sub Solomon Callaghan had 14 points, going 3 of 5 from 3.
Alex Huibregtse had 12 points, though he finished 5 of 16 from the field and 2 of 10 from 3.
Norris chipped in 10 points, including a big-time 3 with 44 seconds left after South Florida (4-3) had gone up by four.
“I don’t know how we’re walking out of here 1-2. I’m not happy with that. But at some point — and we’re preaching this — you’ve got to be bigger than the results,” Sargent said.
“We all want to win. I want to win for our fans desperately. But if you’re watching this team, they’ve got a lot to them, and this will only make them better.”
The Bulls, who were picked third in the American Athletic Conference preseason poll, went 25-8 last season and 16-2 while winning the AAC. They reached the second round of the NIT.
But the Raiders were ready from the start to do battle with another high-end mid-major. They went on a 15-0 run and jumped out to a 20-7 lead with 11 minutes to go in the first half, making four of their first five 3′s.
But after starting 9 of 14 from the field, they went 4 of 17 over the final 10 minutes of the first half, missing eight straight 3′s, and began the second half just 2 of 6.
They made 27 of 62 shots overall (43.5%) and went 8 of 24 from 3.
They finished with a 36-30 rebounding edge.
SATURDAY’S GAME
Air Force at Wright State, 7 p.m., 101.5, 1410
About the Author