One day after his AAU coach said he was considering transferring from USF, freshman guard Gaby Belardo said he has no intentions of leaving the Bulls and hopes he can earn more playing time this season.

"I know I'm capable of playing in the Big East," Belardo said Wednesday. "I want to play, and if I can get better and learn the system, I can get minutes here."

Art Alvarez, Belardo's AAU coach with the Miami Tropics, said Tuesday that he talked with Belardo's father and that they were considering a transfer. Belardo said his father has been frustrated by his lack of playing time -- he didn't play in USF's second exhibition after playing 10 minutes in the first -- but said transferring from USF is not the solution.

"My dad wants what's best for me, and he might think the best thing is to move me to another place where I can play more," Belardo said. "I never said anything to my dad about wanting to transfer. The best thing is for me to keep working hard here."

USF has four veteran guards -- Dominique Jones, Jesus Verdejo, Chris Howard and Mike Mercer -- competing for three spots, and freshman Justin Leemow has been ahead of Belardo off the bench.

"When I signed, I thought I would play more. I thought I was going to learn the system faster," he said.