HARTFORD, Conn. -
Shantia Grace scored 25 points and the University of South Florida came from 14 points down Saturday to upset Syracuse 68-67 in overtime in the first round of the Big East Tournament.
Grace played all 45 minutes and hit eight of her 17 shots, including five 3-pointers. In addition to her 25 points, Grace dished out 11 assists as she also became the all-time assist leader in USF history. Her double-double was the first of the year and the sixth of her career.
Grace also moved into fourth on the school's single season scoring chart finishing the game with 546 points on the year.
Jessica Lawson hit two big shots for the 11th-seeded Bulls (16-14) in overtime, including a layup with 1:40 to play that gave USF its winning points.
Lawson finished with 10 points and Jazmine Sepulveda had 15, including 11 to help spark the Bulls' comeback in the second half.
Erica Morrow led Syracuse (22-8) with 24 points, and Vionca Murray had 14.
Syracuse, the No. 6 seed, missed several opportunities to win the game. A 3-pointer by Tasha Harris went wide and a put-back try by Chandrea Jones missed with six seconds left.
The Bulls' Porche Grant then missed the front end of a 1-and-1 on the other end, giving the Orange a final possession with 5.2 seconds left. But Jones dribbled the ball off her leg and had to try a desperation shot from just over half-court, which hit the rim and bounced away.
The Orange led 58-48 with 6:41 left in regulation, but the Bulls kept chipping away. They took their first lead of the half with 1:42 left on a 3-pointer by Grace that hit the backboard and went in. A Grace free throw with 27 seconds left gave USF a 3-point lead.
Morrow then threw up a 3-pointer with 6 seconds left, which also banked off the glass and went in, sending the game into overtime.
The Bulls will now face the No. 3 seed - and No. 14/18 - West Virginia in the quarterfinals on Sunday at 8 p.m. The game will be televised live on ESPNU in addition to being heard live in the Tampa Bay area on 1010 Sports WQYK-AM with Garrett Walvoord
calling the action. The contest can also be heard via the internet on Press Pass Radio by logging onto www.GoUSFBulls.com and selecting the Press Pass option.
The winner of the USF-West Virginia game will face the victor of the Rutgers-Louisville quarterfinal game - which will tip-off at 6 p.m. on Sunday - on Monday at 8 p.m. in the tournament semifinals.
