TAMPA, NOV. 18, 2015 – The No.19/17 USF women's basketball team (2-0) travels to Waco, Texas for the semifinals of the preseason Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) Thursday. The Bulls will face no. 5/4 Baylor for their first match-up against a ranked opponent this season.
USF advanced to the WNIT semifinals with wins over Jacksonville and Drexel in the first and second rounds respectively. The Bulls outscored opponents by a margin of 12.5 points. taking down Jacksonville 74-52 Friday and Drexel 73-58 Sunday. They out-rebounded opponents by a margin of 14.5. USF's offense averaged 73.5 points per game, and a shooting percentage of .459.
The winner of Thursday's game will face the winner of DePaul and Indiana Nov. 22 in the Championship of the preseason WNIT tournament. The game will be aired at 3 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
Bulls Bites
· The Bulls enter Thursday's contest ranked No. 19 in the Associated Press (AP) Top-25 Poll released Monday and No. 17 in the USA Today Coaches Poll released Tuesday. Both rankings are the highest in program history.
· Thursday's show down will feature three student athletes on the John R. Wooden Award's Preseason Top 30 list. USF senior Courtney Williams (Folkston, Ga.) opened the 2015-16 campaign strong, averaging 30.0 points, and 11.5 rebounds through two games. The 5-8 guard notched her first double-double of the season against Jacksonville, with a career high 18 rebounds and 34 points, just one shy of her career high. Joining her on the Preseason Top-30 list from Baylor are Nina Davis and Niya Johnson.
· Alisia Jenkins (Statesboro, Ga.) is seven rebounds away from 1,000 career rebounds. The senior enters Thursday with 993, after grabbing 21 rebounds against Drexel. In the effort, Jenkins collected 15 defensive rebounds, just one rebound shy of the program defensive rebound record. The career rebound record is 1,077 rebounds set by Wanda Guyton, and Jenkins needs 84 to match the mark set in 1989.
Around the American
· UCF earned its first win of the season with an 89-72 win over FIU. The Knights distanced themselves from the Panthers with a 22-5 run in third quarter en route to a victory in their home opener. Junior Zykira Lewis led the way with 19 points, six steals, five assists and five rebounds. Aliyah Gregory produced 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting while Joslyn Massey contributed a career high 13 points
· A well-rounded offensive performance lifted East Carolina past Alcorn State, 87-58. Five Pirates reached double-figures, led by Marina Laramie's game-high 24 points on 10-for-15 shooting from the field. Jada Payne recorded her second double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Fanni Csutoras scored 15 points, and Alex Frazier and Gabrielle Holston each finished with 11 points.
· Tulsa dropped an 82-73 decision to Saint Louis on Tuesday evening. Erika Wakefield recorded a career-best 21 points and a team-leading five assists to lead the Golden Hurricane. Antoinet Webster registered 14 points while Ashley Clark scored 13 points and reeled in a team-high eight rebounds.
· The Green Wave rolled past Jackson State on Tuesday, 92-49. Sophomore Kolby Morgan produced 21 points on 7-for-10 shooting, including a 4-for-6 performance from behind the arc. Leslie Vorpahl recorded her first career double-double with 15 points and 10 assists to go with eight rebounds. Eleven players on the Tulane roster scored a point in the victory.
· Four players from The American were represented on the Wooden Award Preseason Top 30 list. Breanna Stewart, the 2015 John R. Wooden Award winner, headlined the list and has the opportunity to become the fifth women's player to win the award twice. Joining Stewart were teammates Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck, and Courtney Williams of USF.
Baylor Scout
· The Lady Bears posted two wins in Waco, downing the UTA Lady Mavericks, 62-20, and defeating Southern Miss, 97-42.
· All-American junior forward Nina Davis and junior guard Alexis Jones lead the Lady Bears on the season with 14.5 and 12.5 points per game, respectively. A pair of freshmen posts, Kalani Brown and Beatrice Mompremier, are the team's top rebounders at 6.5 per game each, while senior point guard Niya Johnson follows closely with 6.0 boards a contest.
Up Next
The winner of Thursday's game will face the winner of DePaul and Indiana Nov. 22 in the Championship of the preseason WNIT tournament. The game will be aired at 3 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
Jose Fernandez's 2015 women's basketball team returns all five starters, including All-American Candidate Courtney Williams, from a team that posted a 27-8 (15-3 American) record in 2014-15 and finished the season in the top 25 rankings. The squad finished second behind eventual NCAA champion UConn in the American Athletic Conference and made an exciting NCAA Tournament run that saw USF top LSU in front of 5,560 fans in the Sun Dome in the NCAA regional round.
In 2015-16, the Bulls will be hosting their toughest schedule yet, including the opening rounds of the Preseason WNIT, along with perennial powers Penn State, Chattanooga, Oklahoma State and UConn making trips to Tampa. Season tickets, starting at just $65, are available for purchase online at USFBullsTix.com, by phone at 1-800-GoBulls or in person at the Gate B ticket office of the Sun Dome, with single game tickets going on sale in late September.
USF has made 11 postseason tournament appearances and had three NCAA Tournament berths in Head Coach Jose Fernandez's 15 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided USF to six 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2009 WNIT championship and won more than 260 games.
– #GoBulls –
