TAMPA, JAN. 17, 2017 – Prior to University of South Florida head coach Jose Fernandez's arrival in 2000, the Bulls totaled seven winning seasons in their 28-year history. Since then, Fernandez has guided the Bulls to 12 postseason appearances, seven twenty-win seasons and a perennial power in the national polls. On Tuesday night, the all-time winningest coach in USF basketball history reached another milestone, 300 career wins, in the Bulls' 79-49 victory over visiting Memphis in Sun Dome Arena.

A second half surge pushed USF (15-2, 4-1 The American) to its seventh 25-plus point win this season. The Bulls turned in 25 points in the third quarter and shot 71 percent. Maria Jespersen (Arhus, Denmark) turned in 11 of her 26 points and went a perfect 4-for-4, including 2-for-2 mark from behind the arc. Jespersen finished with eight rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Ariadna Pujol (Mataro, Spain), Laia Flores (Mataro, Spain) and Kitija Laksa (Riga, Latvia) all joined Jespersen in double-figures. Pujol turned in 17 points and 10 rebounds in her second career double-double. Flores chipped in 11 points, four assists while Laksa added 10 points.

Cheyenne Creighton and Taylor Williams each scored 13 points for Memphis (8-10, 1-3 The American), which stayed within striking distance until the half. The Tigers inched within four in the second quarter, but a 9-0 run by USF in the first two minutes of the second half stretched its lead to 17 and the Bulls never looked back.

Quotables

Head coach Jose Fernandez on the state of his current team:

“I'm really proud of this group for a lot of things. Last Tuesday, we talked about how a loss wasn't indicative to what this program is and what this team is about. After our last game, we really talked about how they responded and how they responded in practice, that's what you want to see. We're 15-2 with four new starters and we're really young. Tonight we played seven kids, two of them freshman, so three of our top eight are freshman. They've overcome a lot. Now we just have to continue to share the ball and defend and close out January and February and head into the conference tournament.”

Senior guard Ariadna Pujol on head coach Jose Fernandez's milestone win:

“I'm so happy for him. It's a big milestone. It's impressive, it's super impressive. 300 wins, that's a lot. We're proud to be a part of it.”

Key Stats

300- Fernandez, USF basketball's winningest coach, is now 300-228 (.568) in 17 years as head coach of the Bulls. Only two other coaches in the league have reached 300 career wins (Lisa Stockton, Tulane – 536 & Geno Auriema, Connecticut - 972)

42– The Bulls scored 42 points in the paint, a season high. USF known for shooting the three-point shot, was 4-for-15 from behind the arc. The Bulls outscored the Tigers 42-30 in the paint.  

Notables

Head coach Jose Fernandez has reached every career milestone in Sun Dome Arena:

1 – UCF, Nov. 21, 2000 (W, 67-58)

50 – Louisville, Jan. 7, 2005 (W, 67-59)

100 – Coppin State, March 19, 2007 (W, 66-49)

150 – North Carolina Central, Dec. 19, 2009 (W, 79-37)

200 – Detroit, Dec. 31, 2012 (W, 74-60)

250 – Tulane, Jan. 25, 2015 (W, 64-45)

300 – Memphis, Jan. 17, 2017 (W, 79-49)

The Bulls extend their home win streak to 14 consecutive games. USF has not dropped a home contest in the Sun Dome Arena since hosting No. 1 UConn Jan. 10, 2016. USF's home record over the past three seasons improved to 36-4.

Up Next

No. 23/22 USF hosts No. 9 Louisville for its second top-10 match-up of the year. The Bulls will faceoff with the Cardinals in a 2 p.m. tip at Sun Dome Arena. The contest is set to air on ESPNU.

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The Bulls return eight players from last season, and have signed six newcomers to the roster. American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year Kitija Laksa will lead a squad full of international flavor that boasts nine players from around the world.  USF will look to extend its postseason streak to five consecutive seasons and return to the conference championship for the third time in as many years. 

USF has made 12 postseason tournament appearances and had four NCAA Tournament berths in Head Coach Jose Fernandez's 16 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided USF to seven 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2009 WNIT championship and won more than 280 games.

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