USF Athletics

No. 21 Bulls Continue Homestand Against Bethune-Cookman

November 14, 2018

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• USF Game Notes

Matchup:No. 21 USF Bulls (2-0) vs. Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (2-0)
Date:  Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Tampa, Florida // Yuengling Center
Radio: AM 1040 (DarekSharp & Brigid Merenda)
Live Stats: GoUSFBulls.com
Twitter Updates:@USFWBB
 
TAMPA, Fla.  Nov. 14, 2018 –No. 21 USF women's basketball is looking for its third straight win in 2018-19 when Bethune-Cookman visits the Yuengling Center on Thursday night at 7 p.m.  
 
The Bulls are coming off of a stellar opening week, starting out 2-0 for the fifth straight season after dominating reigning Big Ten champion 71-47 on the road before blasting six-time America East champions Albany out of the Yuengling Center last Friday night. 
 
For their efforts, USF was named the NCAA Team of the Week on Tuesday, Nov. 13. Also bringing in weekly honors is freshman Beatriz Jordao , who debuted with a double-double against Ohio State to earn her American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Week. 
 
USF held Ohio State to under 50 points for the first time since the 2015 season. Free throws powered the Bulls, who got into the bonus early in nearly every quarter, and USF hit 24-of-29 from the charity stripe. Rebounds told the story of the night for the Bulls' performance, who grabbed 48 boards as a team in comparison to Ohio State's 32 total rebounds. 
 
Four Bulls scored in double figures last week, when Kitija Laksa scored 17 and 13 points respectively, Sydni Harvey added 16 and 10 points respectively, Beatriz Jordao had 17 points her debut, and Laura Ferreira had a game-high of 21 points against Albany. 
Quotable by Jose Fernandez
"Any time you play an in-state school you're going to get their best punch. Vanessa has done a great job with their program," head coach Jose Fernandez said. "They have everybody back fron a team in the MEAC and we need to make sure we are ready to play and not looking forward." 
 
The Opponent
This is the 12^thmeeting between the two programs, and USF leads the all-time series 9-2. The last time the Bulls and the Wildcats met was in 2011, when USF defeated BCU 72-36 in Tampa. Bethune-Cookman is 2-0 on the year and is coming off of a 81-76 overtime victory over Liberty University.
 
Angel Golden, a senior guard from Tampa, Fla., scored 20 points in the 45-minute victory, and picked up 18 points against Edward Waters College. Golden could prove to be a handful for the Bulls, returning to play in her hometown as the reigning MEAC Player of the Year. 
 
Notable

• This is the 12^thmeeting between the two programs, and USF leads the all-time series 9-2. 
• USF was named the NCAA Team of the Week on Nov. 13
• Beatriz Jordao is the only Bull this decade to debut in green and gold with a double-double. She was named the American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Week for her performance. 

International Students Night 

As part of USF's international education week, Thursday night's game promotion will be international students' night, where international students and friends and family are invited to come and see USF's team with international flavor.

Listen Live
Bulls fans are encouraged to follow the call of Darek Sharp with Brigid Merenda adding color on AM 1040 radio. 
 
Tickets
Fans can purchase tickets at USFBullsTix.com or by calling 1-800-Go-Bulls, or upon arrival at the Yuengling Center. USF students are always admitted for free. 
 
About Kitija Laksa 
With USF, Laksa broke the junior scoring record with 717 points in her junior season. She set two NCAA records in 2017-18, including free-throw percentage with 96.5 percent efficiency, and consecutive three-pointers made in a game with 11 on Dec. 15, 2017. The Riga, Latvia native averaged 21.1 points per game on the year and returns in 2018-19 as the Bulls' leading scorer for her senior season. 
 
Laksa currently ranks sixth in program history on the all-time scoring list, amassing 1,745 points in her career. She will chase the all-time scoring record at USF in 2018-19, currently held by Jessica Dickson (2003-07) with 2,402 points.   
About USF Women's Basketball
To stay up-to-date on the latest USF women's basketball news, follow the Bulls on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram).
 
USF notched its sixth consecutive 20-win season and fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance in 2017-18. It marked the ninth 20-win season in program history, with head coach Jose Fernandez at the helm for all nine. The Bulls posted 26 wins in 2017-18, just shy of the program record of 27 set in 2008-09 and 2014-15. 
 
USF has made 14 postseason tournament appearances and had six NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez's 18 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided USF to nine 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2009 WNIT championship and won more than 300 games.