Bulls Obliterate Bethune-Cookman 88-39 in Homestand

Thursday, November 15

Tampa

7 p.m.

University of South Florida

3-0

Bethune-Cookman University

2-1

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Bethune-Cookman	11	9	10	9	39
USF	17	23	28	20	88

Photo by: South Florida

Bulls Obliterate Bethune-Cookman 88-39 in Homestand

November 15, 2018 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

TAMPA, Fla. Nov. 15, 2018 –No. 21 USF women's basketball defeated in-state opponent Bethune-Cookman 88-39 in dominating fashion on Thursday night at the Yuengling Center, outscoring the Wildcats by nearly 50 points.

USF improved to 3-0 on the season for the third consecutive year, and held its opponents to under-50 for the third consecutve game this season. USF got out to a slow start in the first quarter, only outpacing BCU (2-1) 17-11 in the first 10 minutes. USF turned up the heat with a 23 point second quarter, led by Kitija Laksa with 12 in the quarter. At the break, the Bulls were leading the Wildcats 40-20 foll owing the dominating offensive effort.

The Bulls continued to stampede in the third quarter when they broke out for a 28-point third quarter, the most points USF has scored in a quarter since USF defeated Ohio State in Tampa on Feb. 11, 2018. USF kept the momentum going in the fourth quarter, holding BCU to just nine fourth-quarter points and leading by as much as 50 in the game.

Scoring Summary
Laura Ferreira and Kitija Laksa each had a game-high 19 points on the night, while Tamara Henshaw and Beatriz Jordao added 10 points apiece. Shae Leverett had a season-high nine points and Sydni Harvey had eight points on the night. Alyssa Rader chipped in six points, and Enna Pehadzic added five. Janeta Rozentale sunk a pair of free throws to round out the scoring effort on the night.

Quotable by Jose Fernandez
"I thought in that first quarter I got off to a different start defensively than I wanted to, but we went into the locker room holding them to 20 points and that was pretty good," head coach Jose Fernandez said. "But we went on a big run in the third quarter and our post players continued to do a great job for us. They were the strength and focal point of that front line."

Key Stats
60 – USF totaled 60 rebounds against the Wildcats while Albany recorded just 32.
47.9 – The Bulls shot 47.9 percent from the floor on the night, their highest of the year
28 – USF blasted Bethune-Cookman with a third-quarter burst of 28 points in 10 minutes.

Notable

Laura Ferreira and Kitija Laksa each had 19 points apiece.
Sophomore Shae Leverett was just one missed free throw away from a double-double with a game-high 13 rebounds and nine points.
Four Bulls scored in double figures on the night including Ferreira and Laksa with 19, Beatriz Jordao with 10, and Tamara Henshaw with 10.
Freshman earned valuable minutes tonight and Janeta Rozentale earned two points, two assists, two rebounds and a block, while Makaela Kestner three rebounds and one block.
This is the third consecutive year the Bulls are off to a 3-0 start.
This is the third consecutive game that Bulls' opponents were held to under 50 points.

Up Next
The Bulls round out their three-game homestand with Oklahoma on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Yuengling Center.

About USF Women's Basketball
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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.
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