TAMPA, FEB. 14, 2018 – The USF Sun Dome was full of pink on Valentine's Day as the No. 22/21 Bulls honored breast cancer survivors in their annual Play4Kay pink game. Prior to USF's 64-54 route of SMU, seven brave women joined the starting line-ups in an emotional stand against the disease that affects millions.
 
Maria Jespersen (Arhus, Denmark) led the Bulls' offense with 28 points and added 10 rebounds in her 14^th double-double this season. Jespersen shot 50 percent from long range and finished 8-of-19 from the floor. The forward filled her stat line with four assists, two blocks, one steal and didn't tally a single turnover.
 
The Bulls (21-5, 10-2 The American) recovered from a slow start in the first half with a 23-point third quarter. USF stretched its lead to 16-points at the end of the frame, its largest lead of the game. Kitija Laksa (Riga, Latvia) scored 12 of her 16 points in the second half.
 
USF never trailed the Mustangs (10-16, 4-9 The American) and fended off a late rally in the final minutes of the game. SMU outscored the Bulls, 23-19 in the fourth quarter.

Quotable
Head coach Jose Fernandez's thoughts on the Bulls' defense:
"I thought defensively, you go into the locker room holding a team to 18 points in a half and I thought we were good. Hand it to Travis and SMU in the second half."

Key Stats
45 – USF outrebounded one of the league's best rebounding teams, 45-41. In the first half, USF limited the Mustangs four offensive rebounds.
28 – Jespersen's 28 points was the second-most points the forward has scored in her career.

Notable

• The Bulls have won six-straight games for the first time this season.
• USF remains perfect against the Mustangs and improve to 12-0 in the series.
• Maria Jespersen grabbed her 800^th career rebound (809) and became just the sixth player in program history to record at least 1,000 points and 800 rebounds.
• Kitija Laksa's 16 points pushed her to sixth on the all-time scoring list with 1,520 points.
• USF improved to 11-1 at home this season.
• USF has outrebounded its opponents in its last six outings.

Up Next
USF will travel east for the War on I-4. The Bulls will face UCF Sunday at noon on CBS Sports Network.
 
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USF notched its fifth consecutive 20-win season. The Bulls tallied its 20th win in their 24th contest of the season which tied the fastest any program has reached 20 wins. This is the eighth 20-win season in program history and head coach Jose Fernandez has been at the helm for all eight 20-win seasons. The 2014-15 team reached 20 wins in 24 games, and still currently holds the best record for most wins in a season (27).
 
USF has made 13 postseason tournament appearances and had five NCAA Tournament berths in Head Coach Jose Fernandez's 17 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided USF to eight 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2009 WNIT championship and won more than 300 games.
– #GoBulls –