By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TALLAHASSEE, Fla., MARCH 17, 2018 – Kitija Laksa set USF's new junior scoring record while one of the most successful seasons in Bulls women's basketball history ended in the opening round of the NCAA tournament on Saturday afternoon.

No. 19/20 USF had an 11-point advantage in the second quarter but couldn't hold onto the lead in a 102-79 loss to Buffalo at the Tucker Civic Center. USF (26-8) made its fourth straight NCAA tournament trip and fell one victory short of matching the program's season wins record.

Laksa set the new USF junior season scoring record of 717 points by pouring in a team-high 28 points. The Riga, Latvia native reached the second-highest point total in program season history by scoring 18 points and making three of her five three-pointers after the break.

Maria Jespersen (Arhus, Denmark) posted the 30^th double-double of her career, capping off her stellar senior season with 23 points and 11 rebounds. Jespersen moved up to 10^th place on USF's all-time scoring list with 1,462 points.

Senior point guard Laia Flores (Mataro, Spain) finished with nine points, three rebounds and three assists. Flores broke her own USF assists record with 217 this season.

Sophomore forward Tamara Henshaw (Palm Coast, Fla.) gave the Bulls a big boost with six points and four rebounds before leaving the game midway through the second quarter with an injury. Henshaw returned after the break, finishing with 12 points and seven rebounds in 25 minutes.

Back in Tallahassee for the second straight postseason, sixth-seeded USF had the momentum early before 11^th-seeded Buffalo (28-5) stormed back to take a 43-38 lead into halftime.

Making its fourth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance, poised USF built a 6-2 lead from long range with three-pointers by Laksa and Jespersen, who powered the offense early. The double-double machine was already up to 13 points and seven rebounds by the time the Bulls took a 20-11 lead into the second quarter.

USF led by 11 early in the second quarter but had to deal with some adversity after Henshaw left the game with an injury midway through the period. Buffalo finished the quarter on a 20-7 run and scored 17 points off 10 USF turnovers in the opening half.

Buffalo held a 17-point lead with less than three minutes left in the third quarter before USF heated up and went 8-for-8 from the field down the stretch. Laksa scored five straight points and later completed a three-point play to help the Bulls cut the Buffalo lead to 71-58 by the end of the period.

Laksa ended up reaching the 20-point mark for the 18^th time this season while Buffalo shot 57 percent from the field with 14 three-pointers in the victory.

Quotable
Head coach Jose Fernandez's thoughts on the game:
"That first quarter, we came out of the media timeout and they went on a 5-0 run. We were up nine going into the second quarter and we didn't close the half. That run was huge, where they hit three threes in that final three and a half minutes. We needed to chip away at the tail end of that third quarter and going into the fourth. Everything went in that third quarter, they shoot 65 percent from the floor. It didn't give us an opportunity to get back into the game with how well they were shooting the ball."

Fernandez on the performance by Buffalo:
"Buffalo was really, really good. They were special tonight - 14 of 27 from the three-point and they shot close to 60 percent from the floor. That's was sports is all about in the NCAA tournament. You've got to give them credit. They played really, really well."

Fernandez on his team continuing to battle:
"I'm proud of our (players). We had a really good week of practice. We make no excuses, we got beat by a better team today. That's what sports is all about and that's what this tournament is all about. I think our kids battled, they fought, they played hard and they competed. But we ran into a team that was very, very good today from all facets."

Fernandez on what the Bulls can take from this game going into next season with many returners:
"We return our front line, Kit and Laura Ferreira. We have a couple (players) sitting out that are really, really good. It's tough because Maria and Laia have meant so much to our program. We came up here last year and lost at the buzzer on a put-back. What you take away from it is, hey we've got to have a great offseason. We're going to have a great nonconference schedule in November and December. You've got to move forward."
 
Key Stats
14 – Buffalo rallied past the Bulls while sinking 14 three-pointers.
25 – Buffalo scored 25 points off 16 USF turnovers.
38 – Despite the loss, USF controlled things inside with a 38-22 scoring advantage in the paint.
57.7 – Buffalo's shooting percentage in the second half.
 
Notable

• USF finished one victory shy of the program season wins record of 27 set in 2008-09 and 2014-15.
• USF made its fifth NCAA tournament appearance in the past six seasons and the program's sixth overall trip.
• Kitija Laksa passed the 20-point mark for the 36^th time in her career and the 18^th time this season. Laksa's 28 points rank third on USF's NCAA tournament game scoring chart.
• Laksa's 717 points this season broke the USF junior scoring record that was previously held by Courtney Williams (710 points, 2014-15). Laksa's 717 points rank second on USF's all-time season scoring chart behind Williams' 763 points in 2015-16.
• Maria Jespersen posted the 30^th double-double of her career and 18^th of the season with 23 points and 11 rebounds.
• Jespersen and Laia Flores became USF's first graduating class to reach four NCAA tournaments and surpass 100 career wins in four seasons.

About USF Women's Basketball
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USF notched its sixth consecutive 20-win season in an 84-65 romp of No. 13 Ohio State. This is the ninth 20-win season in program history and head coach Jose Fernandez has been at the helm for all nine 20-win seasons. The 2014-15 and 2008-09 teams hold the 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.