By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

HOUSTON, FEB. 27, 2019 – USF jumped out to a 23-point halftime lead and withstood a late Houston rally in a 59-49 victory that extended the Bulls' winning streak to four straight games on Wednesday night.

USF (16-12, 7-7) led by 26 late in the third quarter before Houston (15-12, 9-5) worked its deficit down to seven with 1:14 to play. Freshman guard Sydni Harvey (Nashville, Tenn.) helped the Bulls seal the victory with a free throw and defensive rebound in the final minute of her return to action following a three-game absence.

Freshman guard Elisa Pinzan (Murano, Italy) added a pair of free throws before the final buzzer and scored eight of her career-high 12 points in the first half that saw the Bulls build a 38-15 lead at the break.

Sophomore guard Enna Pehadzic (Horsens, Denmark) extended her double-digit scoring streak to eight games with 12 points. Freshman wing Luize Septe (Ventspils, Latvia) finished with 11 points after a seven-point showing in USF's dominant opening half.

Junior post Tamara Henshaw (Palm Coast, Fla.) matched her career high with 15 points and scored six of her nine total points in the first half. Sophomore center Shae Leverett (Rincon, Ga.) also had a solid performance with eight points and eight rebounds.

Pinzan matched her previous career high with eight points in the Bulls' impressive opening half. Pehadzic led all scorers with nine points at the break while USF shot 55 percent in the first two quarters on the way to a 38-15 lead.

Pinzan and Leverett scored six points apiece in the first quarter and both combined for four of the Bulls' seven straight made shots during a six-minute stretch in the period on the way to a 22-10 advantage.

USF started the second quarter on a 7-0 run with a Pehadzic three-pointer and two jumpers from Henshaw. The Bulls' defense kept Houston scoreless for the final 4:30 of the period and the Cougars ended up shooting just 20.7 percent from the field in the half (6-for-29).

Houston cut a 21-point deficit in the fourth quarter down to 55-49 with 1:14 to play before the Bulls got three key free throws from their freshman guards.

Quotable
Head coach Jose Fernandez's thoughts on the Bulls' impressive first half and their ability to pull out the victory:
"I thought we defended and it helps when we make shots. But that fourth quarter, that just shows we've got to continue to get better and grow. Their pressure bothered us… But it's a good win. Let's get back to Tampa and get ready to go to Cincinnati."

Fernandez on freshman guard Sydni Harvey's return:
"We wanted to rest her because she needed some more practice time. She hasn't practiced in a while, but she helped us there at the end."

Key Stats
15 – USF held Houston to only 15 points in the first half while the Cougars went 6-for-29 from the field.
34 – The Bulls ended up shooting 47 percent from the field after dominating in points in the paint by a 34-18 margin.

Notables

• USF improved to 14-7 in its all-time series with Houston.
• Freshman guard Elisa Pinzan set a new career high with 12 points.
• Freshman Sydni Harvey played three minutes in her return to action after missing the past three games due to concussion protocol.
• Tamara Henshaw matched her career high with 15 rebounds, including 10 in the first half.

 
Up Next
USF wraps up a two-game road trip at Cincinnati on Saturday at noon.

The Bulls will conclude the regular season with a home game against No. 2 UConn on Monday, March 4. Action at the Yuengling Center begins at 7 p.m. and fans can reserve their seats at USFBullsTix.com.
 
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 Fernandezat 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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