Wednesday Night (Feb. 22, 2023) Notables:
• The Bulls' men's basketball, women's basketball, baseball and softball teams all posted wins on the same night for the first time since Feb. 26, 2011 and for just the third time in program history, also accomplishing the feat on Feb. 23, 1997.
• It also marked just the second time all four programs went undefeated on the same night, as softball swept a double-header on Wednesday night after having previously split a double-header in 2011.
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Men's Basketball – marked the first sweep over their War On I-4 rival UCF in 30 years (there were some seasons with just one USF-UCF game — or none at all — but the teams have played home-and-home annually since the American Athletic Conference era began in 2013-14).
• Men's basketball's
Keyshawn Bryant had two fabulous dunks in the game that became the No. 2 and No. 4 plays on ESPN's nightly Top 10 countdown.
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Women's Basketball – AAC Regular Season Champion women's basketball had an impressive win on senior night to improve to 25-5, 14-1 in the conference. They are two short of the program's season win record of 27 and one shy of the conference win record of 15 set in 2014-15.
• Counting the USF women's basketball sweep of the Knights, Bulls basketball went 4-0 this season against UCF.
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Baseball – the Bulls held off the No. 7-ranked Florida Gators 10-9 at Condron Family Ballpark in Gainesville. It marked their second top 15-ranked win of the season.
•
Softball - The Bulls swept the Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles, 3-0 and 3-1, to gain momentum in an early season schedule dominated by nationally ranked opponents.
Shortly after the USF men's basketball team wrapped up a monumental 82-75 victory against the UCF Knights on Wednesday night in Orlando, Bulls coach
Brian Gregory sat at the scorer's table for his customary postgame radio interview. After studying the box score, he tried to gather his thoughts, then stopped in mid-sentence.
"I'm exhausted,'' Gregory said.
Gregory spoke for all of Bulls Nation following a Wednesday night that was equal parts exhaustion, exhilaration and satisfaction. There have been more significant moments — conference championships, NCAA Tournament bids or individual milestones — but there has never been a collective regular-season performance like the four-pack presented on Wednesday night.
The Bulls' men's basketball, women's basketball, baseball and softball teams all posted wins on the same night for the first time since Feb. 26, 2011 and for just the third time in program history, also accomplishing the feat on Feb. 23, 1997. It also marked just the second time all four went undefeated on the same night, as softball swept a double-header on Wednesday after having previously split a double-header in 2011.
In a riveting and emotional effort at Orlando's Addition Financial Arena, the Bulls held off the Knights in men's basketball, completing the first sweep over their War On I-4 rivals in 30 years (there were some seasons with just one USF-UCF game — or none at all — but the teams have played home-and-home annually since the American Athletic Conference era began in 2013-14). Counting the USF women's sweep of the Knights, Bulls basketball went 4-0 this season against UCF.
Coach
Billy Mohl's baseball team staged an improbable rally — scoring seven times in the top of the ninth inning — as the Bulls held off the No. 7-ranked Florida Gators 10-9 at Condron Family Ballpark in Gainesville. It was a stunning turnabout, achieved on the same field where USF captured an NCAA Regional championship in 2021.
At the Yuengling Center in Tampa, Coach
Jose Fernandez's women's basketball team subdued the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, 93-83, on a Senior Night celebrating two of the program's best-ever players,
Elena Tsineke and
Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu. The Bulls, already the AAC regular-season champions, improved to 25-5 (15-1 AAC), two wins shy of the program wins record, and continued to position themselves for the highest NCAA Tournament seed (No. 6 in 2015) in program history.
At the USF Softball Stadium, Coach
Ken Eriksen's Bulls swept the Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles, 3-0 and 3-1, to gain momentum in an early season schedule dominated by nationally ranked opponents.
"Obviously, this was a night I will never forget,'' USF vice president of athletics Michael Kelly said. "What an incredible night it was for USF Athletics. I'm so happy for our players, coaches and fans.''
Kelly's night?
It began with the first game of softball's double-header. Then he hustled over to the women's basketball Senior Night ceremony and watched the game in his loge suite with USF president Rhea Law. It soon became a multi-tasking festival. Kelly had the men's basketball game telecast streaming on his phone — and marveled at the four dunks by
Keyshawn Bryant (two of which became the No. 2 and No. 4 plays on ESPN's nightly Top 10 countdown) — while also monitoring baseball through the Stat Broadcast website.
Once the women's basketball game and Fernandez's press conference was complete, Kelly attended a Senior Night reception for the USF pep band. As he reached the Yuengling Center's service level, he followed the ninth-inning rally of USF baseball on Stat Broadcast.
Invigorated by USF's win against the Gators, Kelly walked to the Selmon Athletics Center with the men's basketball game still playing out on his phone. As Kelly unlocked the Selmon Center's door, USF freshman guard
Ryan Conwell nailed a 3-point dagger, giving the Bulls a 75-71 lead against the Knights with 50.5 seconds remaining.
Kelly watched the final seconds from his office — as free throws from Sam Hines and Serrel Smith helped to clinch the win for the Bulls — then he walked back to softball (where his event-watching odyssey began a few hours earlier) to witness the completion of USF's double-header sweep.
On the bus ride home from Orlando — a raucous journey for a team that has weathered its share of close defeats this season — Gregory first began to notice that the Wednesday USF sports schedule was more than typical. He noticed the Bulls scoring seven ninth-inning runs to diffuse the Gators and sent out a congratulatory tweet to USF baseball.
"Huge win, fellas!''
By then, Mohl was also on the road, fueled by an incomparable ninth-inning rally.
Drew Brutcher sparked it with a leadoff homer.
Jackson Mayo tied it with a three-run shot. And
Daniel Cantu put USF ahead to stay by smacking a triple and scoring on a wild pitch.
It was a lot to absorb. But Mohl, too, noticed that it was an uncommon night for USF Athletics. On an Interstate 75 joyride of his own (maybe somewhere near the Wildwood exit) he fired a Twitter reply to Gregory (who was probably somewhere near Lakeland on Interstate 4).
"Not too shabby yourself, Coach. Congrats.''
Exhilarating, historic and maybe a little exhausting, too.
For USF Athletics, it was that kind of Wednesday night.
– Go Bulls –
