he Florida State transfer and former McDonald’s All-American has been a major part in South Florida’s success this season as the Bulls face East Carolina on Tuesday.
GAME 25 | TUE., JAN. 31, 2023 | 7 P.M. | TAMPA, FLA. | YUENGLING CENTER
Watch Live | Listen Live | Live Stats | Tickets
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
TV/Online: ESPN+ ($)
Jim Louk (PxP), Leah Secondo (Color)
Audio: Bulls Unlimited (TuneIn App/GoUSFBulls.com)
Darek Sharp (PxP), Brigid Merenda (Color)
Live Stats: GoUSFBulls.com
Series: South Florida leads the series, 12-7
Twitter Updates: @USFWBB
Tickets: (800) Go-Bulls; USFBullsTix.com
No. 25/25 USF BULLS | 20-4 (9-0, AAC)
Last Game: Jan. 28 at Memphis, W, 67-62
Next Game: Feb. 4 at SMU, 3 p.m. ET
Head Coach: Jose Fernandez
Alma Mater: FIU, 1994
Career Record: 436-289 (23rd season)
at South Florida: Same
AP/USAT/Net/SOS (Through Jan. 29): 25/25/28/12
EAST CAROLINA PIRATES | 14-7 (5-3, AAC)
Last Game: Jan. 25 vs. Memphis, W, 61-53
Next Game: Feb. 4 at Central Florida, 2 p.m.
Head Coach: Kim McNeill
Alma Mater: Richmond, 2000
Career Record: 42-98 (Seventh season)
at East Carolina: 42-60 (Fourth season)
AP/USAT/Net/SOS (Through Jan. 29): -/-/99/303
By Joey Johnston
TAMPA (January 30, 2023) – The more you watch USF women’s basketball player Sammie Puisis, the more you appreciate her tireless work ethic, attention to detail and goal-oriented approach.
Following the exploits of sweet-shooting Sammie is equal parts exhaustion and inspiration.
There’s the daily regimen, hundreds and hundreds of shot attempts fired from all parts of the court. Sometimes, it’s just her and the ball machine. Her feet are just right. Her shoulders are squared. Her arms have the perfect rotation and follow-through.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
There’s the in-game strategy, where Puisis runs and runs and runs, coming off screens, trying to spring free, sprinting to her spot and usually delivering. The Puisis-in-motion game-day numbers generally measure around four miles — a 5K and then some.
Then there’s the off-court commitment to excellence. She’s a straight-A student. She’s a coach’s dream. She’s a good friend. And despite her deadpan, almost expressionless look when she’s working, she’s pretty good company, too. Good-natured sarcasm and biting zingers are her surprising specialties.
“She’s a pleasure to coach,’’ USF coach Jose Fernandez said. “She’s fun to coach. She has added so much to her game and so much to our team. I’m glad she’s happy because we are certainly glad to have her.’’
Puisis, a former McDonald’s All-American and transfer from Florida State University, is a major reason why the Bulls (20-4, 9-0 American Athletic Conference) are having a season to remember as they prepare to host the East Carolina Pirates (14-7, 5-3) on Tuesday night at the Yuengling Center.
Puisis, a 6-foot-1 guard, is averaging 15.8 points per game, while shooting 38.2 percent from 3-point range, 40.2 percent from the field and 90.9 percent from the free-throw line (after converting 29 consecutive attempts to start the season). With Elena Tsineke and Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu averaging similar point production, USF has three legitimate candidates for AAC Player of the Year consideration.
“I definitely made the right decision to come to USF,’’ Puisis said. “Transferring is stressful and changing from the place (FSU) where you originally signed is difficult, but I’ve really, really enjoyed my time here.
“We have a great group of athletes here and we all work hard. It’s a great environment. All of the coaches here have made me a better player in different ways and that was what I wanted. Having success as a team doesn’t hurt, either. I’m excited for what we have in front of us.’’
And USF coaches are excited that Puisis (pronounced: Pwee-sis) will be there to help lead the Bulls’ charge.
“Sammie wants to be more than a 3-point shooter, she wants to be a three-level scorer,’’ USF associate head coach Michele Woods-Baxter said. “We take a lot of pride in individual development. When we’re working with her, she does everything and absorbs everything, right down to the smallest detail. Then she works incredibly hard to get it all right. She’s very, very low-maintenance.’’
“In this game, there are shot-takers and shot-makers,’’ said USF assistant head coach Danny Hughes, who was a 45-percent shooter from 3-point range at TCU. “Sammie Puisis is definitely a shot-maker.’’
When examining Puisis’ background, it’s easy to see why.
The Basketball Life
Let’s start with this: Puisis’ parents, Ed and Kelly, both played college basketball. It was common for the parents and their six children to hold family games of H-O-R-S-E or P-I-G or 21. The Puisis family is also legendary for its knock-down, drag-out board-game or card-game nights, which pick up ferocity and usually last until the wee hours.
“Competition and specifically basketball, those are definitely our things, our way of life,’’ Puisis’ father said.
Puisis, who began playing in kindergarten, can’t remember a time when she wasn’t playing basketball.
When her older sister, Katie, tried out for a fifth-grade AAU team, there was no one to watch Sammie so the father brought her along. At the gym, there were just nine players, so the coach asked the father if Sammie could be the 10th. Essentially, he wanted her to be stationary, filling a spot on the floor. Sure, the father said, hoping she wouldn’t get discouraged.
After the tryout, Puisis walked over to her father, carrying a uniform.
“What do you have there, Katie’s uniform?’’ He said.
“No, it’s my uniform,’’ Puisis said with a petrified look on her face. “Dad, I made the team.’’
The father immediately went to the coach.
“Look, there must be some mistake. Sammie is in the first grade.’’
The coach shook his head and said, “I don’t care. I want her on the team. She was the most aggressive player on the floor.’’
And that’s how it began.
Puisis’ accomplishments fit in nicely with her family. Katie became a standout beach volleyball player at Florida Gulf Coast University and was named Player of the Decade in her conference. Her older brother, Ed, was the nation’s fifth-best 3-point shooter for Nova Southeastern, an NCAA Division II powerhouse.
Puisis’ father played at Lewis University (near Chicago), while her mother played at Gannon University in Pennsylvania. On some of their early dates, they played H-O-R-S-E against each other. Of course they did.
“They both loved the game and they taught all of us everything they knew,’’ Puisis said. “My mother is more of the supportive type now and she gets my mind off basketball when that is needed. My father likes to break it down. He’s into the stats. He watches my games multiple times and we always talk about them, the good and the bad.’’
Her training worked beautifully as she grew up in Mason, Ohio, becoming a player who could practically name her school. She was ranked as the 37th-best player in America by the ESPNW HoopGurlz scouting service.
She chose FSU, a burgeoning power in NCAA women’s basketball and an annual threat for the Women’s Final Four. She started 41 of 81 games over three seasons, becoming just the third Seminole player to lead the team in 3-pointers made for three straight seasons. But given her offensive-minded reputation, her scoring averages seemed minuscule — just 5.5, 6.9 and 5.8 points per game.
“I was like a stationary shooter, usually in the corner, sometimes just as a decoy,’’ Puisis said. “I felt like I needed to expand my game because my ultimate goal is playing professional basketball. When I looked closer at USF and studied what Jose Fernandez had done, I felt like USF was the place I needed to be.’’
No hard feelings toward FSU.
None at all.
“Sammie is genuinely a wonderful person, so I think the people at FSU were especially disappointed that she was going to leave,’’ Puisis’ father said. “The athletic director said to me, ‘I interviewed everyone around our program and everyone loves Sammie. I couldn’t find anyone to say a negative thing. She was the perfect college athlete in terms of work ethic, treating people well, her overall kindness, her team-first approach.’ And I think that’s all true.
“She’s a good kid, a smart kid and she does what the coaches ask. Whether it’s taking extra shots, working on her ball-handling, whatever, she’s going to do it. And she’ll do it without complaint. I know she’s my daughter and all, but who wouldn’t like that?’’
Shooting For The Top
Puisis prides herself on becoming a complete player. Her rebounding has picked up. Her passing has been precise. She’s ambidextrous — writing with her left hand, playing sports mostly with her right hand — but is comfortable dribbling or passing in either direction.
But the shooting? That’s what everyone first notices.
Before the season, a reporter asked Fernandez about the expected impact of Puisis.
“You’re shocked when Sammie misses a shot, so I think she could be the best shooter we’ve ever had here,’’ Fernandez said.
Better than Kitija Laksa? Better than Inga Orekhova? Better than Courtney Williams? Better than Jessica Dickson? The best ever?
“Ever,’’ Fernandez repeated with emphasis.
Bulls point guard Aerial Wilson said she sometimes marvels at Puisis’ approach.
“That shot is pretty much textbook,’’ Wilson said. “I love it when she pulls up on her mid-range game, just how she elevates and shoots. It’s beautiful to watch. It’s the perfect swish. It’s consistent. She doesn’t drift or have too wide of a stance. She sees all of those things and corrects them before they become a bad habit.’’
The consistency shouldn’t be surprising. Shooting is her life’s work.
Puisis has essentially gone through the same shooting drills with her father since the fourth grade. It’s relentless repetition on footwork, balance and the proper way to step into a shot. Through high school, they’d head to the gym a minimum of five days a week, usually putting up 500 to 600 shots in each session.
“For good shooters, it’s always about footwork, being on balance and repetition — doing it the same way all the time,’’ the father said. “Sammie also has the benefit of having probably the quickest release I’ve ever seen.’’
Puisis, nearing her bachelor’s degree in finance with designs on an MBA, said she’s rarely surprised by a great shooting night or even a long string of made free throws, such as her 29-for-29 streak to start the season. That is her expectation.
“I’ve always gotten up a lot of shots outside of practice, but the difference now is I’m working on multiple things, not just my 3-point shot,’’ Puisis said. “In this offense, I have plays run for me. I’m able to come off screens. It opens me up and it’s harder for people to face-guard me. It’s just more fun.’’
Outside of the court, Puisis enjoys being with her 2-year-old toy Australian Shepherd, Josie. “When I come home, she doesn’t care how I played,’’ Puisis said with a laugh. Puisis also likes movies and binge-watching some Netflix content, along with listening to music.
But her favorite thing of all? You guessed it. The sound of a basketball going through a net.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
For sweet-shooting Sammie, it’s the payoff for a lifetime of hoops preparation.
“I want to be in the gym because I have goals and dreams in this game,’’ Puisis said. “In the beginning, with my family, I didn’t have much choice, but I grew to love basketball. Not every day is perfect. You have some days when you’re feeling off and it doesn’t seem right. But the bottom line is when you put in the work, you’re going to get results. If you work hard enough, the results always come.’’
Catch The Bulls on Bulls Unlimited & ESPN+
The majority of USF’s regular-season games will be streamed live on the ESPN+ platform. The American Athletic Conference and ESPN began a new 12-year television rights agreement which started in 2020-21. Subscriptions for the ESPN+ app are $9.99 monthly or $99.99 annually and can be packaged with Hulu and Disney+ streaming services. A step-by-step guide for subscribing to ESPN+ is located here.
In addition, all games this season will be broadcast live on USF Bulls Unlimited, with Darek Sharp (home and away) and Brigid Merenda (for home games only) on the call. Bulls Unlimited is available via the free Tune In app (search “Bulls Unlimited’’) and provides static-free quality whether you’re listening on your streaming device, laptop or desktop.
About USF Women’s Basketball
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South Florida recorded its 10th 20-win season during the 2021-22 campaign while playing in its sixth American Athletic Conference championship game in its nine years in the conference. The Bulls achieved their highest national ranking of the season when it checked in at No. 13 in the Nov. 30 Associated Press Top 25 Poll, and advanced to their seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in the last nine years.
USF has made 17 postseason tournament appearances and had eight NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez’s 22 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided USF to 10 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2009 WNIT championship, and has won over 400 career games. Fernandez was named a finalist for the WBCA and semifinalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Awards. He was also tabbed the 2021 American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year at the conclusion of the 2020-21 campaign.
In 2021-22, the Bulls had three players recognized by The American for impressive seasons, including Elena Tsineke (All-Conference First Team), Bethy Mununga (All-Conference Second Team) and Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu (All-Conference Second Team).
In addition, Tsineke and Mununga were named to the American Athletic Conference All-Tournament Team.
–#GoBulls –
