Alabama at home, Texas, NC State, Gulf Coast Showcase and San Diego Invite highlight the Bulls’ slate.
TAMPA (August 22, 2022) – University of South Florida women’s basketball head coach Jose Fernandez has always been one to raise the bar for his perennial Top 25 program, continually putting together one of the top nonconference schedules in the country, and the 2022-23 campaign will be no exception.
Fernandez announced on Monday this season’s nonconference slate that includes 13 of the Bulls’ potential 15 foes who advanced to the 2022 postseason, 11 of those opponents taking part in the NCAA Tournament.
Opponents or possible opponents that took part in the 2022 NCAA Tournament – Georgia Tech, Michigan, Baylor, Belmont, Buffalo, Villanova, Texas, NC State, Ohio State, Arkansas and Oregon.
Opponents or possible opponents that took part in the 2022 WNIT – Alabama, Air Force
“I think it’s the type of schedule our fans will be really excited about,” said Fernandez. “Like every year, November and December will provide some great opportunities for us that will get us ready for the conference season.”
Highlighting this year’s schedule is a home contest with Alabama, a meeting with TCU in the prestigious Maggie Dixon Classic in Fort Worth, Texas, road contests at Texas and NC State and appearances in the San Diego Invitational and the Gulf Coast Showcase in Fort Myers.
After a trio of home games against Morehead State on Mon. Nov. 7, Florida A&M on Fri., Nov. 11, and Jacksonville on Sun., Nov. 13 to start the season, South Florida will welcome the Crimson Tide to the Yuengling Center on Wed. Nov. 16. Alabama finished the 2021-22 season with a 20-14 record and advanced to the WNIT quarterfinals before losing to eventual champion South Dakota State.
The Bulls then play six of the next seven games on the road, beginning at TCU in the Maggie Dixon Classic on Sun. Nov. 20. Following a home game with New Hampshire on Tue., Nov. 22 South Florida will travel south on Interstate 75 to take part in the Gulf Coast Showcase, in Fort Myers, Fla. at Hertz Arena. The Bulls will open the three-day tournament on Friday, Nov. 25 against Georgia Tech and will face either Michigan or Air Force on Sat., Nov. 26 in the semifinals or the consolation round. The Gulf Coast Showcase championship game is slated for 7:30 p.m. on Sun., Nov. 27.
Georgia Tech finished the 2021-22 campaign with a 21-11 record and an 11-7 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Yellow Jackets fell to Kansas in the NCAA Tournament First Round, 77-58.
Michigan went 25-7 in 2021-22 and 13-4 in the Big Ten. The Wolverines, slotted as the No. 3-seed in the NCAA Tournament, advanced to the Elite Eight, falling to No. 1-seeded Louisville, 62-50.
Air Force finished last season 19-14 overall and 11-7 in the Mountain West Conference. The Falcons made the second round of the WNIT, defeating San Francisco, 64-60, in the first round before falling to UCLA, 61-45, in the second round.
After its trip south, South Florida heads back to the Lone Star State to take on Texas in Austin –the site of USF’s 2021 NCAA Tournament First Round win over Washington State – on Friday. Dec. 2 in what is the first of two back-to-back games against 2022 NCAA Elite Eight teams. The Longhorns finished last season with a 29-7 record and fell to No. 2-ranked Stanford, 59-50.
The Bulls close out the seven-game stretch in Raleigh, N.C. against NC State on Sun. Dec. 11. In the 2022 NCAA Tournament, the top-seeded Wolfpack came up four points shy of advancing to the Final Four, falling 91-87 in double overtime to UConn. It was the first double overtime contest in NCAA women’s basketball Elite Eight history. NC State finished the year 32-4.
The Green and Gold will close out the home portion of their nonconference schedule with consecutive games against Marshall and LaSalle on Wed., Dec. 14 and Sat., Dec. 17, respectively.
Just before the holiday break, South Florida heads to southern California for two games in the San Diego Invitational. During the two-day event, the Bulls will butt heads with Ohio State on Tue., Dec. 20 and either Oregon or Arkansas on Wed., Dec. 21.
Last season, the Buckeyes finished with a 25-7 record, falling to Texas, 66-63, in the NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen. The Razorbacks were 18-14 last year and the Ducks ended the year 20-12 with both programs advancing to the NCAA Tournament First Round.
South Florida defeated Oregon last season, 71-62, in the third-place game of the Inaugural Battle 4 Atlantis at the Atlantis Paradise Island Hotel in Paradise Island, Bahamas.
The American Athletic Conference announced the Bulls’ home and way conference opponents in July, and the complete AAC schedule will be released in the coming weeks.
2022-23 Conference Home & Away Opponents: UCF, Houston, SMU, Memphis, Tulane & Tulsa
2022-23 Conference Home Only: East Carolina & Temple
2022-23 Conference Away Only: Cincinnati & Wichita State
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Last season, South Florida posted a 24-9 overall record, and a 12-3 mark in the American Athletic Conference, and capped off the season with its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance, and its seventh trip to the Big Dance in the last 10 years. The Green and Gold have advanced to the postseason 17 times in program history.
In addition to their win over Oregon, the Bulls posted a thrilling 57-54 win over 2021, and then, defending national champion and No. 7-ranked Stanford.
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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.
The Bulls had three players, during the 2021-22 campaign, 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.
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