Bulls also win program record ninth-straight conference game as Bethy Mununga netted 19 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for her 14th career double-double and sixth of the season.
Game Details
No. 14/15 USF 67, Tulsa 46
USF (11-1, *9-0 AAC), Tulsa (5-9, 4-9 AAC)
Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021 | 4 p.m. | ESPN+
Tampa, Fla. | Yuengling Center
- The American has declared a forfeit win for USF against Memphis for conference-standings purposes only as a result of the scheduled game from Jan. 17 that was not played. The teams’ overall records are not affected.
TAMPA (AP) (Feb. 13, 2021) — Bethy Mununga had 19 points and 15 rebounds and No. 14/15 South Florida played its first game in a month, beating Tulsa 67-46 on Saturday.
USF (11-1, *9-0 AAC), which hasn’t played since Jan. 13 due to COVID-19 issues within the program, won its program-best 10th straight game including eight by double digits.
Sydni Harvey made four 3-pointers and scored 14 points for the Bulls. Elisa Pinzan had 13 points and matched a career best with six steals. The pair each had seven of the Bulls’ 19 assists. Mihaela Lazic added a career-high 10 points.
Wyvette Mayberry scored 18 points off the bench to lead Tulsa (5-9, 4-9 AAC), which is winless against the Bulls (0-9). The Golden Hurricane missed 14 of 15 from long range and finished 18-of-62 shooting (29%) from the floor.
Mununga had 13 points and 10 rebounds in the first half as USF closed on a 10-0 run for 33-20 halftime advantage. The Bulls held a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
USF hosts Cincinnati on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
USF athletics communications contributed to this story.
Key Stats
6.7% – The Bulls didn’t seem to have any rust in terms of defending the three-point arc against Tulsa. USF, who came into the game second in the nation in three-point field goal percentage defense, allowing the opposition to hit just 20.3 percent of their shots from long range, held the Golden Hurricane to just 6.7 percent from three.
Notable
USF played its first game since Jan. 13 at Tulane, a stretch of 31 days without a game.
The win over Tulsa improves USF’s record in the all-time series against the Golden Hurricane to 9-0, and 4-0 all-time in games played in Tampa.
USF’s win marked its 10th- straight victory setting a new program record for consecutive wins … The Bulls surpassed their previous best of nine straight wins set during the 2008-09 and 1972-73 campaigns.
USF’s win over the Golden Hurricane also marks its ninth straight conference victory, which sets a new program record for consecutive conference wins.
The Bulls’ 11-1 start marks just the third time during the Jose Fernandez coaching era (since the 2000-01 season) that the Bulls have won at least 11 games through their first 12 outings … They also accomplished the feat during the 2016-17 (13-1) and 2008-09 (13-1) campaigns, under Fernandez.
Bethy Mununga’s game-highs of 19 points and 15 rebounds marked her 14th career double-double and the sixth of the season.
Despite no blocked shots against Tulsa, Shae Leverett continues to move up the school’s career blocked shot and rebounding charts this season … She currently has 93 rejections for her career, which ties Courtney Williams (2012-16) in seventh place on the school’s career list … She is now just seven blocks shy of becoming the seventh player in program history to reject at least 100 shots.
Also, Leverett continues to move up the school’s career rebounding chart … Against Tulsa, Leverett’s six rebounds give her 597, 17th place on the school’s all-time rebounding list … She is just one board shy of becoming the 17th player in program history to grab 600 career rebounds.
Mihaela Lazic earned her first career start on Saturday against Tulane, and took full advantage, netting a career-high 10 points … She surpassed her previous best of six against Jacksonville on Nov. 28 in the season-opener.
Up Next
Following the Tulsa game, USF returns to the Yuengling Center on Feb. 17, when the Bulls face Cincinnati in the second of two-straight games at home. The contest is rescheduled from the postponed game on Jan. 30. Tipoff against the Bearcats is slated for 7 p.m. with the game being streamed live on ESPN+.
About USF Women’s Basketball
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USF notched its ninth consecutive 19-win season and was poised for its ninth straight postseason appearance in 2019-20 before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the end of the college basketball season. The Bulls celebrated two all-conference honorees in Elena Tsineke and Elisa Pinzan. Tsineke was named the American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year, in addition to The American All-Freshman Team and Third Team All-Conference; while Pinzan was named a Third Team All-Conference selection.
USF has made 15 postseason tournament appearances and had six NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez’s 20 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 350 games.
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