Bethy Mununga leads the way with 18 points, 12 rebounds for her first double-double of the season.
Game Details
No. 23 South Florida 77, Syracuse 53
USF (3-1), Syracuse (2-2)
Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021 | 2:30 p.m. | FloHoops
Paradise Islands, Bahamas | Atlantis Paradise Islands Imperial Arena
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas (Nov. 20, 2021) — The 23rd-ranked USF Bulls overcame a slow start to earn a 77-53 win over Syracuse in the second game of the Inaugural Bad Boy Mowers Women’s Battle 4 Atlantis Saturday afternoon inside Imperial Arena.
After trailing 18-13 at the end of the first quarter, USF turned up its defensive effort to outscore Syracuse 20-8 in the second quarter to take a 33-26 lead into halftime. A pair of layups from Bethy Mununga knotted the score at 22-22 and a 3-pointer by the senior forward a few moments later gave the Bulls a 27-22 lead to cap a 14-2 run.
USF, the preseason favorite in the American Athletic Conference (AAC), had a clear size advantage in the post and the squad made the most of it, out-rebounding the Orange, 50-30. The Bulls grabbed 18 offensive rebounds and held Syracuse to four while scoring 22 second-chance points and limiting the Orange to two.
“I think the most important thing we needed to do was bounce back after the loss at Tennessee,” said USF head coach Jose Fernandez. “We talked about what happened there and we wanted to do a great job on the glass today. On the other end of the floor, I thought we got the ball where we wanted it to get to.
“I told our guys that there aren’t many teams that are going to play a five-game stretch like this. Tennessee (SEC), Syracuse (ACC), UConn, possibly Oregon or South Carolina and then Stanford (in the Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Championship, Nov. 26, 12 p.m.). So, we’re definitely going to find out a lot about ourselves in this five-game stretch to get us ready for March.”
Mununga led a balanced scoring attack for the Bulls with a game-high 18 points and pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds to record her first double-double of the year. Elena Tsineke and Sydni Harvey each scored 17 points, both on 6-of-12 shooting from the floor for USF.
Syracuse was led by Christianna Carr with 14 points, as she knocked down four 3-pointers and drained a pair of free throws.
The Orange cut the Bulls lead to five (35-30) in the third quarter, but Harvey answered with a 3-pointer and a layup on a fast break to push the USF lead back to 10 at 40-30.
“I thought our kids competed hard. I never thought that they didn’t compete,” said Syracuse acting head coach Vonn Read. “This team just has not played together that much, so we’re trying to build that chemistry and execution on the fly. I think our girls are doing a good job of trying to do that, but it’s tough and we have to continue to push forward.”
Syracuse has nine newcomers on its 2021-22 roster, while USF returned all five starters from last season.
USF will face second-ranked UConn in its next game of the tournament at noon Sunday, while Syracuse will play Minnesota at 5 p.m. Sunday.
Story courtesy of Battle 4 Atlantis. USF athletics communications contributed to this recap.
Key Stat
18-4 – Included in their 50 rebounds, the Bulls grabbed 18 offensive boards to the Orange’s four, which led to a 22-2 second-chance points margin.
Notable
- Saturday’s starters for the Bulls were: G Elisa Pinzan, G Sydni Harvey, W Elena Tsineke, F Shae Leverett, and F Bethy Mununga … The Bulls are 2-1 with this lineup.
- USF improves to 7-5 all-time against Syracuse, an old foe when both schools were members of the BIG EAST Conference.
- Bethy Mununga’s 18 points were a season-high and just five off of equaling her career-best of 23 points.
- Mununga’s 12 rebounds mark the second double-figure rebounding performance of the season and the 37th of her career … In addition, her 18-point, 12-rebound double-double is her first of the season and the 21st of her career.
- Elisa Pinzan dished out a season-high nine assists against the Orange, leaving her just seven assists shy of 40 for her career.
Up Next
The Bulls now have a date with former BIG EAST Conference, and American Athletic Conference foe, UConn, on Sunday at noon, with the winner earning a spot in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship game on Monday at noon, with the game being televised on ESPN2. The third-place game will take place on Monday at 2:30 p.m. on ESPNU.
About USF Women’s Basketball
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USF recorded its best season in program history during the 2020-21 campaign, all while navigating the unpredictable COVID-19 landscape. In doing so, the Bulls won their first-ever American Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament titles, and posted their highest ranking in the Associated Press Top25 poll – reaching as high as No. 12 – and made their ninth straight postseason appearance, and sixth NCAA appearance in the last 10 years.
USF has made 16 postseason tournament appearances and had seven NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez’s 21 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 nearly 400 career games. For his efforts on the sideline during the 2020-21 season, 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.
The Bulls posted a 19-4 record and had five players, during the 2020-21 campaign, the Bulls had five players recognized by The American for impressive seasons, including Elisa Pinzan (Most Improved Player, All-Conference Second Team), Maria Alvarez (Co-Sixth Player of the Year), Bethy Mununga (All-Conference First Team), Elena Tsineke (All-Conference First Team), and Sydni Harvey (All-Conference Third Team).
In addition, Harvey was named the American Athletic Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player and to the All-Tournament Team, while Mununga and Tsineke were also All-Tournament selections.
– #GoBulls –
