The eighth-seeded Bulls will face ninth-seeded Washington State on Sunday in the opening round at the University of Texas’ Frank Erwin Center.
TAMPA (March 15, 2021) – On the heels of winning the program’s first-ever American Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament titles, the University of South Florida women’s basketball team found out its path for the 2021 NCAA Tournament during Monday night’s selection show. The Bulls earned The American’s automatic bid with their 64-54 win over UCF in last Thursday’s conference tournament title game.
USF is advancing to its seventh NCAA Tournament in program history, earning the No. 8-Seed in the Mercado Region, and will face ninth-seeded Washington State in the first round at the Frank Erwin Center at the University of Texas in Austin, Sunday, March 21 at 9:30 p.m. ET. The game can be seen live on ESPN2.
San Antonio and the surrounding region will play host to the entire NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship, with the Final Four being held in the Alamodome, April 2-4. Six championship rounds featuring 63 games will be played using five venues and six courts in San Antonio, Austin, and San Marcos, Texas, with the Alamodome hosting two of those courts.
First-round play will take place at the Alamodome, Bill Greehey Arena on the campus of St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Frank Erwin Center, Texas State’s University Events Center in San Marcos, and the UTSA Convocation Center.
The USF/Washington State winner will advance to the second round on Tuesday, March 23, to face the first-round winner from No. 1-seed North Carolina State and 16-seed North Carolina A&T.
This marks the second meeting between the Bulls and the Cougars, with USF holding a 1-0 series lead. The Bulls defeated Washington State, 82-45, on Nov. 24, 2017, in the Gulf Coast Showcase in Fort Myers, Fla.
USF Notables: The Bulls have been eagerly awaiting the tournament selection show since their win over the Knights on March 11 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. USF is currently 18-3 on the year and went 13-2 in American Athletic Conference play this season.
- During the 2020-21 campaign, South Florida also posted a program-record 13-game win streak – the seventh-longest in the nation at the time – and won a program-best 12 consecutive AAC games.
- USF also achieved the highest ranking in program history, checking in at No. 12 in the Feb. 15 Associated Press Top 25 Poll.
- Six Bulls earned AAC postseason recognition, including head coach Jose Fernandez, following a vote by the league’s head coaches. Fernandez was named the AAC Coach of the Year, while Elisa Pinzan was tabbed the league’s Most Improved Player. Maria Alvarez was chosen as the Co-Sixth Player of the Year.
- Bethy Mununga and Elena Tsineke were also named to The American All-Conference First Team, Pinzan was a Second Team selection and Sydni Harvey earned Third Team honors.
- Also, Harvey was tabbed the American Athletic Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player and named to the All-Tournament team, while Mununga and Tsineke were also all-tourney selections.
- Pinzan continues to rank in the top 10 nationally in all three assist categories; assists per game (4th, 6.7), assist/turnover ratio (7th, 3.07), and total assists (8th, 141).
- Mununga has been a force on the boards, on both ends of the floor. She is second in the nation in rebounds per game (13.2), 10th in total rebounds (277), 10th in offensive rebounds per game (4.5), and 10th in defensive rebounds per contest (8.7).
Washington State Update: Washington State comes into its game with USF with a 12-11 overall record and a 9-10 mark in the Pac-12, and fell to Arizona, 60-44, in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas.
- The Cougars are led by the sister duo of Charlisse Leger-Walker and Krystal Leger-Walker who are averaging 18.9 and 10.0 points per game, respectively.
- Ula Motuga and Bella Murekatete lead Washington State on the glass, grabbing 6.7 rebounds per game, each.
The American placed two teams in this year’s NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship. Joining the Bulls are; UCF, who earned a 10-seed and will play seventh-seeded Northwestern on March 22, at 4 p.m. ET.
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USF has 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 conference regular-season and tournament titles, and posted their highest ranking in the Associated Press Top25 poll, reaching as high as No. 12.
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 380 games. For his efforts on the sideline during the 2020-21 season, Fernandez has been named a semifinalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Award.
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