Tamara Henshaw grabs 13 rebounds in the loss to the Lady Rebels.
Game Details
UNLV 61, -/RV USF 51
USF (7-6), UNLV (4-8)
Saturday, Dec. 21, 2019 | 3 p.m. ET
Las Vegas, Nev. | Cox Pavilion
LAS VEGAS, Nev. (Dec. 21, 2019) – The University of South Florida women’s basketball team was hoping to enter the holiday break on a winning note, however, UNLV had other ideas as the Lady Rebels handed the Bulls a 61-51 loss in the consolation game of the Duel in the Desert at Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Saturday afternoon. USF falls to 7-6 on the year, while UNLV improves to 4-8.
The Bulls, who failed to put anyone in double figures in the scoring column, were led by Kristyna Brabencova (Brno, Czech Republic) and Shae Leverett (Rincon, Ga.) with nine points apiece. Tamara Henshaw (Palm Coast, Fla.) scored eight points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds. It marks Henshaw’s fourth time this season where she grabbed double-digit rebounds, and her fourth consecutive game of hauling down 10-or-more.
The Bulls led at the end of the first quarter, 20-16, only to go the next 10-plus minutes – spanning the end of the first quarter and beginning of the second – without scoring a point, until Henshaw hit a short jumper with 5:40 left in the first half to make the score, 23-22, UNLV. The Bulls kept it a one possession game the rest of the half, however could not regain the lead, as they trailed the Lady Rebels at the break, 31-29.
Both teams went basket-for-basket for most of the third quarter, until USF took a two-point lead on a layup by Brabencova with just over one-minute left in the quarter. That was the last lead that the Bulls held the rest of the way.
USF looked to keep the momentum up to start the fourth quarter, only to begin the final period with another scoring drought, as UNLV scored the first nine points of the fourth to take a 55-44 lead and control of the game. The Bulls didn’t threaten the rest of the day.
Score By Quarters
1 2 3 4 F
USF 20 9 15 7 51
UNLV 16 15 15 15 61
Quotable
“Like I told our guys, we came off the loss (to Mississippi State on Thursday), we had a good practice and everyone was feeling good. But at times you get to a point in the season where you don’t play well, and we’re just not playing well right now. We are relying on kids that have never been put into these positions before. At times in the two games out here (in Las Vegas), we’ve had three or four freshmen on the floor. We have to get our older kids playing better, there is no excuse for it. We’re just a different team right now. It’s a long season and we just have to regroup.” – USF head coach Jose Fernandez on Saturday’s loss to UNLV.
Key Stats
16:30 – The Bulls had opportunities in the game, however two untimely scoring droughts of 10:06, at the end of the first quarter and into the second, and 6:24, from the end of the third and into the fourth, proved to be costly in the end. Both came when the game was no more than a two-possession contest.
Notable
- Today’s starters for the Bulls were: G Maria Alvarez (Miami, Fla.), G Sydni Harvey (Nashville, Tenn.), F Tamara Henshaw, W Kristyna Brabencova and C Beatriz Jordao (Pombal, Portugal) … The Bulls are 0-1 with this lineup.
- Tamara Henshaw played in her 114th career game on Saturday against UNLV … Henshaw moved into sole possession of 15th on USF’s all-time games played list, passing Alana Tanksley (2001-05), and is one game shy of joining Nalini Miller (2003-07) and Jasmine Wynne (2008-12) in 13th with 115 games played.
Up Next
The Bulls will return the Yuengling Center on Monday, Dec. 30, when they take on Brown at 5:30 p.m. The Green and Gold begin American Athletic Conference play on Jan. 5 at 2 p.m. when Cincinnati visits the Yuengling Center.
About USF Women’s Basketball
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USF notched its eighth consecutive 19-win season and eighth straight postseason appearance in 2018-19. The Bulls celebrated two all-conference honorees in Enna Pehadzic and Sydni Harvey.
USF has made 15 postseason tournament appearances and had six NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez’s 19 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.
– #GoBulls –
