TAMPA, Fla. – Mar. 8, 2025 – Her game is efficient, borderline spectacular, and fun. South Florida women’s basketball graduate guard Mama Dembele, a transfer from Missouri, has made a positive impact on the Bulls, who are seeking to capture an American Athletic Conference Tournament title in Fort Worth, Texas.
But even more than Dembele’s game, which earned her AAC Defensive Player of the Year honors, it’s her name that draws attention.
Mama?
There’s a story behind it.
Back in her family’s ancestral homeland of Africa, Dembele’s great-aunt was known for her nurturing spirit, her kindness, her caring personality. Everyone called her “Mama’’ because she fulfilled that role perfectly. In time, no one actually remembered her given name, and official records couldn’t be located. She was simply … Mama.
Before her passing, she asked the family to give her adopted name to the next child as a special blessing so the caretaking legacy could continue.
That’s how Dembele was given the unique name of Mama.
Her whole life, Dembele has dealt with the curiosity of others, the taunts of children on the playground, and her own obligation of living up to the meaning of her name. Now it just fits.
“I think ‘Mama’ really matches with my personality because I think I’m someone who really cares about people,’’ Dembele said. “That’s how I was raised. I got to the point where I loved my name and I embraced it. It’s unique. I want to be that caretaking type of person who others depend on.’’
For the No. 3-seeded Bulls (20-10) to clinch an automatic NCAA Tournament bid by capturing three AAC games — beginning with Monday night’s matchup against the Wichita State-Tulane winner — they will need to rely on Dembele more than ever.
Dembele, who was born in Mali (a West African country) before her family moved to the tiny Spanish town of Manlleu (one hour outside of Barcelona), has been ultra-productive. She has a team-leading 5.4 assists (21st nationally), an AAC-leading 2.4 steals per game, and 5.9 points. She’s the only USF player to start all 30 games. And her defensive play, obviously, has been unquestioned.
Two performances seem especially remarkable. In an 82-77 triple-overtime win against Rice, she played 53 minutes and had 11 assists. In a 69-68 overtime triumph against Charlotte, she played 45 minutes and had nine assists. In both games, Dembele had no turnovers — zero.
“She sets the tempo, gets the ball to the right places on the court, plays downhill, gives us a great defensive effort and helps to run the show — like a good point guard does,” head coach Jose Fernandez said. “She has brought some needed qualities to our team this season.”
“Mama has brought us on-ball defense and ball pressure, plus the ability to turn on her jets and find the open shooter,’’ associate head coach Michele Woods-Baxter said. “She’s a smaller stature (5-foot-6), but she finds the openings. Speed, quickness, vision, defense, passing ability … she’s spot-on with all of that.”
“Everybody just loves Mama because she has such a bubbly personality and she fits in so well with our locker room,’’ said Sammie Puisis, USF’s leading scorer. “I love her on the court because she’s so good at driving, attacking lanes, and finding the shooters. Playing alongside her, even though it has been just one year, has been a blast.’’
Dembele, who received her physical therapy bachelor’s degree at Missouri, was a productive and well-decorated player for the Tigers, earning accolades as an SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year and an SEC All-Defensive Player last season. But after helping Missouri to three WNIT bids, Dembele wanted to challenge herself in a new situation. Almost immediately, she knew that South Florida was the perfect destination.
“It was difficult to say goodbye because Missouri was home for four years, but after talking to Coach Jose and meeting my (new) teammates, I was so excited,’’ Dembele said. “I just knew USF would be the place for me. I’ve met a lot of amazing people and I believe we have the kind of team that can accomplish the big goal (AAC title and an NCAA bid).”
“I love playing for Coach Jose. He treats us like adults. He’s always going to be honest and I appreciate that because I’m a straightforward person. He might lose his mind at times and get on you, but you understand that everything he does is coming from love. We all care about each other. I think that’s the quality that will allow this team to go far.’’
Dembele has dreams of playing professional basketball, so she’s gearing up for a challenging summer. Before then, though, she’s intent on steering the Bulls in the proper direction and helping to erase the string of consecutive defeats to close the regular season.
“We have to go back to that point where we enjoy each other and every play feels like the championship game,’’ Dembele said. “We’ve been taking it a little too seriously and putting too much pressure on ourselves. Let’s get back to smiling and having fun on the court. This game is supposed to be fun.”
Off the court, Dembele has a fun-loving approach and believes she can mix and mingle with just about anyone (she speaks five languages — English, Spanish, French, Bambara and Catalan). She considers herself an excellent cook and enjoys entertaining with teammates (she handles the meal, they do the dishes).
“When you’re the point guard, I think part of it is knowing your teammates well, understanding each of them and learning how to work with different (personalities),’’ Dembele said. “At this moment, we have to forget about the past and know that everybody we face will throw their best punch at us. We have to throw punches back and keep the same intensity for 40 minutes.
“We have the talent. We have all the tools. I like being the leader on the court. I can score, but the point guard’s job is to take care of everybody else and make sure everything is working properly.’’
That’s USF’s Mama Dembele, the ultimate caretaker who is still living up to her name.
UP NEXT
South Florida awaits the winner of 11 Seed Wichita State and Six Seed Tulane, as the Bulls are the Three Seed and will open 2025 AAC Tournament play in the quarterfinal round on Monday, Mar. 10 at 9 p.m.
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ABOUT SOUTH FLORIDA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
South Florida women’s basketball has made 18 postseason tournament appearances and had nine NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez’s 25 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided the Bulls to 11 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2008-09 WNIT championship, has won over 450 career games, and is the all-time wins leader in the American Athletic Conference.
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