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USF got rolled yesterday by #1 UConn in the Sun Dome 63-38.
The Bulls (13-11, 8-5 AAC) found decent shots, but simply couldn't get anything to fall. Alisia Jenkins finished with only one point off shooting 0-7 from the floor. Courtney Williams didn't do much better either, going only 3-18 (0-5 from three) for a total of seven points. She did do a good job on the boards though, collecting 8 rebounds. Inga Orekhova was the lone bright spot for the Bulls offense, getting almost 50% of the Bulls scoring total with 17 points.
USF was able to take ten more shots than the Huskies, a result of the 12 offensive rebounds they were able to grab, but headed into halftime shooting an embarrassing 19.4%. To their credit turned it around and shot 34.6% in the second half (26.3% game total) against the best team in the country.
UConn (26-0, 13-0 AAC) dominated the the entire game as expected. The Bulls led early with score of 3-2, but then proceeded to miss their next 14 shots in a row. From the moment the Huskies retook the lead, a grand total of 48 seconds later, there was no looking back. They only really played one bench player, Kiah Stokes, any significant minutes with 17 (the other three players that came in off the bench had a combined four minutes of game time).
Breanna Stewart, whom one reporter compared to Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in the post game press conference, had a good game for the Huskies. She posted 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds during her 33 minutes on the court. Stefanie Dolson matched Stewart's output, also getting 15 & 8. The leader in scoring for UConn was Bria Hartley, finishing with 18 points.
One positive from the game: it was the biggest crowd in USF women's basketball history. You know we're not afraid to crack on attendance figures around here, but the announced 6,615 seemed pretty legit as many seats in the third deck were sold. Also the new logo for the 2015 Women's Final Four, just 411 days away at the Tampa Bay Times Forum, was shown to the crowd.
Next up for the Bulls is a trip up north on Wednesday night (February 19th) as they take on Cincinnati. Tip off is set for 7 PM, and the game will be on ESPN 3.