Monday, December 20

No. 18/16 South Florida 77, West Virginia (RV) 55	Box Score
Memphis 71, Nicholls 54	Box Score

No. 18/16 South Florida 77, West Virginia (RV) 55

Elena Tsineke scored 20 points, Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu had 14 points and 12 rebounds and No. 18 South Florida beat West Virginia 77-55 on Monday in the West Palm Beach Invitational.
 
South Florida snapped a seven-game losing streak in the series, getting its second victory over West Virginia in nine meetings. USF took the first meeting, 66-56, on Feb. 25, 2006.
 
Maria Alvarez also scored 14 points and Bethy Mununga had 10 points, 11 rebounds and six assists for USF (9-3), which has won four straight and six of seven. Mununga leads the American Conference, and is ninth in the nation, averaging 11.9 rebounds per game.
 
The Bulls shot 58.3% from the field, going 8 of 13 from distance, and outrebounded West Virginia 31-17.
 
South Florida didn't shoot lower than 50 percent in any of the four quarters and hit at a 63.6% clip in the fourth quarter as the Bulls extended their lead to as many as 29, 74-45, with just over four minutes remaining on a Fankam Mendjiadeu layup.
 
Madisen Smith led West Virginia (6-3) with 15 points. Kirsten Deans added 13 points with five assists.
 
Both teams continue tournament play on Tuesday with USF facing Mississippi and West Virginia going against Michigan State.

Memphis 71, Nicholls 54

The Tigers ended the 2021 portion of their schedule with a bang as they cruised to a 71-54 win over Nicholls State and kept their unbeaten streak in the Elma Roane Fieldhouse alive.
 
Following today's win, Memphis moves to 9-2 overall.
 
Freshman Makaiya Brooks, who had a career day, got the Tiger offense rolling with back-to-back three-pointers to give Memphis the 11-7 lead. Buckets from Madison Griggs and Lanetta Williams in the final minute of the quarter would give Memphis a 15-9 advantage heading into the second frame.
 
The Tigers opened up shop in second quarter getting 24 points from their offense, including three combined three-pointers from Brooks and Griggs. They would take their largest lead of the half at 15 after Coriah Beck and Aliyah Green scored on consecutive trips down the floor.
 
Following three made buckets from Nicholls would cut into the Tiger's lead, but Griggs would sink her first three-pointer of the game with 33 seconds left in the half to make it a 39-27 lead.
 
After the Colonels cut their deficit to as little as seven in the third quarter, Memphis would finish the game on a 9-4 run the included a three-pointer from the top of the key from Alana Davis with 2:17 remaining in the game.
 
Memphis would finish the game with two made free throws from Beck to secure the 71-54 win.
 
Makaiya Brooks and Jamirah Shutes led the way for Memphis with 12 points each while Madison Griggs chipped in eight points. Both Alana Davis and Lanetta Williams pulled down a team high six rebounds as the Tigers outrebounded Nicholls 44-30.
 
As a team, Memphis shot just over 41% from the field and sank eight three-pointers.