Wednesday, February 16
UCF (RV) 60, Wichita State 35
The UCF women's basketball team overcame a slow start to outscore Wichita State by nearly 30 points in the second half on its way to a 60-35 victory over the Shockers on Wednesday evening in Addition Financial Arena.
UCF (19-3, 11-1 The American) held a slight 12-11 advantage over Wichita State (12-12, 3-8 The American) at the end of the first quarter. Both teams struggled offensively in the second quarter, but the Shockers outscored the Knights 8-5 to take a 19-17 lead into the locker rooms.
Six straight points put UCF in front, 23-19, and prompted a Wichita State timeout in the opening 90 seconds of the third quarter. The Black and Gold held the Shockers to just six points in the period, while pouring in 21 of their own to build up a 38-25 lead at the end of the frame.
With the offense finding its rhythm, UCF kept its foot on the gas pedal, outscoring the visitors 22-10 in the final 10 minutes for the regular season sweep of the Shockers.
The UCF defense was locked in once again, holding a second straight opponent to 35 points or fewer. The Knights forced 31 Wichita State turnovers - converting them into 34 points - and had 15 steals in the win. UCF also held a 30-20 rebounding edge over the Shockers.
A trio of Knights finished in double figures as Masseny Kaba, Tay Sanders and Diamond Battles each had 11 points for the Black and Gold. In all, 10 Knights finished in the scoring column.
Brittney Smith was just shy of a double-double with eight points and a game-high eight rebounds. Battles dished out five assists. Sanders and Destiny Thomas each had three steals and Thomas had a game-high two blocks.
South Florida (RV) 54, Cincinnati 45
The University of South Florida women's basketball team got 22 points and 15 rebounds from Bethy Mununga and 13 points from Elena Tsineke as the Bulls got back in the win column with a 54-45 victory over Cincinnati on Wednesday night in the Yuengling Center.
The win improves the Green and Gold to 18-7 overall and 8-3 in the American Athletic Conference, while the Bearcats fall to 10-14 on the year and 3-9 in The American.
With the score tied at 38-all at the end of three quarters, South Florida used a 14-1 fourth-quarter run to open up a tight affair and take an 11-point, 52-41 lead, on a layup by Elisa Pinzan with 2:29 left in the contest.
Cincinnati got the Bulls' advantage down to seven points with just over 90 seconds left but that was as close as they got the rest of the night. South Florida shot 50 percent (5-for-10) from the field in the decisive fourth quarter en route to the win.
Maria Alvarez also chipped in with seven points while Sydni Harvey added six points.
Tulane 69, Tulsa 60
Back-to-back 20-plus point quarters in the second half led the Tulane women's basketball team (17-7, 8-4) to a come from behind victory on the road over Tulsa (14-7, 4-6) 69-60 Wednesday night. On the offensive end the Green Wave went to work around the rim with 26 points in the paint and shot a perfect 13-of-13 from the free throw line while putting the brakes on the Tulsa offense limiting the Golden Hurricane to 32.4 percent shooting in the second half.
With the victory, Tulane has won six consecutive games with five of those victories coming against American Athletic Conference competition. The Wave has also won nine of its last 10 games.
Four players finished in double figures for the Green Wave as redshirt junior Mia Heide led all scorers with 17 points while pulling down nine rebounds. The Austin, Texas, native, put up 13 of her 17 points in the first half. Krystal Freeman and Moon Ursin followed with 16 points each. Freeman notched her eighth double-double of the season and the 30th of her career by adding 10 rebounds to her stat sheet while Ursin was just shy of a double-double finishing with nine boards. Arsula Clark rounded out the top scorers for Tulane with 14 points to go with five rebounds and four assists.
The painted area made the difference for Tulane as the Green Wave outscored Tulsa 46-34 around the rim and outrebounded the Golden Hurricane 46-37. The Wave also recorded six blocked shots as a team with Heide leading the way with four rejections.
The Green Wave fell behind to begin the contest as Tulsa scored the first five points of the game. The Tulane offense began to find some rhythm as the quarter went along, but the Golden Hurricane continued knocking down shots at a 56 percent clip. Heide and Clark led the offensive attack for the Wave with seven and six points, respectively, as Tulane reached the first break trailing 24-15.
Tulane used its defense to spark a bit of offense and pull closer in the second quarter. The Wave forced Tulsa into five turnovers in the frame and limited the Golden Hurricane to just 10 points on 27.8 percent shooting from the field. Turning those turnovers and missed shots into an advantage, Tulane attacked quickly in transition in the second quarter to put up 13 points and head into the locker room with a 34-28 deficit. Heide continued her offensive success finishing the first half with 13 points to lead the team.
Returning from the locker room, Tulane held to its form this season putting together a strong third quarter on both ends of the floor. After Tulsa pushed its lead to 10 at 38-28 with 8:10 on the clock, the Wave stormed back with a 14-2 run to claim its first lead of the day at 42-40. The two squads traded buckets the rest of the frame, but Tulane got the final one as Ursin beat the buzzer to give the Green Wave a 48-47 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Ursin and Freeman combined for seven unanswered points for the Green Wave to open the final frame and push Tulane's advantage to 55-47 with 6:09 left to play. The Wave would stretch that lead to as many as 10 twice during the fourth quarter before closing the game with a 69-60 victory.
Houston 67, East Carolina 55
Head coach Ronald Hughey tallied his 100th career win in Houston's 67-55 victory over East Carolina on Wednesday night in the Fertitta Center.
The win comes in Hughey's eighth season with the Cougars. As a head coach, the South Carolina native has recorded a 100-134 overall record.
Laila Blair led the Cougars (12-12, 5-7 AAC) with 16 points and seven assists while Jazmaine Lewis closely followed with 13 points, a career-high, and seven rebounds.
East Carolina got out to an early lead with an 11-6 advantage in the first. However, the Cougars quickly strung together points to tie the game at 15-all. A layup from Lewis and Blair put Houston on top at the end of the first 19-17.
The second quarter was closely contested as the team switched points. A jumper from Kamryn Jones gave Houston a six-point lead but the Pirates closed the gap to end the quarter down by only one, 32-31.
An 11-1 run from the Cougars put them up by double-digits to open the quarter. The Knights brought the game within five points but Houston held on to its lead ending the third 45-38.
The Cougars solidified its win in the fourth quarter. Even though the two teams traded points, Houston's double-digit lead ultimately pushed the Cougars to a 67-55 win.
Memphis 72, SMU 54
The Memphis women's basketball team recorded a statement win over the Mustangs of SMU on Wednesday night; the Tigers had three players in double figures for scoring as they cruised to a 72-54 win.
Following tonight's win, Memphis moves to 14-9 overall and 5-7 in American Athletic Conference play.
Memphis jumped all over the Mustangs to open the game, going on a 7-0 run in the first 90 seconds of the first quarter and forcing SMU to take a timeout. Tyler Frierson would extend the Tiger's lead out to 9-0 on their very next possession.
Six players scored for Memphis in the opening quarter; Alana Davis, Tyler Frierson, Madison Griggs, Emani Jefferson, Coriah Beckand Jamirah Shutes, who laid in a bucket with 54 seconds left in the quarter to push the Tiger's lead out to 25-11.
The Memphis offense would not let up in the second quarter, keeping their double-digit lead throughout the entire 10 minutes and taking their largest lead of the half after Jamirah Shutes completed an -and one play to cross the 1,000-point threshold. The Tigers would take the 41-24 lead going into the break.
Despite the third quarter being their lowest shooting 10 minutes of the game, the Memphis defense did not let up against SMU's offense.
A 7-0 run from the Mustangs' Kayla White and Zaria Rufus would cut the Tiger's lead to 13 with 4:02 left in the third, but Memphis would answer with buckets from Davis, Jefferson, Beck and Maya Stovall.
It was all Memphis in the final 10 minutes of play; the Tigers took their largest lead of the night at 71-49 with 2:30 left in the game when Stovall drained back-to-back free throws. While SMU would add in late buckets from White and Jasmine Smith, the Memphis lead was too much for the Mustangs and the Tiger's would record their first win in Dallas in 10 seasons with the 72-54 victory.
Alana Davis led the Tigers in scoring with 18 points while going 7-11 from the field while Emani Jefferson and Jamirah Shutes added in 13 and 15 points, respectively. Jefferson and Tyler Frierson grabbed a combined 15 rebounds tonight while Madison Griggs dished out four assists.