DATE/TIME: Wednesday, Jan. 27 / 7 p.m.
OPPONENT: Houston
LOCATION: Sun Dome Arena | Tampa, Fla.
WEBCAST: USF BullsVision | GoUSFBulls.com
RADIO: News Talk Florida 1040-AM | GoUSFBulls.com
GAME NOTES: USF | Houston
FOLLOW: Live Stats | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
PURCHASE TICKETS
By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, JAN. 26, 2016 – Fresh off an 88-49 rout of rival UCF, No. 20/18 USF women's basketball returns to the Sun Dome to host Houston on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
USF (13-5, 6-2) is tied for second in the conference with Tulane after completing a regular season sweep of the Knights on Sunday. American Freshman of the Week Kitija Laksa drained seven 3-pointers in her 29-point effort and leading conference scorer Courtney Williams added 20 points in Orlando.
Houston (4-14, 0-7) returns to the court for the first time in a week after its game at Temple on Jan. 23 was postponed because of snowstorms in the Northeast. The Cougars are looking to snap an eight-game losing streak in their lone meeting with the Bulls this season.
USF has won three straight against Houston and defeated the Cougars, 71-55, in Texas last January. The Bulls have a 10-6 lead in their all-time series with Houston and haven't lost to the Cougars since 2005.
Bulls in the Spotlight
- At 13.3 points per game, Laksa has moved into the top 15 on The American's season scoring list after averaging 24.5 points last week. The freshman forward from Latvia leads the conference with 50 3-pointers and she's made 43 percent of her attempts from beyond the arc, good for second in the league.
- Williams ranks 10th nationally in scoring with a conference-best 22.0 points per game. The senior guard from Folkston, Ga., earned a spot on The American's weekly honor roll by averaging 21 points, eight rebounds and five assists last week.
- Shalethia Stringfield extended her double-digit scoring streak to three games with 13 points against UCF in addition to six assists and four steals. The senior point guard from Jacksonville ranks fifth in the conference with 3.8 assists per game and she's approaching a double-digit scoring average with 8.6 points per game this season. Stringfield is pursuing her second degree after graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in interdisciplinary social sciences in May 2015.
Bulls Bits
- USF has won 10 of its past 13 games and is 10-1 at home this season. The Bulls' lone loss at the Sun Dome was a 75-59 setback against top-ranked UConn on Jan. 10.
- The Bulls rank 26th nationally in scoring offense with 76.3 points per game. USF is giving up just 62.4 points per game and has held opponents to fewer than 60 points in nine games.
- USF leads The American in free throw percentage (.789) and 3-point percentage (.366).
Next Up
The Bulls finish up the week with a showdown at SMU 2 p.m. Sunday in Dallas (TV: ESPNU). USF will be going for another regular season sweep after defeating SMU, 83-56, at the Sun Dome on Jan. 7.
Fans' next chance to catch the Bulls at home is Wednesday, Feb. 3 against Cincinnati at 7 p.m.
The Bulls continue to climb in the polls, and have reached their highest rankings in program history. USF has been ranked as highly as No. 15 in the Associated Press poll and No. 15 in the USA Today Coaches Poll this season; both are the highest rankings in program history. USF has appeared in both polls every week and placed as highly as No. 11 on some ballots.
USF has made 11 postseason tournament appearances and had three NCAA Tournament berths in Head Coach Jose Fernandez's 15 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided USF to six 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2009 WNIT championship and won more than 260 games.
