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No. 22 USF women don't look ahead, beat Tulane

 
USF’s Courtney Williams goes to the basket for two of her 18 points, including a key three-point play as Tulane was rallying.
USF’s Courtney Williams goes to the basket for two of her 18 points, including a key three-point play as Tulane was rallying.
Published Feb. 10, 2016

TAMPA -— Six nights shy of a big Monday matchup with Louisville, No. 22 USF could nary afford a flat Tuesday against Tulane.

An announced Sun Dome crowd of 2,011 didn't encounter one. Three nights after a two-point loss at Temple, the Bulls (17-6, 10-3 American Athletic Conference) owned the glass and — for most of the night — the 3-point line in a 77-65 triumph.

Senior Alisia Jenkins, logging her most extensive action since spraining her left ankle on Jan. 5, finished with 20 rebounds in 36 minutes. At halftime, Jenkins had outrebounded the Green Wave 12-11.

"With the rebounding and stuff, it started coming to me," Jenkins said. "I started feeling myself again and I started getting emotion and I started feeling the old self coming back."

USF, still missing versatile sophomore Laura Ferreira (torn plantar fascia), travels to conference bottom-feeder Cincinnati on Friday before a nationally televised showdown against the No. 12 Cardinals. A win there and the Bulls' chances of serving as an NCAA Tournament host a second straight year get a hearty boost.

Speaking of boosts, Jenkins was hardly the only Bull providing one Tuesday. With Tulane (16-8, 7-5) employing a smorgasbord of zones and traps to confuse All-America candidate Courtney Williams, four players scored in double figures and five tallied at least one 3-pointer.

USF finished 9-for-19 from long range, with freshman Kitija Laksa (14 points) hitting three in the first half as the Bulls built a 40-30 lead. Williams had a team-high 18 points despite going scoreless in the first 14 minutes.

"They did such a good job on Courtney, I thought she did a good job finding other people on ball reversals and getting other people involved," coach Jose Fernandez said.

Green Wave freshman Taylor Emery, a Freedom high alumnus, totaled seven points and three rebounds, providing her team's only bench scoring.