USF women roll, move into first-place tie in conference

DALLAS — USF had four players score in double figures and three post double doubles in a 62-56 win over SMU on Wednesday night.

The Bulls (15-5, 5-1, AAC) won their third straight and 10th in their past 12 to move into a tie with UCF atop the conference.

Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu had a game-high 19 points and 12 rebounds, and Bethy Mununga added 17 points — all in the second half — and a game-high 13 rebounds for USF. Mununga had 12 of her 17 points in the third quarter.

Elisa Pinzan and Elena Tsineke each had 10 points apiece, and Pinzan added 10 assists.

The victory marked the 100th for the Bulls as a member of the American Athletic Conference.

USF led 18-16 at the end of the first quarter and extended its lead to as many as nine, 28-19, with 4:35 left in the half, behind an 8-0 run that was capped by a Fankam Mendjiadeu layup off an SMU turnover.

But the Mustangs (9-7, 3-1) closed out the half with a 15-2 run over the last four-plus minutes to take a 34-30 lead into halftime.

Murunga got the Bulls going in the second half, scoring the first 10 points of the third quarter, but the two teams went into the fourth tied at 50 despite USF shooting 72.7 percent (8-for-11) from the field in the third.

SMU’s Kayla White gave the Mustangs a 52-50 lead with 8:37 left in the game, but those were their last points for just over eight minutes. The Bulls held them to 0-for-14 shooting from the field and scoreless until Jasmine Smith hit a layup in the lane with 31 seconds left.

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