GOUSFBULLS.COM -Graduate guard Sammie Puisis netted a career-best 34 points as South Florida women’s basketball (20-8, 13-2 AAC) topped Memphis (7-9, 5-10 AAC), 80-70, inside the Yuengling Center on Saturday night. With the victory, the Bulls collected their ninth straight win and are victors of 15 of the last 17 contests. Head Coach Jose Fernandez also recorded his 12^th 20-win season (14^thconsecutive 19-win season).

Puisis (six 3-pointers) recorded her 16^th game of the season with three or more 3-pointers. Junior forward Carla Brito (18 points, 11 rebounds) recorded her sixth double-double of the season, her 14^th double-figure scoring game of the year, and 10^th double-digit rebound performance of the year. Graduate guard Mama Dembele (six assists) logged her seventh straight and 18^th game of the season with five or more assists.

Memphis saw four Tigers in double-digit points: Tilly Boler (18 points), Tanyuel Welch (17 points), Alasia Smith (14 points), and Elauna Eaton (13 points).

HOW THE GAME WAS DECIDED
South Florida used a 20-6 run that extended from the four-minute mark of the second frame and the first four minutes of the third stanza. Within the scoring spurt, the Bulls lengthened their lead to as high as 16 points. Brito led the way for USF with eight points in the run, and the Bulls never looked back.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• Head Coach Jose Fernandez has recorded his 12^th 20-win season. (14^thconsecutive 19-win season.)
• South Florida has emerged victorious is 15 of its last 17 contests.
• USF has extended its current win streak to a season-best nine games.
• South Florida is now 14-2 at home this season.
• Puisis (career-high 34 points, six 3-pointers) recorded her 16^th game of the season with three or more 3-pointers.
• Puisis’s 34 points is the first 30-plus point performance since redshirt senior forward Romi Levy scored 32 points at Tulane (Jan. 6, 2024) last season (does not include 35+ points).
• Brito (18 points, 11 rebounds) recorded her sixth double-double of the season, her 14^th double-figure scoring game of the year, and her 10^th double-digit rebound performance of the year.
• Dembele (six assists) logged her seventh straight and 18^th game of the season with five or more assists.
• South Florida continues to hold an 18-15 lead in the all-time series with Memphis.

UP NEXT
South Florida heads to Oklahoma for a meeting with Tulsa on Wednesday, Feb. 26. Tipoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. EST.

FOLLOW US
For complete coverage of USF women’s basketball, follow the Bulls on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram).

TICKETS
Fans can purchase women’s basketball tickets by calling 1-800-GoBulls or at USFBullsTix.com.

ABOUT SOUTH FLORIDA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
South Florida women’s basketball has made 18 postseason tournament appearances and had nine NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez‘s 25 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided the Bulls to 11 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2008-09 WNIT championship, has won over 450 career games, and is the all-time wins leader in the American Athletic Conference.

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — The start time for Monday’s spring training game between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox has been moved because of expected heavy rainfall, foreshadowing what the Tampa Bay Rays might have to deal with this year as they play a season outdoors.

The Red Sox announced on Sunday that Monday’s game at JetBlue Park will be moved from 1:05 p.m. to 4:05 p.m. EST because of significant rainfall expected earlier in the day in the Fort Myers area.

The game between the Atlanta Braves and Baltimore Orioles at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota on Monday also was moved from 1:05 p.m. to 4:05 p.m. due to the weather forecast.

The Rays are preparing for a regular season with home games at Tampa’s Steinbrenner Field, the spring training base of the Yankees. Hurricane Milton ripped the roof off St. Petersburg’s Tropicana Field on Oct. 9, leaving the Rays’ usual home stadium unusable for at least 2025.

Steinbrenner Field, which has about 11,000 seats, is exposed to weather, unlike the Trop. Florida summers are known for thunderstorms in the afternoon and early evening.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

LEWISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Former Major League Baseball star Alex Rodriguez showed his skill on the hardwood Sunday, making a half-court shot to win a Bucknell student $10,000.

The 14-time All-Star was invited to take the shot during halftime of Bucknell’s basketball game against Army, which the Bison won 84-53. The 49-year-old tossed a high-arching shot that banked off the backboard and through the hoop, setting off a celebration with students.

The three-time MVP was at Bucknell to speak about his company Jump Platforms, which he founded with two other entrepreneurs, Jordy Leiser and Marc Lore. Lore and Leiser graduated from Bucknell, and Leiser is a trustee.

Rodriguez hit 696 career homers with the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and New York Yankees.

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