USF WBB to Face FAU in First Round of the WNIT

Game on.

The USF Bulls return to the postseason as they host FAU in the first round of the WNIT. The Bulls finished the year with a mark of 17-15 (8-8), losing in the second round of the Big East tournament to DePaul. The Bulls, who won the WNIT in 2009, have a deep roster, but will be without guard Sasha Bernard who tore her ACL in the Big East tournament (wish her the best with her recovery).

The Bulls will face the FAU Owls of the Sun Belt Conference who finished their season with a mark of 17-12, but were just 4-7 away from home this year. USF beat FAU last year 80 to 46 in Tampa, so the Owls will be looking to repay the favor. FAU averages 57 points per game, but executes their offense well and has multiple scorers that can drive and hit open shots. Let's take a look at what FAU brings to this game (game begins at 7PM, tickets are just $5 and $4 for students).

The Owls are led by sophomore forward Chenise Miller (6-0) who is averaging 10.8 points per game, 1.3 assists per game, 7.8 rebounds per game, has 28 steals, and 24 blocks on the year. She is a very active post player that crashes the boards and gets after anyone that attacks the hoop. Look for Rowe, McDonald, Conner to battle her inside for rebounds. Senior guard Teri Stamps (5-7) is averaging 8.6 points per game, 2.9 rebounds per game, and has 38 steals on the year.

Senior forward April Goins (6-1) is averaging 8.2 points per game, 1.2 assists per game, and 5.5 rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Latavia Dempsey (5-7) is averaging 6.8 points per game, 2.1 rebounds per game, and has 33 steals on the year. Senior forward Dalita Scott (5-10) is averaging 5.5 points per game and 2.9 rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Kimberly Smith (5-8) is averaging 5.1 points per game and 2.7 rebounds per game and sophomore guard Takia Brooks (5-7) is averaging 5.1 points per game and 4.1 rebounds per game off the bench.

The Owls have a very balanced scoring team with several players averaging above 6 points a game that could potentially give the Bulls some trouble. USF will be without Sasha Bernard (ACL) so Kaneisha Saunders, Shalethia Stringfield, and the starters will have to raise their game in her absence. The Bulls have the advantage with Rowe (6-4) in the paint, but will need Conner and others to be aggressive in the paint and crash the boards.

So what we expect for this game? The Bulls will need to slow down Miller in the paint and with Rowe and McDonald inside, they have the size advantage there. Going without Bernard off the bench hurts the depth, but with Wynne, Orekhova, and Saunders, they should have more than enough firepower to win this game.

The winner of this game will play the winner of the Florida International/Stetson matchup.