2011-2012 WBB Basketball Season Review

The 2011-2012 season has come to an end for the USF women's basketball season and what a season it was. The ladies rebounded from a disappointing 2010-2011 season where they went 12-19 and 3-13 in league play. USF finished the regular season with a record of 19-16 (8-8), finishing 9th in conference play and winning one game in the conference tournament.  They also made it to the sweet 16 of the of the WNIT tournament, the 8th postseason bid in the past 9 seasons, showing the program is bouncing back after one bad year.

The team overcame several obstacles this year as well. For starters, they were homeless, playing all their home games in the Rec Center as the Sun Dome continues to undergo massive renovations. Despite the different home venue, the Bulls still played well and drew strong crowds each night. The other hurdle they overcame was star senior guard Andrea Smith missing the entire season as she continues to recover from ACL surgery over the offseason. The Bulls were optimistic she could return, but the team felt it was better for her not to push the recovery process and held her out the entire year (will return next season however). USF also had to wait for highly touted recruit Inga Orekhova to become eligible by the NCAA, lasting 15 games into the year.

The Bulls averaged 63.3 points per game and allowed 61.5 points per game on defense. USF was strong from mid-range, but shot just 28% from 3-point range, a number that Fernandez and crew will need to improve next year.

The Bulls beat 14th ranked DePaul and pushed other top teams like Rutgers and WVU to the wire, showing how talented this team is and how close they are to breaking through to the next level as a program.

Yet despite these hurdles, the team played well all season long.  They won more games than most had figured they would win and the future is even brighter for Fernandez and his team. 

What does 2012-2013 hold?  The Bulls will lose leading scorer Jasmine W ynne and forward Daleisha Carn, but return the entire roster, including Andrea Smith who will be healthy and ready to go. Coach Fernandez will have a very experienced team with Inga Orekhova as one of leading returners (if she doesn't go professional), Stringfield, Saunders, Conner, Rowe, and others back for another year. Fernandez also has a very talented recruiting class coming in.

5-10 wing player Shavantae Taylor will give the Bulls a solid perimeter player that can play inside the paint and take mid-range shots. 5-8 guard Courtney Williams averaged nearly 27 points per game in her last high school season, giving Fernandez another deadly shooter on the roster (team her up with Smith and Orekhova, could be fun). Small forward Alisia Jenkins (6-1) is strong inside the paint and will battle for rebounds. 5-8 guard from Spain, Laura Marcos Canedo, is one of the most intriguing signees for USF. She has extensive international experince, playing recently with Super Cup Euro, she will give the Bulls a pure point guard that can run the entire offense and push the tempo.

The 2012-2013 team will have a balance of senior leadership, young talent, and raw scoring ability. If Smith returns healthy, Orekhova returns for her final year, and the young players along with the veterans all contribute, this could be one of the most loaded teams Fernandez has ever had and could make their way to the NCAA tournament.