USF basketball had a mixed outcome in two terrific games on Sunday.
The men’s team used a literal last-second shot from Jayden Reid to take down Wright State 73-72 in the consolation game of the Myrtle Beach Invitational.
The women’s team, meanwhile, had the lead late in the fourth quarter against Louisville. However, the Cardinals took over late in the game to win 64-60 in the WBCA Showcase at the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando.
The loss dropped the women to 4-3, while the men left Myrtle Beach with two wins out of three games and improved to 4-3.
The men led 71-68 after Reid’s layup with 34 seconds to go, but the Raiders pulled within one point 11 seconds later. Things looked shaky after a Kasen Jennings turnover led to a jumper by Jack Doumbia that gave Wright State the lead with five seconds remaining.
However, the Bulls raced up court immediately, and Reid fired from the corner. The buzzer sounded as the ball fell through the basket, setting off a celebration on the USF sideline.
.@USFMBB CLUTCHES UP AT THE BUZZER 🚨
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) November 24, 2024
(via @USFMBB)
pic.twitter.com/kyQYydJIqL
The women weren’t so fortunate.
They led by 11 points late in the first quarter but saw the Cardinals claw back to go up by 10 at the half. Louisville still led by seven points with less than five minutes left when the Bulls made their final run.
Sammie Puisis hit a jumper with 1:48 left to give USF its first lead of the second half at 59-58, and the Bulls got the ball back off a missed shot by the Cardinals with 1:27 to play.
However, Louisville outscored the Bulls down the stretch to hold on.
“Here's the thing, we’ve got seven newcomers. We already played UConn, Vanderbilt, and these guys. We’ve got Mississippi State and TCU (coming up). That's why you play these games. We're not ready to win these games yet,” Fernandez said.
“We will be when we start to value every possession. We didn't value possessions today.”
Fernandez referred to 19 USF turnovers, including four each by Puisis, Mama Dembele, and Carla Brito.
“You know that can’t happen to win these types of games,” Fernandez said.
The Bulls will spend Thanksgiving weekend at the Cayman Islands Classic. South Florida faces Mississippi State on Friday and TCU on Saturday. Both games start at 7:30 p.m., and the action will stream live on FloSports.