Jose Fernandez knew what he was getting into when he scheduled a gauntlet of challenging non-conference games for the USF women’s basketball team.
So far, the Bulls are 0-for-3 against nationally prominent teams, with three games to go. Look a little closer, though. The idea behind that schedule was to expose the Bulls to top competition and get them ready when American Athletic Conference play begins.
It appears to be working.
First, the Bulls were blown out by 27 points at UConn.
They got better against a tough Vanderbilt squad, falling by 13 after playing most of the game without Romi Levy, the AAC Preseason Player of the Year.
Last Sunday against Louisville, USF had the lead in the final minute before losing by four points.
The Bulls have two more chances over this long holiday weekend to break through. They are at the Cayman Islands Classic against undefeated Mississippi State at on Friday followed by a game Saturday against 17th-ranked TCU.
Both games start at 7:30 and are available on internet radio at Bulls Unlimited. They will be televised over FloSports, which is a pay site.
"How do you get better?'' Fernandez told Joey Johnston for GoUSFBulls.com. "You play against good programs. You see how you stack up and what you need to work on. This is going to be a good test for us.''
Mississippi State is rolling. The Bulldogs are 6-0 and dispatched Jacksonville 80-35 in their last game. By comparison, USF 75-57 but struggled at time, causing Fernandez to label it “really bad basketball.”
The Bulldogs also crushed Memphis of the AAC 100-56.
TCU offers up a challenge with 6-foot-7 center Sedona Prince, who averages 21 points and 10 rebounds per game.
The Bulls are 4-3 overall and remain a work in progress as Fernandez tries get a team with seven newcomers to mesh. It’s not easy and neither is the schedule.
However, given that the primary goal is to win the AAC and return to the NCAA tournament, playing this kind of non-conference schedule can only strengthen the Bulls when league play begins.
"It's about continuing to work hard every day, right? The end result will take care of itself,” Fernandes said. “Everything is part of the process. We can control how hard we work, how we prepare, and how we practice. All of that, in turn, will turn into us playing really well.''