College basketball

Bulls have grand opener

By GREG AUMAN
Published December 8, 2005

TAMPA - Just like its football counterparts, USF's women's basketball team made quite a statement in its first-ever Big East game Wednesday night.

The Bulls, getting 35 points from junior Jessica Dickson, pulled off the biggest upset in their history, knocking off No. 11 DePaul 79-77 in overtime in front of 482 fans at the Sun Dome.

"This game is very big for us," said Dickson, who hit two key shots in the final 2:19 and then scored nine points in overtime. "This being our first Big East game, and against a ranked opponent, it definitely sets the tone for us in the Big East."

The Bulls (6-1, 1-0) won't play another league game for a month, and just as USF's football team turned heads in September with an opening upset of No. 9 Louisville, these Bulls wanted to send a message.

"We feel we're an NCAA (tournament) team, and especially with this win tonight, I think we can beat anybody in our conference," said forward Ezria Parsons, who had 12 points and 11 rebounds. "If we play as a team, if we listen to our coaches, I think we can compete with anybody, and we went out and proved that tonight."

DePaul coach Doug Bruno said he came in hoping to contain Dickson, the Big East's leading scorer, but had little luck as she hit 11 of 19 shots, including four 3-pointers, to fall one point off her career high.

"I think we knew we'd have limited answers for Jess Dickson, and we really had no answers for her," Bruno said. "The whole USF ballclub really played a good, solid game."

DePaul (7-1, 0-1) lost its post presence when All-American forward Khara Smith (17 points) fouled out on a charge with 4:54 to play. While Dickson was dominant, the Bulls got their best game yet from freshman point guard Shantia Grace, who had 11 points and 10 assists with only two turnovers. They used just six players, with Dickson and Grace playing all 45 minutes.

Wednesday's game is sandwiched between Friday's 71-47 loss at No.7 North Carolina and this Saturday's home game against No.13 Michigan State. Coach Jose Fernandez said he lined up an aggressive schedule to prepare his team for opportunities like this.

"Scheduling North Carolina, LSU and Michigan State, a lot of people thought I was crazy," said Fernandez, who entered the game 2-9 against ranked opponents. "Where we want to take this program, we want to contend with the best teams in the country. For them to bounce back (from UNC) and stay focused, they showed a lot of heart and a lot of character."

The game will be shown at 9 p.m. tonight on Bright House Ch. 47.

NO. 1 TENNESSEE 59, GEORGE WASHINGTON 43: The visiting Vols didn't take their first lead until 91/2 minutes had elapsed. It was the longest Tennessee had played behind this season.

NO. 9 MARYLAND 88, MONMOUTH 55: The Terrapins pulled away in the second half shooting 63 percent and outscoring the Hawks 50-28.

NO. 13 MICHIGAN ST. 77, DETROIT 52: The Spartans had scored 40 points inside to the visiting Titans' 18.

STONY BROOK 58, NO. 20 TEMPLE 56: Jessica Smith scored 17 of her 21 points in the first half for the host Seawolves, who were playing a nationally ranked Division I team for the first time.

NO. 24 PURDUE 65, NO. 10 NOTRE DAME 54: The host Boilermakers led by as many as 21 in the second half.

NO. 23 UTAH 65, WEBER ST. 38: The host Utes started the second half with a 25-2 run, making 5 of 7 3-pointers.

FLORIDA SOUTHERN 62, SAINT LEO 52: The visiting Lions trailed 52-49 with 2:54 left, but back-to-back turnovers by Saint Leo proved too much to overcome as FSC converted on each.

Information from other news organizations was used in the report.

[Last modified December 8, 2005, 00:50:19]