TAMPA, Fla. — The USF women's basketball team is on a bit of a roll. They've won 11 straight games to run their record to 21-4 this season.
The Bulls are 10-0 in the American Athletic Conference standings, and they hold a 3.5-game lead over second-place Tulsa.
USF's latest win, a 72-48 victory over East Carolina, gave head coach Jose Fernandez his 118th AAC win. That's tied with current UConn head coach Geno Auriemma for most all-time (UConn now plays in the Big East).
"Hopefully, he sends me a nice bottle of wine," Fernandez joked after Tuesday's win. "I don’t know. He’s a little busy right now."
Fernandez said this particular individual accomplishment is hardly about him as an individual.
"I’ve had the pleasure to coach some really, really good guys," he continued. "I’ve had very good assistant coaches, video coordinators, ops people, managers, male scrimmage guys, trainers. It’s a total team effort."
"I love playing for him. He puts us in good situations," said guard Sammie Puisis. "We’re really happy for him. It’s really exciting."
The Bulls' current hot streak has them back in the Top 25. They're poised to make a run at the regular season conference title and lock up their seventh trip to the NCAA Tournament in eight seasons.
"We put in a lot of time before the season and throughout the season," Puisis added. "It’s really good to get the recognition we’re getting, and all the time we’re putting in is really paying off."
"For us, it’s very important [to recognize our work]," said forward Carla Brito. "But we will keep working every day, stay together, and that’s it."
USF appears to be peaking at the right time, but they don't plan on taking any breathers down the stretch.
"I’m coaching every possession," Fernandez added. "That’s what it’s going to take for us to be great at the end of February and in March."
The Bulls hit the road to face SMU Saturday at 3 p.m.
