Jan. 31, 2006

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TAMPA, Fla. - A strong shooting performance by the University of South Florida (15-7, 5-4 Big East) was too much for the Wildcats to overcome, and Villanova (12-8, 3-6 BE) succumbed to the Bulls by a 69-49 margin on Tuesday evening at the Sun Dome.

USF shot 54.0 percent (27-of-50) for the game and pulled away from an eight-point halftime lead to hand the Wildcats their fourth straight road conference loss this season. Villanova managed just 29.3 percent (17-of-58) shooting and never led after an early 9-8 lead in the opening four minutes of the contest.

The Wildcats trailed 45-35 after two free throws by senior guard Courtney Roantree (Philadelphia, Pa.) with 13:22 remaining in the game. However, the Bulls then went on an 11-2 run in a span of 3:58 to establish a 56-37 margin and put the game out of reach with 8:34 to play. Jessica Dickson started the USF run with a three-pointer and added another basket during the spurt, during which Villanova missed three shots and committed two turnovers.

Senior guard Jenna Viani (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) was the team's lone player in double figures, and scored 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field. She connected on 2-of-4 three-pointers, made a free throw and added three rebounds and two assists to her game totals. Viani made both of her three-pointers in the first half, when the Wildcats made four long-range shots as a team and trailed just 31-23 at the break despite 53.6 (15-of-28) percent shooting by the Bulls during the first 20 minutes.

Senior forward Liad Suez-Karni (Even-Yehuda, Israel) tallied nine points, five rebounds and three assists, while junior forward Jackie Adamshick (Allentown, Pa.) matched her with five boards to tie for the team lead. Senior center Kate Dessart Mager (Media, Pa.) and sophomore forward Stacie Witman (Plymouth Meeting, Pa.) contributed seven points apiece to Villanova.

Dickson finished 9-of-14 from the field and scored a game-high 22 points to lead four players in double figures for USF. Ezrea Parsons notched a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds, while Rachael Sheats and Shantia Grace had 12 points apiece.

Suez-Karni opened the scoring with a three-pointer just 29 seconds into the game and Viani made the first of her three-pointers two minutes later. Dessart Mager made a free throw and Suez-Karni added a layup to put the Wildcats in front 9-6, but Villanova then went scoreless for nearly five minutes as the Bulls went ahead. USF then ran off seven straight points for a 19-12 advantage midway through the period, and the Wildcats never got within one possession of their hosts the remainder of the night.

Villanova is entering its bye weekend and will now be idle until next Tuesday when it visits Notre Dame at 6:00 p.m. Last season, the Wildcats upset the Fighting Irish, then ranked #4 in the nation, 59-54 at the Pavilion.

NOTES: The Bulls outrebounded Villanova 37-30 ... Both teams turned the ball over 12 times, as the Wildcats streak of games with no more than 10 turnovers ended at five games ... Viani scored in double figures for the ninth time this season and fourth time in her last six outings ... She has led the team in scoring three times this season ... Villanova leads the Big East Conference with 7.47 made three-pointers per game, but the Wildcats are now just 10-for-47 (.213) from beyond the arc in the last two games ... Villanova is currently 1-3 against the new members of the Big East Conference, with a 72-58 home victory over Marquette and road losses to DePaul, Louisville and USF ... The Wildcats host Cincinnati on February 11 ... Villanova is 3-2 in conference play at home this season, but has lost five straight Big East road games since last season.