Minutes after his team handed the East Carolina women’s basketball team its latest frustrating loss on Saturday in Minges Coliseum, South Florida coach Jose Fernandez said he felt his players uncharacteristically played not to lose during the final 8 minutes instead of convincingly closing out East Carolina like Fernandez had hoped.
But all of that led up to the game’s final possession, when No. 20 USF’s best player — All-America candidate Courtney Williams — calmly dribbled to her left into a small hole in the Pirates’ zone defense and rose up near the free throw line to drain the winning shot with 2 seconds remaining for a 61-59 Bulls victory.