In a captivating American Athletic Conference quarter final showdown, No. 4 UTSA edged out No. 5 South Florida with a final score of 58-56. The Roadrunners were led by forward Jordyn Jenkins who totaled 20 points, six rebounds and blocked two shots en route to the AAC tournament semifinal bid.
“My coaches talked a lot to me about surveying the floor to get good shots,” Jenkins said of her quarterfinal performance. “I know I’m a spotlight on our offense, and it’s all about being patient and trying to find the right shots.”
UTSA (17-13, 10-8) faced considerable challenges in the first half. Team miscues led to eight turnovers and a lackluster offensive output, notably in the second quarter where they managed only nine points on 3 of 12 shooting. The second frame was marked by difficulties in maintaining ball control and a disadvantage on offensive boards. Despite these issues, Jenkins kept the ‘Runners afloat with 10 first-half points.
“Turnovers will be a huge issue tomorrow,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “East Carolina is really terrific as far as their activity on the ball and reading passes, so we’ll obviously have to be better at that.”
Bulls freshman guard Vittoria Blasigh gave UTSA fits in her conference tournament debut, scoring 16 of her eventual 23 points in the first half to lead 27-25 at the break. Despite the ‘Runners struggles, their defense remained a fallback, managing to limit the Bulls shooting to 26.5% at the half.
Four more giveaways in the third quarter gave UTSA a five-point deficit entering the fourth. With the season on the line, guards Kyra White, Sidney Love and Jenkins played the entire final quarter while also keeping the ball out of harm’s way, totaling zero turnovers in the final 10 minutes.
Guard Siena Guttadauro emerged as an unexpected hero for the ‘Runners, cashing in two late 3-pointers shifting the game’s momentum in favor of UTSA. This, combined with back-to-back and-1s from Jenkins’, sparked a 9-0 run by the ‘Runners to lead 49-45.
“They went to a zone in the second half to try and slow us down on the inside,” Aston said of their decision to turn to Guttadauro late in the game. “We thought, ‘Let’s try something different here’ and it was good.”
Despite a late surge from the Bulls, UTSA managed to maintain their lead to close out the game 58-56 and advance to the second round of the conference tournament for the second consecutive season. The win also gives the ‘Runners their first 17-win season since 2009.
UTSA will next face East Carolina in the AAC semifinals at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Dickies Arena.
