Box Score

(Ithaca) - USF got a strong effort from veteran reserves, including a game and season-high 16 points from senior guard Lindsey Huff, to down Cornell 68-56 in non-conference women's basketball action at Newman Arena. With the win, the Lady Dons (8-5) collect their third consecutive win in the final non-conference contest of the season. USF's eight wins prior to league play are the most posted since the 1996-97 NCAA Tournament squad started 11-2. Big Red (5-7) dropped their second straight contest.

San Francisco struggled offensively in the early going of the contest, but Huff sparked the Lady Dons off the bench and scored seven points in the opening period. Huff also connected on all three of her attempts from long range and in the process became the all-time USF 3-point field goal leader with the 123rd of her career, passing Amy Touli (1989-93). Huff also pulled down six rebounds and dished out four assists in 21 minutes.

Senior guard Melanie Turner came off the bench to score seven points and pulled down four rebounds to go along with three steals, while senior forward Molly Shanley added three points and swatted a pair of shots.

USF, winners of eight of their last 10 contests after an 0-3 start, shot the ball well from the perimeter and finished at .424 (25-59) and limited Cornell to a dismal .208 (5-24) in the first half and .293 (17-58) for the game.

After building a 34-24 halftime lead, San Francisco extended the lead to as many as 19 in the second half. USF used a big size advantage on the frontline, led by freshman center Celeste Farmer, who finished with 11 points and three rebounds and sophomore forward Carey Sauer, who added nine points and a team-high eight rebounds. Freshman forward Corry Berger also scored five points and pulled down two rebounds despite fighting a migraine headache.

San Francisco, fresh off an upstate New York sweep against Syracuse and Cornell open West Coast Conference play on the road with a Los Angles swing at Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine. The Lady Dons square off against the Lions on Friday, Jan. 11 at Gersten Pavilion and travel to Malibu to play the Waves on Saturday, Jan. 12 at Firestone Fieldhouse. Both games are scheduled for a 7:00 PM tip.