(San Francisco, CA) - USC exploded out of the gate, shooting better than 61 percent in the first half to roll past USF 72-53 in the opening round of the Women's National Invitation Tournament Wednesday at War Memorial Gym. With the victory, the Women of Troy (16-13) defeat the Lady Dons (18-12) for the third time in the postseason, including the last meeting between the two teams in the 1997 NCAA Tournament.

San Francisco struggled to get on track offensively and USC took advantage leading by as many as 24 points in the first period, before heading to the locker room at intermission with a 41-19 lead. The Women of Troy appeared to be on their way to an even bigger lead but USF fought back using an 18-6 run to cut the lead to 11, 50-39 with 9:27 remaining. USF would get no closer as USC rattled off eight unanswered points to take a comfortable 20-point lead with 5:34 left.

USF simply could not overcome poor shooting, .242 (8-33) in the first half, .323 (21-65) for the game and 27 turnovers did not help the cause. Despite a tremendous size disadvantage, USF managed to hold a 38-36 rebound advantage, but the Women of Troy shot the ball much better, converting on half of their 56 attempts.

Southern California got balanced scoring with 14 apiece from sophomore forward Ebony Hoffman and senior guard Tiffany Elmore. Sophomore guards Aisha Hollans chipped in 13 points, while Jessica Cheeks added 11 for the Women of Troy.

Freshman guard Toni Russell keyed USF's second half rally and ended with a team-high 11 points, adding six rebounds and seven steals in 26 minutes. Senior forward Molly Shanley came off the bench to score 10 points, converting on both attempts from 3-point distance and fellow senior Lindsey Huff added seven points in their final games in the Green and Gold. Huff connected on a 3-pointer to extend her school record to 146 career threes.

USC advances to the second round of the WNIT where they will face the winner of the North Texas vs. Washington game, played Thursday in Seattle. USF completes their season in the post season for the first time since the 1997 season and finish with their best final record since advancing to back-to-back-to-back NCAA Tournaments from 1995-97, reaching the Sweet-16 in 1996.