USF fought back from a nine point deficit late in the second half, but could not overcome deadly free throw shooting by Long Beach State's Rhonda Smith, who converted on nine straight free throws as the 49ers captured a 64-63 victory against the Lady Dons Thursday in War Memorial Gym. The loss snapped USF's four game home court winning streak.

Sophomore guard Lindsey Huff powered the Lady Dons in the first half and converted on all five of her 3-point attempts in the period and sparked USF to a 29-26 lead at the half. Unfortunately for the Lady Dons, Huff finished the game with 17 points as USF went eight minutes of the second half without a field goal and only scored three points total in the first 11 minutes of the period. The 49ers jumped out to a nine point lead, 41-32 with 9:57 remaining but USF fought back at the charity stripe, cutting the lead to three, 53-50 with 3:53 on the clock after a pair by junior guard Cortney Keegan.

In the end, it was too many costly turnovers for the Lady Dons and far, far too much of Smith who exploded for 37 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots in 33 minutes of action. Smith also went 11-14 from the charity stripe after entering the game as a 57 percent free throw shooter.

USF was lead offensively by Huff, senior guard Jennifer Madkins who scored 11 points, pulled down five rebounds and dished out five assists, while Kim Whisler poured in a season-high 12 points and ripped down five rebounds before fouling out after just 14 minutes of playing time.

The Lady Dons play their final non-conference tune-up this Sunday when they host the Titans of Cal State Fullerton. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 PM from War Memorial Gym. USF opens West Coast Conference play the following Friday when they host Gonzaga in a 7 PM contest.