WOMEN’S BASKETBALL GAME TIME

USF (14-5, 4-2) at Syracuse (8-12, 2-5)When: Sun., 5:30 p.m.Where: Carrier DomeTV/Radio: None; 860 AM

Just when it appeared that the women’s basketball team was poised to become nationally ranked, the Bulls suffered a huge letdown.

With convincing home victories over Notre Dame and then-No. 15 Louisville, USF seemed to have put an embarrassing road loss to Rutgers behind them. But the Bulls failed to close out the week on a positive note as Pittsburgh cruised to a 73-48 victory Jan. 20.

The Bulls lone road victory against a Big East opponent came against Villanova on Dec. 7.

For the season, the Bulls are averaging 82.25 points per game at home and just 62 ppg on the road.

Coach Jose Fernandez sees Sunday as an opportunity for USF to establish some momentum on the road.

“You have to be able to go on the road and win games in this league,” Fernandez said. “We’re going to have to do that on Sunday. In the Big East, you have to play for 40 minutes and we didn’t do that (against Pittsburgh).”

Syracuse is ranked No. 13 in the Big East Conference and has dropped its last three contests. The Orange are last in the conference in assists, with 11.3 per game.Last season the Bulls defeated Syracuse for the first time 75-55. The Orange lead the all-time series 2-1. Player to watch: Syracuse guard Nicole Michael. The three-time Big East Freshman of the Week leads the Orange in scoring (16.4 ppg) and rebounds (8.3 rpg).