BIRMINGHAM, Ala. –Senior Cheyenne Rowe and junior Idara Udo each posted double-doubles, as the No. 6 Seeded UTSA women’s basketball team upset No. 3 Seed South Florida, 62-51, in the Quarterfinals of the 2026 American Women’s Basketball Championships.
With the win, UTSA advances to the semifinals, where they’ll take on the No. 2 Seed East Carolina on Friday at 8 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+, and Neal Raphael will deliver all the action on the radio in the greater San Antonio area on The Bull 93.3 FM and worldwide on the iHeartRadio app. Live stats for the contest can be found at goUTSA.com/wbbstats, and tickets can be purchased at goUTSA.com/wbbtickets.
The Roadrunners (16-15, 9-9 American) bested the Bulls (20-12, 13-5 American) behind a sensational performance by Rowe, who posted 25 points and 11 rebounds on her birthday. Junior Idara Udo charted 10 points and 10 boards, which represented the first time multiple Roadrunners logged a double-double in the same contest since Udo and current professional Jordyn Jenkins accomplished the feat on Jan. 15, 2025, against Memphis. Senior Ereauna Hardaway tallied 12 points with five rebounds, and sophomore Damara Allen put in a solid shift, snagging nine rebounds.
As a team, UTSA shot 44% from the field to South Florida’s 34%, and hauled in 21 more rebounds. The ‘Runners scored 10 more points in the paint and had eight more on second chances.
South Florida struck first, before six straight from Rowe handed UTSA a 6-2 edge. From there, the squads exchanged blows until the ‘Runners headed into the second leading, 14-9.
Back-to-back makes pulled USF within one, and an Udo layup saw a 16-13 edge. The Bulls scored the next four to take the lead, before UTSA finished off the half on a 10-1 run to carry a 30-22 advantage into the locker room.
Consecutive makes for Rowe and freshman Adriana Robles put the Roadrunners up 11 in the third, but a six-point surge pulled them back within five. From there, Udo connected on a pair of freebies, and Hardaway cashed in from beyond the arc for a 41-31 advantage. USF matched with a triple of their own, ahead of a 44-36 score entering the final frame.
The Bulls hit from range to start the fourth, sparking a 9-2 run that trimmed their deficit to three. Hardaway halted the streak with a trey, but a later USF streak saw a 51-49 scoreline, still favoring UTSA. Sophomore Mia Hammonds and Hardaway sank layups to put the Roadrunners up six. From there, UTSA played stout defense and hit its free throws for a 62-51 victory.
UTSA will advance to a conference semifinal for the second time since joining the American, last reaching this stage in 2023-24 when they fell to the Pirates, 55-54. Saturday’s contest will be the program's 12th semifinal appearance overall, and should they advance, they’ll make their sixth conference championship appearance.
The Pirates (22-9, 14-4 American) got the better of the ‘Runners in their lone regular-season meetup, 65-58, despite USTA outshooting ECU, 43%-to-37%. Allen and Hammonds tied for the team scoring lead at 12, while Hardaway scored eight with seven assists.
ECU excels at getting to the charity stripe, sinking 15.6 free throws per game for the 15th-most in the NCAA. Defensively, the Pirates force the 19th-most turnovers (21.4 per game) and rank 21st in turnover margin (6.10). On the offensive end, ECU paces the league with 72.1 points per game.
Kennedy Fauntleroy tops the team with 13.8 points per game and 152 assists. She excels defensively as well, with 84 steals and 24 blocks. Anzhuane Hutton leads the way on the glass with 6.9 rebounds per game, and is just behind Fauntleroy with 11.4 points per game. Taylor Barner and Keana Rembert also average double-digit scoring figures, with Barner at 10.8 points per game and Rembert at 10.3.
Fauntleroy was named American Conference Co-Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year in addition to First Team, All-Defensive Team, and All-Newcomer Team honors. Additionally, Rembert was a Third-Team All-Conference selection.
For more information about the 2026 American Basketball Championships, head to theamerican.org/feature/hoops-championships. A tournament central page is available at goutsa.com/AmericanChamps.
Keep up with UTSA Women’s Basketball all season long on goutsa.com and by following the program on Facebook at /UTSAWBB, X (Twitter) @UTSAWBB, and on Instagram @UTSA_WBB.
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