Sohomore Siena Guttadauro hit two three-pointers in the fourth quarter, boosting the UTSA Roadrunners to a 58-56 victory over the South Florida Bulls at the AAC tournament. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

On many game days during Siena Guttadauro’s two seasons with the UTSA Roadrunners, she will take a seat so far down on the end of the bench that it’s hard to find her.

Guttadauro has become much more prominent in the UTSA playing rotation recently, breaking out initially with a career-high 13 points on March 2 in a victory at Wichita State.

The diminutive 5-foot-6 sharpshooter from San Jose, Calif., rose to the occasion again on Monday in Fort Worth at the American Athletic Conference tournament.

With UTSA’s offense struggling to find consistency against the South Florida Bulls’ confounded zone defense, Guttadauro entered the game and made two three-pointers.

Her play in large measure helped lift the Roadrunners to a 58-56 victory. UTSA coach Karen Aston described Guttadauro’s clutch long-range shots as “huge” in the Roadrunners’ victory.

“They were in a zone to try to slow us down on the inside because Jordyn (Jenkins) had started to establish herself a little bit,” Aston told reporters afterward. “Idara (Udo) had a big bucket. (But) we were struggling to shoot the basketball.

“Siena had a really good game at Wichita. (She’s) starting to mature. She spends a lot of time in the gym, and we thought, ‘Let’s try something different here.’ And it was good. I really thought another factor for Siena was her defense.

“There was a specific game plan for each individual defensively as well as our team, and I thought she gave us an added dimension on the defensive end, also.”

Guttadauro entered the postseason having played only 21 of 29 games, averaging just under 10 minutes per game. When she has played, she has been a factor in stretching the defense, knocking down 18 of 50 from beyond the arc for 36 percent.

“Super proud of her,” Aston said. “I mean, she puts in the time. She has to feel good about her performance today.”

The AAC women’s tournament continues with the semifinals on Tuesday and the finals on Wednesday in Fort Worth. The winner of the postseason event receives an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. UTSA women’s basketball hasn’t qualified for the NCAA in 15 years.

In 2008-09, the Roadrunners made it by earning a Southland Conference postseason title under coach Rae Rippetoe-Blair.

Quarterfinals

(9) East Carolina defeated (1) Tulsa, 75-71
(4) UTSA defeated (5) South Florida, 58-56
(10) Rice defeated (2) North Texas, 61-59
(3) Temple defeated (14) Tulane, 76-72, 3OT

Semifinals

(4) UTSA vs. (9) East Carolina, Tuesday at 6 p.m.
(10) Rice vs. (3) Temple, Tuesday, 8 p.m.

Finals

Wednesday, 6 p.m.