While Bianca Thomas, the Southeastern Conference’s leading scorer, and Ole Miss (14-6, 5-2 SEC) spent part of this week prepping for their matchup with South Carolina on Thursday night, the Gators rested on their bye week.
With the week off, coach Amanda Butler said the coaching staff tried to look at all the things the team could do to get better, including turnovers, which will be an area the Gators hope to improve on when they face the Rebels on Sunday in Oxford.
Florida (11-9, 4-3 SEC) had 12 turnovers in the first half compared to four in the second half in a 59-56 win against the Gamecocks on Jan. 24.
The Gators fixed their turnover problems in that game, but they couldn’t turn the tide against Alabama, when 24 turnovers, 31 percent shooting and a 22 percent night from beyond the arc led to an 82-58 loss on Jan. 21.
“It makes us feel bad and sick to watch the film and look how we played in that game and how we played in the South Carolina game,” senior guard Lonnika Thompson said. “It’s a totally different team.”
The Gators will need to play like they did against some of the better competition this season: a 66-64 loss to then-No. 4 Tennessee, a nine-point loss to then-No. 8 Georgia, and their 55-52 win against Mississippi State
“I like what we’ve done so far — had a tough one against Alabama — but besides that, we’ve competed or won in every ballgame that we’ve been in,” Butler said. “The ones we didn’t win, we were in position to win.”
UF hopes the week off allows it to come out and emulate its play against previous tough opponents, as Ole Miss will fall into that category.
The Rebels won four-straight games before losing to the Gamecocks 64-50 on Thursday, including wins over the Bulldogs in Athens and No. 18 LSU, and are tied at the top of the SEC with the Volunteers.
“We’ve gotta put one of our best performances together because, aside from their personnel and what they can do to you individually, they’re just playing with tremendous confidence,” Butler said. “And that’s evident.”
The Rebels’ offense is carried by its guards, with three averaging double figures.
The head of the Rebels’ trio is Thomas, who entered Thursday with a league-leading 21.1 points per conference game, while junior Kayla Melson averages 11.4 points and senior Shantell Black 10.45.
Forward Nikki Byrd earned SEC Player of the Week after averaging a double-double in two conference wins last week.
This season, UF has had success limiting prominent SEC scorers Angie Bjorklund (Tennessee), Alexis Rack (MSU), and Valerie Nainima (USC) to a combined 36 points. The three, who were denied the ball as part of the Gators’ defensive scheme, shot a collective 24 percent from the field (12 of 50).
With a week to prepare, Florida also had more time to get to know Thomas’ tendencies and what makes her uncomfortable.
“We have to contain her, but at the same time we can’t lose focus of the other four players on the court,” sophomore forward Ndidi Madu said. “That’s when somebody can score 30 and kill you.”
