The Gators got their second win in Mississippi on Sunday, but not before they gave Ole Miss a chance at a comeback.
UF (12-9, 5-3 Southeastern Conference) was led by guard Steffi Sorensen’s 18 points — all coming from three-pointers on a 6-of-7 effort from downtown — and surrendered a 17-point lead before winning 67-64 in C.M. Tad Smith Coliseum.
“I’m just really proud, once again, of our toughness,” UF coach Amanda Butler said. “Not hanging our heads when some things didn’t go our way, but bouncing back and showing a lot of resiliency.”
The Gators shot 48 percent from the floor and 52 percent (11 of 21) from beyond the arc for one of their most consistent offensive performances in conference play.
“We finally shot the ball like we know we’re capable of, and that felt really good,” Butler said.
UF guard Lonnika Thompson and forward Sharielle Smith each finished with 11 points, and center Azania Stewart found the basket more in the second half, including two clutch free throws with 14 seconds remaining.
UM guard Bianca Thomas, the SEC’s leading scorer, hit her season average with 21 points and added eight rebounds.
Guard Kayla Melson added a career-high 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting, playing all 40 minutes.
Down 13-9, the Gators fired off a 21-2 run — with 12 points coming via three-pointers — to take a 30-15 lead over the Rebels with 5:37 remaining in the first half.
UF shot 46.9 percent (15 of 32) including a 7-of-14 effort from behind the arc in the first half. Sorensen and Thompson led the team in the half with nine points and four assists each.
The Rebels (14-7, 5-3 SEC) had a tough time holding onto the ball, committing 11 first-half turnovers. Florida was opportunistic, converting those into 16 points.
Ole Miss came into the game averaging the most assists per game in SEC play, but it was the Gators who dished the ball around with 12 assists in the first half.
Despite trailing 17 with 2:37 in the first half, UM used a 9-2 run to close out the half and whittle the Gators’ lead to 10.
Feeding off the end of the first half, the Rebels came out after intermission and went on a 13-4 run highlighted by three Ole Miss three-pointers.
Elizabeth Robertson had two of those and had nine second-half points.
“Obviously Ole Miss had the better halftime talk because they made some great adjustments,” Butler said.
Florida lost a bit of offensive fluidity when Thompson got her second and third fouls within two seconds and sat out for a stretch where Ole Miss tied up the game.
After relinquishing the lead for the first time since 12:50 in the first half, the Gators responded with a Ndidi Madu bucket that tied up the game and an ensuing Sorensen three-pointer, her fifth, that gave UF the lead back.
After a pair of Madu free-throws, Sorensen hit another dagger and on the next possession found Smith for a three from the corner with the shot clock expiring.
Aside from her team-high 18, Sorensen also finished with six boards and five assists.
“The stakes were high for us, and we knew that coming in,” Sorensen said. “We knew we had to go in and match their intensity — especially on their home court — and we definitely did. We outhustled them. We made plays when we needed to.”
