For the second consecutive day, the Gators’ leading scorer had 28 points.
Senior guard Lanita Bartley paced the Florida offense in an 82-73 win against Charlotte on Saturday in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Bartley’s offensive surge comes just one day after senior guard Jordan Jones netted her UF career-high 28 in an 85-75 victory over La Salle.
“Lanita has a really unique knack for getting to the basket for her size,” coach Amanda Butler said. “She’s very slippery and crafty and smart.”
Bartley’s scoring effort was boosted by 9-of-9 shooting from the charity stripe.
In three games this week, Bartley averaged 17 points per outing thanks to 19 made free throws in 22 attempts.
Against the 49ers, the Gators made 24 of 27 foul shots — a marked improvement over an 18-of-35 effort against Hampton.
“We had a poor performance this year against Hampton and that was not who we were,” Butler said. “Free throw shooting is one of those things that are contagious within a team.”
In addition to her free throw prowess, Bartley has recorded 23 boards in her last three games, including seven against the 49ers.
Also chiming in on the rebounding effort Saturday was junior forward Jennifer George, who led the Gators with nine.
George scored nine points, narrowly missing out on a third straight double-double.
Butler was pleased with Florida’s effort in the paint, but most impressed by its response to Charlotte’s early second-half run.
The Gators rallied back from a seven-point deficit, taking a 58-56 lead on a Jaterra Bonds’ bucket with 10:07 left to play.
UF held the lead for the rest of the game.
“They didn’t drop their heads when Charlotte took a lead to start the second half,” Butler said. “We came right back with the right spirit and fight to get right back into the ball game.”
Florida’s last meeting with Charlotte ended in an 81-77 overtime defeat in the 2011 Women’s National Invitation Tournament, ending the season for Butler’s squad.
However, Saturday’s game marks back-to-back regular season wins over Charlotte for Florida.
Last season’s contest was a 76-70 victory for the Gators at the O’Connell Center.
The University of Florida Athletic Association contributed to this report.
