Jennifer George wanted to cap a frustrating season with a victory in her final home game as a Gator.
Actively engaged on both ends of the floor despite foul trouble and tweaking her injured right shoulder, Florida’s only senior ensured that would be the case.
George notched her ninth double-double of the season as Florida put to rest its late-game demons on Thursday night, withstanding a late rally by Arkansas to win 69-58 in the O’Connell Center.
"I didn’t cry, so that was a good thing," George said. "That was a great way to go out."
After dropping five of their past six homes games, the Gators appeared to be headed for an easy win, but the Razorback finally found their offensive rhythm midway through the second half.
Trailing 49-34 with 11:46 remaining, Arkansas responded with a 21-6 run during the next 7:19 to tie the game at 55 with 4:27 remaining.
After picking up her fourth foul with 10:03 remaining, George returned to help seal the victory.
Freshman Sydney Moss beat the shot clock with a pull-up jumper to give Florida a 57-55 lead after Arkansas tied the game on a layup by Keira Peak. George then scored on consecutive possessions, sparking an 11-1 run.
George finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds to go along with three assists, three blocks and two steals before being honored in a postgame Senior Night ceremony.
"Jennifer played like a senior, especially down the stretch, and really just anchored us in the paint and gave us confidence that whatever was going on, it was going to go Florida’s way," coach Amanda Butler said.
Junior guard Jaterra Bonds, the Southeastern Conference’s seventh-leading scorer entering Thursday with 14.4 points per game, nearly equaled her average before halftime.
Bonds scored 13 of her game-high 18 points in the first half and finished an efficient 7-of-12 shooting in the game.
"That consistency factor, you just can’t overlook that," Butler said. "When you’ve got a player that you know you can count on for double-digit points … it helps everybody else fall in line."
Florida’s defense pestered a turnover-prone Arkansas before halftime.
The Razorbacks shot just 7 of 27 in the first half in addition to their 13 turnovers, appearing out of sync offensively for most of the half.
UF scored the final eight points of the half while holding Arkansas scoreless in the last 4:57 to take a 33-24 lead into halftime.
Sophomore Kayla Lewis finished with 11 points and eight rebounds. Lewis said the victory was critical both to build momentum late in the season and to send George off with a win in her final game in the O’Connell Center.
"Before the game, [George] was saying: ‘This isn’t about me. This is about us building momentum into the SEC Tournament,’" Lewis said. "Ever since I’ve been here, it’s never been about her.
"She can have 26 double-doubles in a row and not care about getting any of the credit. She just wants to win and do her part. I think tonight we did our part by getting her last win here."
Contact Phillip Heilman at pheilman@alligator.org.
Jennifer George (32) shoots during Florida’s 62-57 loss to Georgia on Sunday in the O’Connell Center. George notched her ninth double-double of the season in Florida's 69-58 win against Arkansas on Thursday.
