The third time is not always the charm.
It certainly was not for the Gators on Thursday night in Blacksburg, Va.
Failing to recover from a disastrously bad first half, Florida lost its first road game of the season, falling to Virginia Tech 71-59.
“We were on our heels defensively for most of the night,” coach Amanda Butler said. “That was just so hard to overcome.”
After Florida was outrebounded in its previous game, against North Florida, Butler knew her team would face a challenge against the Hokies, who entered the game with a +18 rebound margin.
Fortunately for Florida, rebounding was not an issue.
However, almost everything else was.
Florida’s defense was porous in the first half, allowing 39 points on 43.3 percent shooting, as the Gators trailed by 24 points going into halftime.
As poorly as the defense played, the offense was just as shaky.
Hokies freshman guard Vanessa Panousis had 18 points in the first half. Florida had 15.
“She did a fantastic job today,” Butler said of Panousis. “She set the tone from the beginning and we were adjusting, continuously, to her. That was certainly not our game plan.”
Virginia Tech’s (3-0) hot shooting coupled with Florida’s inability to put points on the board spelled disaster for the Gators. UF was plagued by a six-minute scoreless drought in the first half and shot 4 of 24 from the field before halftime.
But Florida (2-1) was a different team in the second half.
Ronni Williams began to dominate the floor like she did in the Gators’ season opener against Bethune-Cookman. Before fouling out with 3:30 remaining in the game, Williams recorded seven rebounds and seven points.
“I thought Ronni really sparked us in the second half,” Butler said. “No question. She really battled and turned the momentum. Kayla (Lewis) had some big plays as well, but Virginia Tech answered.”
Florida pulled within four points with 6:51 remaining in the game, but the early deficit proved too much to overcome.
Seniors Jaterra Bonds and Lily Svete each had strong performances. Bonds led the team with 21 points, while Svete made four threes to finish the game with 12 points.
“After playing such an embarrassing first half, it was too much to overcome,” Butler said. “I was really proud of the fight and the toughness that they showed in the second half. ... Ultimately, our demise in the second half was that we gave up big plays.
A radio broadcast contributed to this report.
Follow Gordon Streisand on Twitter @GordonStreisand.
Ronni Williams posts up during Florida’s win against North Florida on Sunday in the O’Connell Center.
