After a full week off, Florida is poised to return to action against Georgia on Sunday at 1 p.m. in the O’Connell Center.
The Gators dropped their last contest to then-No. 12 LSU 82-68 on Sunday in Baton Rouge, La.
With an extended break, Florida should be well prepared for Georgia’s arrival.
“Bye weeks are critical,” coach Amanda Butler said.
“You’ve got to make sure that you get your rest in. You’ve got to make sure that you take advantage of maybe putting in a few extra things or tightening up some things. The first part of this week is to work on us.”
Historically, the Bulldogs have dominated the Gators. In the 62 games played against one another, Georgia leads the series 48-14.
But if this year’s statistics mean anything, Florida should have the upper hand this time around.
The Gators are 9-1 at home this season and are 3-1 in Southeastern Conference play, and the Bulldogs are 3-3 away from Athens, Ga., and 1-4 against conference opponents so far this season.
However, both teams appear to be meeting at watershed moments Sunday.
Georgia is coming off a narrow victory against Arkansas on Thursday, while Florida is looking to get back to its winning ways after dropping its first contest in 10 games last week against LSU.
The key to Sunday’s matchup, and most SEC games, will be in the paint.
“In every SEC matchup, you have to look at what’s going to happen in the paint and make sure you’re putting yourself in the best situation possible for that battle,” Butler said. “That’s probably where we’ll start.”
Winning in the paint will be a tall order for the Gators. Florida is down to seven active players while Georgia’s bench is 12 players deep and littered with 6-footers.
“They’ve got good size,” Butler said. “They’ve got some really dynamic players. We’re going to have to play a really complete ball game coming off the heels of a loss on Sunday, a much better game in the paint.”
Aside from last week’s loss to LSU, Florida has been strong throughout conference play with wins coming against Mississippi State, Arkansas and, most impressively, No. 10 Kentucky in Lexington, Ky.
Although the Gators have played well, they are not satisfied with where they stand.
“One of the things I like the most about where we are is that we are 3-1 and our kids are disappointed about that,” Butler said.
“There was no, ‘Valiant effort. Let’s pat ourselves on the back because we were one woman down.’
“They were disappointed. They knew they hadn’t played well and weren’t looking for any excuses in that loss. I think we’ve got great indications, so far, in the way that we’ve played and how we have to play to be a very good team and beat very good teams.”
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Amanda Butler reacts to a play during Florida’s 87-54 win against Alabama on Feb. 3, 2013, in the O’Connell Center. The Gators are down to seven active players on the roster.
