What started out as an apparent mismatch on paper between the Florida Gators and Chicago State Cougars quickly turned into a blowout of historic proportions.
Saying Florida (3-0) took care of business against Chicago State (0-4) on Tuesday night would be an understatement. The Gators made their presence felt on both ends of the floor en route to a commanding 104-35 win over the Cougars.
“We played 40 minutes of Gator women’s basketball,” UF head coach Kelly Rae Finley said. “Any time you come out on your home court, you want to make sure that we play to our standard, and that’s what we were able to do tonight.”
Freshman guard Liv McGill led the way for UF with perhaps the most well-rounded outing of her young Gator career. McGill finished with 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field, along with five rebounds and eight assists.
Fellow freshman wing Me’Arah O’Neal also made a statement, tallying 18 points and eight rebounds. Meanwhile, UF senior guard Jerriah Warren once again established herself as a two-way force to be reckoned with. Warren came away with 19 points, five rebounds, five steals and two blocks.
Rounding out Florida’s standout performers were senior center Ra Shaya Kyle and junior forward Alexia Gassett, who both recorded a pair of double-doubles. Kyle and Gassett scored 12 points apiece, while Kyle grabbed 12 rebounds and Gassett came down with 11, respectively.
O’Neal led the charge for the Gators in the early going. The freshman wing quickly tallied seven points and three rebounds in the first three minutes of the contest, giving UF an early 9-0 lead.
“That first shot, that first three to start the game really got me going,” O’Neal said. “Just getting in the groove, really, feeling myself.”
Not to be outdone, McGill came through with a pair of back-to-back highlight worthy plays less than two minutes later. After slicing through the Chicago State defense for a tough finish at the rim, McGill stripped CSU freshman guard Aiyanna Culver before converting a fast break layup to extend Florida’s lead to 17-2.
From there, the Gators temporarily lost their offensive rhythm, only scoring four points in the final five minutes of the first period. O’Neal eventually got Florida back on track with a strong finish in the quarter’s final seconds, putting UF up 21-5 at the end of the first period.
While Florida faced some offensive stagnance late in the period, the Gators more than made up for these struggles with some hard-nosed defense. The Gators held Chicago State to just 2-for-16 (12.5 percent) from the field in the first quarter while forcing six turnovers.
Coming out of the first period, the Gators found their offensive footing once more. Senior guard Jerriah Warren scored five points in the first 90 seconds of the second period. She finished the quarter with seven points on 3-of-5 shooting from the field.
Meanwhile, the Cougars’ offensive struggles continued to linger going into the second quarter. Following a 3-pointer from freshman guard Kyara Champagne with 7:10 remaining on the clock, Chicago State went scoreless for the remainder of the half. The Cougars shot 0-for-12 from the field and 0-for-3 from 3-point range in that span.
Florida closed out the first half on a 21-0 run, capped off by a physical finish at the rack by McGill and a fast break layup from freshman guard Daviane Mindoudi Ongbakahoumb.
With two seconds left in the second quarter, McGill knocked down a pair of free throws to extend the Gators’ lead to 49-10 going into halftime. Florida’s 10 points allowed in the first two quarters set a program record for the fewest points given up in a half.
UF kept its foot on the gas coming out of halftime, immediately jumping out to a 13-4 run in the opening minutes of the second half. Warren tallied another seven points in the period, while McGill notched eight points of her own on a perfect 3-of-3 from the field.
Midway through the third quarter, McGill had more points (18) than Chicago State’s entire roster combined (16). By the end of the third period, Florida had jumped out to an 80-22 lead.
As the game was seemingly out of reach for Chicago State midway through the fourth period, McGill bodied her way through the paint on a fast break before converting on an and-one layup. McGill seemingly flexed in front of a courtside camera person after the finish before being greeted with cheers from her teammates.
That play alone may have perfectly summed up an all-around impressive showcase on the night for the Gators.
“At the end of the game, I just had to turn up and get my buckets,” McGill said. “I’m just excited that I’m finishing through contact. That’s what the smile was and celebration was about, because I know I was struggling with that last weekend.”
Florida will face perhaps its biggest test of the season to date on Saturday. The Gators are set to host the Miami Hurricanes at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center at noon ET.
While Miami represents a major step up for UF in terms of opposing talent, Finley remains confident in what her squad can bring to the table against any given adversary.
“We have to play Florida basketball every night, no matter who our opponent is,” Finley said. “We respect everybody, and no one game is bigger than another. I thought tonight was a great showing of how we’re able to compete when we do it together.”
Contact Jack Meyer at jmeyer@alligator.org. Follow him on X @jackmeyerUF.
Jack Meyer is a fourth-year journalism major and the Assistant Sports Editor for The Alligator. In his free time, he enjoys reviewing music, spending time with friends, playing video games and going to the gym.
