Florida women’s basketball has been anything but predictable this year. One day, it'll dominate a 5-3 ACC team; the next, it’ll lose to a 3-3 AAC one. The ebb and flow between wins and losses for the Gators is largely untrackable, except for one data point: In each of Florida’s losses, it has started slowly.
Against Alabama State (2-10), which was coming off a 43-point loss to Auburn and is No. 355 of 362 teams in the NET, the Gators spiked the heart rate of every Florida fan spending their holiday Sunday in the O’Connell Center.
The Hornets and Gators combined to shoot 0-of-5 through the first two minutes of play, sparking memories of past sluggish Florida (9-5) performances. But with a three-pointer from senior guard Jeriah Warren, the scoring opened, and after the first quarter, Florida held a 21-7 lead that it never let go of.
UF women’s basketball needed a spark before SEC play, and it got just that in its final non-conference matchup on Sunday. Hosting Alabama State, Florida dominated from the start (or two minutes in) to finish, winning 88-31. Senior center Ra’Shaya Kyle led the way with 16 points.
After a concerning slow start to the game, Florida got its offense back on track for the rest of the afternoon. The Gators finished the game shooting 46% from the field. While not its strongest performance of the season, the Florida offense still found ways to take advantage of the opportunities Alabama State gave it.
UF outscored the Hornets 39-15 in the first half, with a significant portion of that scoring output coming from the three-pointer. While the Gators followed their season average of 29.9% from beyond the arc, shooting 5-of-17 in the first half, Alabama State went 0-of-3. That gap in deep-shooting production continued throughout the game, with Florida finishing the matinee 10-of-32 from three (31.3%) and Alabama State failing to hit any of the nine three-pointers it attempted.
The Gators did not have one singular standout in the late December contest, but six players scored over seven points. Florida’s well-rounded offense shined in its 25-point third quarter, with eight Gators reaching the scoring column.
Despite the impressive scoring yield, the defense differentiated Sunday from other UF performances this season. When Florida’s offense struggled (which was rare), its defense picked up the slack and then some. The Gators held Alabama State to 15 points in the first half, while the Hornets only shot 18.2% from the field. That didn’t improve in the second half. Alabama State only scored 16 points in the final 20 minutes, finishing the game shooting 23.3%.
The Gators consistently put Alabama State in challenging situations, forcing 31 turnovers. The changes of possession often aided the Florida offense. UF finished the game scoring 42 points off turnovers, while the Hornets only had four.
“It was a good game,” UF senior guard Kenza Salgues said. “Our focus was on defense... [We made] a statement.”
Florida women’s basketball now enters the gauntlet of conference play. With SEC opposition looming, UF will face four ranked teams in January, the first of which is No. 20 Alabama on Thursday. The Gators’ SEC opener will come on the road in Tuscaloosa, with tipoff set for 7 p.m.
Contact Noah White at nwhite@alligator.org. Follow him on X at @noahwhite1782
Noah White is a sophomore majoring in journalism and public relations and The Alligator's Women's Tennis Reporter. In his free time, Noah writes some more and plays soccer and volleyball. He also knows more about Liberty League women's soccer than you do.
