After going on an unexpected run in the SEC Tournament, the Florida Gators earned an invitation to the second annual Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament. Last year, the Gators lost in round one of the tournament to St. John’s University. On Thursday night, they earned their first WBIT win in program history.
This year, the No. 3 seeded Gators (17-17) defeated the Northern Iowa Panthers (17-17) 83-71. The win temporarily puts Florida’s record at an even .500 on the season. UF senior guard Jeriah Warren refused to end her collegiate career without a fight, as her career-high 28 points helped to keep the Gators’ season alive.
The last time these two teams met was in 2012. UF and Northern Iowa came to blows in the South Point Thanksgiving Shootout in Las Vegas, with the Gators winning by 17 points.
While Florida fans had yet to return from spring break, the UF Pep Band still led the cheers for the Gators. For each of the Panthers’ free throws, the band sprinted to the seating behind their basket to cause as much distraction as possible.
In their final season in the orange and blue, seniors Jeriah Warren, Alexia Dizeko and Ra Shaya Kyle started on their home court for what may have been the last time. Representing the younger side of the Florida team were freshman guard Liv McGill and sophomore guard Laila Reynolds.
Early on, the Gators managed to impose their dominance on both sides of the ball. McGill opened up scoring for the game with a quick layup in the opening minute. On defense, Florida created turnovers while also mitigating fouls. In the first five minutes of the game, the Gators led by 12 points while forcing four turnovers from the Panthers.
The second quarter opened with a hard foul on Kyle. While McGill hit a three from the corner, Kyle was tangled up under the basket with a UNI center. The referees considered upgrading her foul to a flagrant one, but it remained common.
UNI took a small lead in the second quarter, but the Gators returned to their strengths: junior forward Alexia Gassett’s size and McGill’s shooting.
The two teams entered the locker room tied at the half. After its performance in the second quarter, Florida was looking to clean up its turnovers and engage the offense once again.
Near the end of the third quarter, McGill picked up her fourth foul. Reynolds took her place as Florida’s point guard, leading the team’s offensive efforts as they took the lead back in the third quarter.
On the other side of the ball, UNI senior Kayba Laube put up 21 points to push back against the Gators. In the end, her efforts were not enough, as the Gators pulled away to a double-digit victory.
The Gators will now move on to the second round of WBIT play. On Sunday, the team will face the winner of No. 2 UNLV and Hawaii. If UNLV wins, Florida will travel to Las Vegas to play the Rebels. With a win by Hawaii, however, the Gators would remain in Gainesville for another home game.
Contact Brooke Bastedo at brooke.bastedo@gmail.com. Follow her on X @BrookeBastedo.
