hursday night in Arkansas.
The Razorbacks ended their three-game skid and the Gators saw their three-game winning streak come to an end in a 55-49 Arkansas (16-7, 3-7 Southeastern Conference) victory, holding Florida (16-7, 6-4 SEC) to its lowest offensive output this season.
Although the offense struggled, turnovers and foul trouble are what doomed Florida.
“A great deal of composure was lacking,” coach Amanda Butler said.
“You got to give Arkansas the credit for the way that they played and the turnovers that they forced us into. I was really disappointed that we didn’t handle the ball better. We didn’t value our possessions.”
The Gators committed 12 turnovers in the first half, and key post players Kayla Lewis and Ronni Williams had three and two fouls after the first 20 minutes, respectively.
Williams ended up fouling out with 3:41 remaining in the game.
“The fouls were a bit of an issue, but we’ve got to adjust to the way the game is being called,” Butler said. “The fouls were not as big of a hurdle as the turnovers.”
For the game, the Gators committed 25 turnovers — the second most they have committed this season — and found themselves with a minus-13 turnover margin.
Going 0 for 5 from beyond the arc in the first half didn’t help matters much for Florida, either. Nor did going on a seven-minute scoring drought late in the second half.
After three strong shooting performances leading up to the game at Arkansas, Florida regressed mightily on Thursday night, shooting 37.5 percent from the field and going 3 for 11 from three-point range.
The Gators’ offensive leaders on the night were Lewis and senior Jaterra Bonds, who scored 14 points a piece on a combined 10 for 17 shooting.
The rest of the team went only 8 for 31.
“They play really smart personnel,” Butler said. “Tonight, they just set back in a zone and let us shoot ourselves in the foot. We just really weren’t aggressive at getting seams and really trying to make plays that we worked on for the past two days.
“They just imposed their style on us.”
Although the Gators were sloppy on offense, the defense was a bright spot.
Ironically, Florida outrebounded Arkansas 43-30 — a rare feat for the small Gators.
Lewis led the team with 10 boards en route to a double-double.
Bonds was second to Lewis with nine rebounds, and Williams followed with seven.
The Gators also held the Razorbacks to a meager 33.9 field-goal percentage.
But the turnovers ultimately did Florida in.
The Gators’ loss to the Razorbacks could haunt them in the coming weeks in regards to earning a bid to the NCAA Tournament.
After Arkansas’ loss at home to Auburn — a team that Florida beat by 18 points almost two weeks ago — Florida was the favorite to win on Thursday.
Now, the Gators’ enter the gauntlet of their schedule to close out the season. Four of their final six opponents are ranked.
Florida’s next game is against No. 15 Kentucky on Sunday in the O’Connell Center. The Gators upset the Wildcats earlier this season in Kentucky, but that achievement is essentially deemed meaningless, as Florida beat Arkansas earlier this season as well.
A radio broadcast contributed to this report.
Follow Gordon Streisand on Twitter @GordonStreisand
Kayla Lewis attempts a free-throw shot during Florida’s 75-67 win against Alabama on Jan. 30 in the O’Connell Center. Lewis notched a double-double against Arkansas.
