Florida freshman Liv McGill ended the first half flat on her stomach after fighting and clawing for the ball, a moment that embodied the intensity and aggressiveness of the Gators’ first-half dominance of the Vols.
However, a disastrous third quarter unraveled Florida, allowing the once-silenced Vols fans to secure a comeback in the second half. This, in turn, ended the Gators’ hope of securing their first ranked win since Feb. 3, 2022 at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
Florida (14-14, 5-9 SEC) fell to Tennessee (21-6, 8-6) on Sunday afternoon, 86-78, at the O’Dome, ending Florida’s two-game winning streak.
Although the Gators had a nine-point lead at half, their 13 third-quarter turnovers allowed Tennessee to outscore them 37-20 in the period, leaving them with a steep uphill battle. UF ended the game with 21 turnovers, giving away 24 points.
“That third quarter got away from us [and] I thought we made some errors defensively,” UF head coach Kelly Rae Finley said. “They made an adjustment, we knew at halftime that some things might change in areas that we couldn’t control, and it was unfortunate that was the case.”
UT redshirt sophomore guard Talaysia Cooper, 10th in the SEC in scoring, was out for most of the first half due to foul trouble, only scoring three points. She scored 15 points in the second half, though, as she finished with a team-high 18 for the Lady Vols.
Alongside her in double-figures were UT junior forward Zee Spearman (16), junior guard Ruby Whitehorn (10), graduate student guard Jewel Spear (10) and senior guard Samara Spencer (11). Spear and Spencer reached double-digits in the second half after scoring none in the first.
“I thought Cooper being back in the second half was huge for them,” Finley said. “She’s a tremendous player that changed the course of the game, but letting [Cooper], Spear [and] Spencer get free, that was tough.”
Meanwhile, senior center Ra Shaya Kyle led the Gators with 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field and 7-of-7 shooting at the free-throw line. Kyle, who is third in the SEC in double-doubles, notched her 13th double-double with 10 rebounds.
Even as the Gators continued to improve in their shooting out-rebound the Vols (47-42), their inability to contain Tennessee from the three-point line gave UT the opportunity to take the game back.
Tennessee shot 10-of-29 from the three-point line compared to Florida’s 2-of-17. UT had seven players hit at least one 3-pointer, compared to UF’s two players (senior guard Kenza Salgues and senior forward Alexia Dizeko).
At first, the game was back-and-forth, with four lead changes in the first quarter. The scattered Vols fans in the O’Dome were charged up, cheering on as their team originally had the lead.
However, the Gators responded to UT’s 8-0 game-opening run with a 6-0 run of their own to tie the game 10-10 at the first media timeout. Sophomore guard Laila Reynolds helped spearhead the charge with a towering block to help end UT’s run. She finished the afternoon 17 points on 7 of 12 from the field and six rebounds.
Florida took the lead at 16-12 at the end of the first quarter and continued to fight from there.
The Gators’ slow start in the second quarter seemed concerning, as they’ve been inconsistent throughout SEC play. After being outscored by UT 14-11 at the second-quarter media timeout, UF only had a narrow lead at 27-26.
However, the Gators had a breakthrough. They were able to come out of the timeout strong, extending their lead all the way up to nine points by halftime.
Freshman guard Liv McGill had the Vols’ defense scrambling, as she used her speed and agility to steal the ball and maneuver her way to the basket. She ended the game with 17 points on 8-of-19 shooting and a team-high five assists.
“[McGill’s] super dynamic,” Finley said. “Obviously, you don’t want 21 turnovers, but to be pressed for an entire game, 40 minutes, I thought our freshman and sophomore [Reynolds] did a pretty nice job of taking care of the ball.”
Moreover, UF senior guard Jeriah Warren scored a game-high six points in the second period. She finished the game with 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting, 3 of 7 from the free-throw line and seven rebounds.
Florida entered halftime strong at 37-28, shooting 39% from the field, compared to Tennessee’s 30%. Both teams were tied with eight turnovers each.
In the final quarter, the Gators scored an even 21 points with the Vols. Kyle and Reynolds attempted to win the game back with nine and seven points in the period, respectively.
However, the third quarter forced Florida’s hand and ultimately led to its loss.
“The SEC did us a favor with their last three opponents, hats off to them, but that’s why you come to this league,” Finley said. “We’re building and we’re working towards being one of those teams ourselves.”
Florida next faces Oklahoma (20-6, 8-5) on Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
“I think that this was a good game for us leading up to Oklahoma on Thursday, which we will need all of Gator Nation,” Finley said.
Contact Amanda Roman at aroman@alligator.org. Follow her on X @mandy_romannn
Amanda Roman is a sophomore sports journalism major and the Spring 2025 women's basketball reporter. This is her second semester at the sports desk for The Alligator, and she previously interned for Fort Lauderdale United FC. In her free time, she enjoys lifting, shopping and reading.
