Eleanna Christinaki was on a mission Wednesday night.
The Florida women’s basketball team looked to close out its non-conference slate on a high note against UCF, a team the Gators have never lost to in 24 meetings heading into the game.
UF’s freshman from Greece delivered a highlight performance to guarantee the victory.
Christinaki scored 14 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out nine assists — one shy of posting just the third triple-double in program history — as the Gators defeated the Knights 93-79 in Jacksonville.
The win was largely in part to a 34-point third quarter where the Gators (12-1) shot 48 percent (12-for-25) from the field to erase the early lead UCF (3-8) built up in the first quarter and run away with the victory.
"We knew they would be really prepared and they were,” UF coach Amanda Butler said in a release.
“They have some very capable pieces and if they put all those pieces together at the same time then they would be very tough to beat. We saw that effort from them in the first quarter.”
Christinaki, who has now scored in double figures seven times this season, scored 11 points in the second half to provide the spark the Gators needed.
"She started a little bit slow, had some turnovers and was really disappointed with herself,” Butler said. “Then she settled in and got in a grove. She's a playmaker and creates in a lot of different ways. The rebounding is what I'm probably most proud of from her tonight."
UF ballooned its lead to as many as 22 points late in the third quarter before UCF made a late surge.
However, the Knights were unable to trim the deficit to single digits.
“Our depth plays a factor in the second half,” said Butler, who saw five players score at least 10 points on Wednesday.
“I thought we had a bunch out there that set the tone as opposed to reacting and letting them set the tone."
While she was happy with the win, Butler also felt bittersweet about the way the non-conference season ended. She noted that the team has a lot to improve on if it hopes to continue its hot start.
Florida will next face No. 8 Mississippi State in the first SEC game of the season for either team, taking place on Sunday.
Like UF, the Bulldogs hold a 12-1 record and won the other game of the AAC-SEC challenge against No. 20 USF.
Follow Ethan Bauer on Twitter @ebaueri
UF guard Eleanna Christinaki drives into the paint during Florida's 99-34 win against Savannah State on Nov. 24, 2015, in the O'Connell Center.
