Bryan College Station, TX – At Defensive Slugfest, Florida’s women’s basketball opened 2023 with a victory over Texas A&M, beating the Aggies 55-48 on Sunday afternoon.
Led by the Gators (12-3, 1-1 SEC) Nina Rickards at 14 points Ra Shaya Kyle (12) and Albert Rimdal (10) also reached double digits for Orange & Blue. As a team, Florida finished 55-for-22 (40%) from the field and three-pointers from range he finished 13-for-2 (60%), both from Rimdal.
On Grass, Florida rebounded Texas A&M (5-7, 0-2 SEC) 33-27, with the Rickers leading seven.Senior face dut kill 5 people Jeraah Warren also finished with 5, 4 of which were offensive. Florida only allowed the Aggies his two offensive rebounds. In the paint, UF led the score, 36-14.
On defense, the Gators held Texas A&M to 18/41 (41.9%) shooting and 4/9 (44.4%) effort from 3. Orange & Blue forced his 13 turnovers, resulting in 13 points and converted to 4 steals.
Aaliyah Pati led Texas A&M with 15 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists.
The Aggies started the game with four straight points and kept the Gators off the board until Rimdal converted a driving layup at 7:31 on the clock. Her layup started her 8-0 run, Micah Perry A layup, helped the Gators to a 10-8 lead at the end of the first inning.
The offense was much easier in the second quarter, with 5:25 left in the period following a strong take on buckets from Warren, with both teams trading buckets into a 17-17 stalemate. . The Gators were able to open up some breathing room thanks to back-to-back buckets from Dutt and Rickards at the end of the period, allowing them to take a 27-22 lead and enter the break. The SEC foe had him draw six times in his first 20 minutes.
Florida extended their lead to seven after Kyle’s two free throws to start the second half, but the Aggies responded with a 6-0 spurt to close within 29-28 at the 6:01 mark. The Aggies took their first lead of the second half and after Patty’s triple he showed 2:30 on the clock, making it 36–33 with the score remaining heading into the final frame.
Desperately in need of a bucket, Rickards broke through Aggie’s defense to start the fourth quarter and keep Florida within two. Kyle tied the game at 37 on the next possession, but Texas A&M again answered with a triple and he regained the lead with 8:01 remaining. Two minutes later Rimdal found himself alone in the corner and ejected a three-pointer to push the Orange and Blue back in front and it was 42-40.
Leading 46-44, the UF crashed the offensive grass on a crucial possession with 3:28 left in the game and Warren gave the Gators a 48-44 lead from a second-chance opportunity. The Gators put the nails in the coffin on their next possession. Because Rimdal sank his 3 and extended the lead to his 7. Florida capitalized on this momentum and won 55-48.
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Florida will travel to Fayetteville, Arkansas on Thursday, January 5, to face the Razorbacks at 8:00 PM ET.
head coach Kelly Ray Finley
Sunday’s game…
“It was a really competitive and great match. Both teams played hard and it was probably more like a chess match than today’s checkers match. I liked the ability, what we’ve been working on is you have to learn how to win, you have to learn how to win in this league, so I liked the result.”
Overcome the pain of shooting…
“As a coach, I believe that training the mind is probably more important than training the body or anything else. I think both teams really wanted this match. I have the utmost respect for her staff and how they play and it’s a basketball game. Go in the trash. Sometimes taking the pressure off each shot meant someone had to shoot to score, and that paid off for us in the 4th quarter.
At the slow pace of the game…
“They like to play at a much slower pace than us and they did a really great job of playing their pace. They were able to sit under our ball handler in transition. So they couldn’t see it easily. They slowed down quickly at the rim, slowed down, and rushed into the half-court offense. It definitely worked to their advantage.
Celebrity
– Florida scored their third victory over the Aggies and their second win of the trip.
– The Gators moved up 2-2 when they played on New Year’s Day, and their last win was on January 1, 1990, 78-73 against Maine.
– freshman Micah Perry Scored a career-best four points.
– The Gators managed the ball and posted a season-low nine turnovers.
– Florida officially recorded its 800th victory as a program, making it the 13th SEC program to achieve this feat.
– Holds Aggies to 48 points, Gators improve to 21-0 under par Kelly Ray Finley When you hold your opponent down to 60 points or less.
– #GoGators –
