Gators Welcome No. 7 Tennessee for Second-Straight Top-10 Matchup Andrew Hile Tip is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET on Thursday at Exactech Arena in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. GAINESVILLE, Fla. – For the second time in as many attempts, Florida women's basketball will welcome a top-10 opponent to Exactech Arena in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center when No. 7 Tennessee comes to town on Thursday at 6 p.m. ET. The game will be streamed live on SEC Network+ with Kyle Crooks and Brittany Davis on the call while Tom Collett and Kelly Davis will handle radio responsibilities on 98.1FM/850AM WRUF. Despite falling to No. 1 South Carolina, 62-50, on Sunday, the Gators put together a strong defensive performance to make the Gamecocks uncomfortable throughout the game. Florida forced the opposition into 21 turnovers, marking the second-highest number for South Carolina this season. The Gamecocks also only managed to put 62 points on the board, also marking the second-lowest scoring output for the top-ranked team this season. The Gators are also excelling at the free throw line, currently sitting atop the SEC with a 73.3% mark. Kiara Smith's defense has remained an elite level during the 2021-22 season, sitting at 26th nationally with a total of 52 steals on the year. She is also ranked 49th in the nation in steals per game, averaging 2.48 during each outing. Those numbers are good for third and fourth in the SEC, respectively. For the second-straight week, the Gators are receiving votes in both the AP Poll and Coaches Poll following a strong performance against South Carolina on Sunday. Last week was the first time since December 21, 2016 that the Orange & Blue received votes in the polls. Exactech Arena in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center was also rocking last Sunday, as the Gators recorded their largest crowd (5,319) since January 21, 1999 when they had 5,031 against Pat Summitt's Tennessee squad. Tennessee enters Thursday's contest with a 19-2 record (8-1 SEC), most recently defeating Arkansas, 86-83, in Knoxville, Tenn. The matchup between the Gators and Lady Volunteers will mark the 59th meeting between the programs, with Tennessee holding a 54-4 advantage in the series. Florida's last victory over the Lady Vols came Jan. 7, 2016, when UF claimed victory in Knoxville, 74-66. more at: Gators Welcome No. 7 Tennessee for Second-Straight Top-10 Matchup - Florida Gators
HOOPS CENTRAL: #7/7 Lady Vols at Florida UT Game Notes (PDF) Florida vs. Tennessee Game Notes (PDF) - University of Tennessee Athletics TENNESSEE IN SEC PLAY UT is 423-89 (.826) in SEC regular-season games through Arkansas, winning 18 regular-season championships and capturing 17 SEC tourney titles. Tennessee Head Coach Kellie Harper is 27-11 in SEC games in her third year on Rocky Top, including 8-1 in 2021-22, and is 2-2 in SEC Tournament play. UT tied for third in 2019-20 and finished third outright in 2020-21, marking its best back-to-back outcomes in league play since taking second in 2013-14 and first in 2014-15. The Lady Vols were picked second in the 2021-22 SEC Preseason Media Poll and No. 3 in the SEC Preseason Coaches Poll, marking their best positions since 2015-16 and 2016-17, respectively. UT NO. 7/7 IN POLLS After opening the year ranked No. 15/12, the Lady Vols climbed to No. 4 in the Jan. 24 AP Poll and hit a best of No. 5 in the Jan. 25 USA TODAY/WBCA Coaches Poll. This week, they stand at No. 7 in both polls as of Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. The No. 4/5 plateau was the highest combination of rankings since the Lady Vols were No. 4/5 in the Nov. 23 and 24 polls of the 2015-16 campaign. UT began that 2015-16 season at No. 4 in each poll and stayed there for two more weeks in the AP Top 25 but was relegated to No. 5 in the coaches poll the following two polling periods. LADY VOLS PROJECTED FOR NO. 2 SEED In his Bracketology update on Feb. 1, ESPN's Charlie Creme has Tennessee as a No. 2 seed in the Wichita Region. The Lady Vols are shown hosting No. 15 Mercer in the first round, with the winner facing No. 7 Ohio State or No. 10 Missouri State in the second round. ESPN has the Big Orange at No. 6 in its Jan. 31 Women's College Basketball Power Rankings. The NCAA NET Rankings show UT ranked No. 8 through Jan. 31, while the NCAA Toughest Schedule report had the Lady Vols at No. 13 (cumulative opposition). RealTimeRPI.com has UT at No. 4 in RPI as of Feb. 1 with a calculation of .6903 and No. 6 in strength of schedule. ABOUT THE LADY VOLS The Lady Vols continue to be one of the nation's most surprising stories of 2021-22, opening up at 19-2, tied atop the SEC standings and climbing to No. 4 in the AP Poll (currently No. 7) against one of the NCAA's toughest schedules despite losing returning starter Marta Suárez for the season to a lower leg injury and playing without top returning scorer Rae Burrell for 12 games (leg injury) and this year's leading scorer and rebounder Jordan Horston for three (lower leg injury/illness). Burrell and Horston are back in form, but the Lady Vols lost an the rest at: HOOPS CENTRAL: #7/7 Lady Vols at Florida - University of Tennessee Athletics
I think this is Kelly's best chance to lock the job down. It won't be easy, but more winnable than South Catolina. Win this and she only needs to find a couple of more SEC wins and get to .500 and a NCAA bid. We should be be favored in 2-3 remaining games.
I actually think Tennessee may present more issues than South Carolina did. Hopefully the ladies can put together a great game and pull off the upset.
Hope we have a good crowd again, the team was obviously pumped when they saw the crowd for South Carolina
Great start... 15-7 Gators. This is a game that if she wins, Kelly is likely becoming the permanent head coach. Amazing how much better we have looked since Lavender left.
Good crowd here. Not as many as South Carolina, but a couple of thousand at least. Gators looking good at both ends!
If we can start getting crowds and winning these games... watch out!!! Waited so long for this program to take off and we are close.
Gators up 32-22 with 3:43 before half. need to keep ball from getting in to UT bigs. It’s automatic 2 when they do. But we’ve been doing a good job so far.
