(WBK) #17 Gators Visit them Auburn Tigers 2/14/22

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From what I was told 'The Power of One' signifies that AN Individual has the ability to make things happen

 

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | Monday, February 14, 2022 | Andrew Hile
Gators Out-Tough Tigers for Win at Auburn
AUBURN, Ala. – Florida women's basketball had to put together 40 minutes of hard-nosed basketball to overtake Auburn on Monday evening, and that's just what they did, holding off a hungry Tiger team, 83-77.
Five athletes scored in double figures for the Gators (19-6, 9-3 SEC), led by Zippy Broughton in her homecoming with 18 points in addition to six rebounds, three assists and three steals. Senior Kristina Moore tallied a career-high with 15 points, while Jordyn Merritt (13), Kiara Smith (12) and Nina Rickards (10) all crossed the 10-point threshold.

For the game, the Orange & Blue shot 27-of-62 (43.5%) from the field and 6-of-16 (37.5%) from long range. The Tigers (9-14, 1-11 SEC) ended their afternoon 28-of-65 (43.1%) and 8-of-18 (44.4%) from three-point range. A key difference in the game, Florida was impressive from the free throw line, knocking down 23 of their 28 attempts (82.1%).
The battle on the boards was dead-even between the two squads, with both teams pulling down 38 rebounds. Broughton led the Gators with six rebounds while Merritt and Rickards each brought down five of their own.

Defensively, Florida locked down the Tigers, forcing 20 turnovers throughout the evening. The Gators tallied nine steals, with Broughton and Smith leading the way with three steals each. The defensive intensity helped UF to a 15-9 advantage in fast break points.

For the second time in as many outings, the Florida bench put on a strong performance to propel the Gators. The Orange & Blue reserves outscored Auburn 28-7 off the bench, led by Moore's 15.
The game began quickly for Florida, with the Gators opening with the first four points of the game. Rickards battled for an offensive rebound put-back on the opening possession, followed by a Smith floater in the lane. The Tigers, however, responded with a 6-0 run, holding UF scoreless for over five minutes.

Floor Toonders would break the scoring drought, connecting on the first three-pointer of her collegiate career with 4:13 remaining in the quarter. Again, the Tigers would respond and take a 14-11 lead late in the period, eventually taking a 17-16 lead into the second following an exchange of triples from each side.
After draining the three at the end of the quarter to keep the Gators within one, Moore would do it again at the start of the third to keep Florida within one at 20-19. Auburn would push their lead to four at 23-19 with 7:49 on the clock, but the Gators would use a quick 5-0 spurt, capped off with a three from Broughton, to reclaim the lead at 24-23.

With the score evened at 27, the Orange & Blue put together a string of six points to open their largest lead of the half at 33-27. Defense fueled the outburst, as Smith made picked a pocket for two at 3:48. Over the final three minutes of the half, both squads would trade punches with Florida taking the 39-36 lead into the break.

Florida picked up their defensive intensity in the second quarter, forcing the Tigers into five turnovers while holding the opposition to 6-of-18 shooting in the period. For the half, UF forced seven total Auburn turnovers.

The Gators pulled out to a 43-37 lead to start the second half behind buckets from Smith and Faith Dut, but the Tigers used an 10-0 run over two minutes to take the lead, 47-43, with 6:03 remaining in the quarter. Broughton would put an end to the streak, scoring five straight points to give the Gators the lead back with 5:15 on the clock.

Auburn reclaimed the lead off of Jala Jordan three-pointer, but Merritt would pick up the intensity. After tying the game at 50 with a scoop-and-score, the sophomore would reject a shot at the top of the key and connect on two at the charity stripe for a 52-50 lead at the 3:27 mark. Six free throws at the backend of the period, paired with eight points from Merritt in the quarter, helped UF to a 60-56 lead with one to play.

Any chance of an Auburn victory was put to rest almost right away in the fourth quarter. Moore, a senior leader for the Gators, once again made her presence known, scoring the first five points of the frame, helping UF to a 67-55 lead with 8:15 on the clock.

Florida's lead would eventually peak at 14 points before taking the victory, 83-77, in Auburn Arena.

The Gators will be back in action on Thursday, Feb. 17 when they host Arkansas for their Play4Kay game in Exactech Arena.

Postgame Bites
- Florida has now won five in-a-row against the Tigers and two-consecutive on the road at Auburn.
- The Gators secured the season-sweep over the Tigers.
- Now boasting nine SEC victories, Florida has reach nine for the first time since the 2015-16 campaign when they finished with 10 conference wins.
- The win also marks the quickest the Florida has reached nine SEC victories since the 2000-01 season when they began 9-2 in the league.
- Six of Florida's six road wins have come on the road in SEC play, the most road-SEC wins for the Gators since the 2000-01 season.
- With the victory, Florida has reached 19 wins the fastest since the 2015-16 campaign when they also began 19-6.
- Kristina Moore tied a career-high with 15 points against the Tigers.
- Broughton has now led the Gators in scoring in two-consecutive games.

https://floridagators.com/news/2022...gators-out-tough-tigers-for-win-atauburn.aspx'

 

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Auburn Game Recap: Women's Basketball | 2/14/2022 9:41:00 PM
Auburn drops back-and-forth battle to No. 17 Florida
AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn went toe-to-toe with 17th-ranked Florida Monday night, but was unable to make enough plays down the stretch as the Gators held on for an 83-77 win at Auburn Arena.
The Tigers had their highest-scoring night in SEC play and had four players in double-figures, but Florida took advantage of Auburn foul trouble and numerous opportunities at the free-throw line to hold off a late Auburn charge.

"We wanted to start fast and maintain," Auburn head coach Johnnie Harris said. "I thought we came out of the gate pretty much even, but we wanted to start fast. We got some good looks, but we still missed some layups. We didn't do a good job keeping them from getting to the rim.
"We had some kids step up and knock down some big shots. Annie knocked down a big 3, Xaria hit a big 3 in there. But we've just got to play better. We've got to finish."

Honesty Scott-Grayson recorded her third double-double of the year, leading the Tigers with 21 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. Aicha Coulibaly fought early foul trouble to finish with 15 points and seven boards, Annie Hughes added 13 and Sania Wells had 12 points and six assists. Jala Jordan knocked down three 3-pointers to finish with nine points.
The Tigers hit a season-high eight 3-pointers – three apiece from Jordan and Hughes – and shot 43.1 percent from the field (28-65), hitting one more shot than the Gators. The teams were dead even in rebounding at 38 apiece (16 offensive, 22 defensive for both teams), but the deep Florida bench scored 28 points to Auburn's seven.

Auburn led 17-16 at the end of one as Coulibaly hit four of her first five shots. But the Gators pulled ahead midway through the second as foul trouble reared its head; two starters and one reserve missed significant time with two fouls apiece as the Gators took a 39-36 lead at the break.

Florida would increase its lead to 43-37 early in the third, but Auburn would answer with a 10-0 run, punctuated by 3-pointers from Hughes and Xaria Wiggins, to take a 47-43 lead. Two more triples from Jordan and Scott-Grayson kept Auburn in the lead, but the Gators would take advantage of more Auburn foul trouble to end the quarter on an 8-2 run over the last three minutes and take a 60-55 lead to the final period.
The Gators' lead would swell to as many as 14 midway through the fourth, but Auburn slowly began to chip away. A 12-point deficit with 1:54 to play was whittled down to four with less than 20 seconds to play, and a Hughes 3-pointer with 9.2 seconds left brought it to a one-possession game at 80-77. An opportunity with a missed Florida free throw, however, went awry as the Gators got the offensive rebound, were fouled again, and hit two more free throws to put the game away.

Five players scored in double-figures for the Gators, led by Zippy Broughton with 18 points.
Auburn faces its toughest test of the season Thursday night on the road when they travel to Columbia, S.C., to take on the top-ranked Gamecocks. Game time is 6 p.m. CT at Colonial Life Arena with the broadcast on SEC Network.

PLAY4KAY DONATION
Before the game, head coach Johnnie Harris had pledged $2 per student in attendance to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, and associate head coach Bob Starkey had pledged $1 per student. Harris decided to bump her donation to $5 per student, and Starkey rounded his donation to $500. With 209 students scanned – one of the largest student crowds for an Auburn women's basketball game in recent memory – Harris' donation will total $1,045 for a total of $1,545 from the Auburn coaching staff to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.

"Kay Yow was really special to me," Harris said. "Just to give back and to help raise awareness for breast cancer, that research is so important. I just wanted to do a little bit more."

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