Dalila Eshe, Tamia Williams and Tara Taylor each scored 13 points leading the Florida women's basketball team (4-1) to a 72-69 victory over Long Beach State (1-3) at The Pyramid.
It was a true team-effort for the Gators, who had all 10 players who saw action score tonight. UF's leading scorers Bernice Mosby and Vanessa Hayden combined for just three points, as the Gator's bench came through in the win. Florida found itself trailing by as many as 14 points in the game, before rallying for the victory.
"We regrouped from a sluggish start and I was proud of the way we fought when we were in a hole," UF head coach Carolyn Peck said. "Our defense was very aggressive and kept us in the game when our shots wouldn't fall early. Even though we didn't shoot a high percentage in the game, we were taking the shots we wanted so I wasn't discouraged."
Florida shot 35.1 percent (26-74) from the floor for the game, including a 36.8 percent effort in the first half despite missing its first 11 shots. The Gators forced 22 turnovers, blocked 13 shots and collected 13 steals in the victory. LBSU shots 36.3 percent during the game and outrebounded UF 58-46, including garnering 20 offensive boards.
LBSU capitalized on several early Gators turnovers to begin the second half scoring the first eight points and erasing UF's 39-34 halftime lead to take a 42-39 advantage with 16:50 remaining in the game. Tara Taylor ended the Gator's second-half scoring spell with a long jumper from the right corner with 15:38 on the clock. Taylor's bucket started a 8-2 run forcing a 49ers timeout, after which Jinga Gosschalk nailed a deep 3-pointer to tie the score at 47-all.
The teams continued to trade baskets for the next four minutes, which featured three tied scores and two lead changes. Brittany Davis then helped Florida score six straight points and take a six-point advantage, 60-54, but that lead was short-lived as Candice Wilson scored the next five points to cut the deficit to one with 5:36 remaining. Kelly Stevenson answered with a trey for the Gators to begin a 7-2 lead giving UF a six-point spread, 67-61, with 2:39 on the clock. But LBSU scored the next four points to close within two, 69-67, with 45 seconds remaining. Sarah Lowe hit one free throw with 42.8 seconds left and Kelly Stevenson followed with two more with 25 ticks. Glory Johnson then put in a 2-footer and the 49ers immediately fouled Lowe, who missed the front end of the 1-plus-1 with seven seconds remaining. LBSU snatched the miss and dribbled the length of the court for a chance to tie the game. But Kelly Stevenson blocked Christina Mack's 3-point attempt as the horn sounded.
That block was the Gator's 13th of the game, one shy of the team record set against Harvard on Dec. 20, 1983.
Florida missed its first 11 shots from the floor, as LBSU jumped out to a quick 16-2 lead in the opening six minutes of the game. Sarah Lowe netted the Gators first field goal at the 13:20 mark off a layup and followed that with a pair of free throws to ignite a 23-10 run that featured six points from Danielle Santos and five from Dalila Eshe, as UF closed within one points, 26-25, with 6:44 remaining in the first half.
Candice Wilson then netted a trey to spark a mini 6-2 LBSU spree to put the 49ers ahead by five, 32-27 at the 3:17 mark. But the Gators closed the half on a 12-2 run thanks to eight points from Tara Taylor and four from Eshe to take a 39-34 at halftime.
In spite of their opening-game shooting woes, the Gators managed to hit 36.8 percent (14-38) of their first-half shots. LBSU shot 36.6 percent (15-41) in the first 20 minutes and held a 27-25 edge on the boards.
The Gators continue their hectic schedule, flying the 2,206 miles back to Gainesville in time to play host to Miami on Tuesday in the O'Connell Center. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
END OF REPORT
