In a game that featured two of the nation's top centers, it was the backcourt that ultimately decided the outcome as 18th-ranked Vanderbilt used clutch perimeter shooting to hold off Florida 64-58 in the O'Connell Center.
UF's 6-foot-4 Vanessa Hayden and VU's 6-foot-6 Chantelle Anderson essentially neutralized each other, as Hayden recorded 12 points with eight rebounds and two blocks in a foul-plagued 25 minutes of action, while Anderson tallied a season-low 10 points with three rebounds and one block in 18 minutes.
The most exciting match-up came at the point guard position position, where Gator freshman Sarah Lowe held her own against Commodore senior Ashley McElhiney. Lowe scored a team-high 14 points with 10 rebounds in addition to four assists and four steals in 38 minutes of play, while McElhiney contributed five points, 10 assists and five rebounds in 40 minutes of action.
Vanderbilt used clutch 3-point shooting to escape with the win after the Gators came within one point of tying the score with 11 minutes remaining.
The Gators drop to 8-17, 0-12 in Southeastern Conference play after their school-record 13th-consecutive loss. Vanderbilt improves to 18-7, 8-4 SEC.
"If we could hold Vanderbilt to the low 60s, I thought we had an opportunity to do something really good," said Florida coach Carolyn Peck, who played college basketball at Vanderbilt. "I know it sounds redundant, but I see improvement."
Florida sophomore Kelly Stevenson scored all nine of her points of three 3-pointers.
Florida's 8-0 run that began at 16:37 of the second half brought the Gators within one point of Vanderbilt, 36-35, and had the 1,752 in attendance on their feet. In addition to a 3-pointer, Stevenson made an over-the-head pass to Lowe while on the floor in her own end that led to an acrobatic, driving lay-up in transition by Lowe at 14:38. Lowe was fouled on the shot, and her free throw sent the crowd into a frenzy as Vanderbilt called a timeout.
Vanderbilt regrouped, however, as Jenni Benningfield went on an 8-0 run by herself. She hit two consecutive 3-pointers, which Vanderbilt connected on more than 40 percent of during the game, and a lay-up to put Vanderbilt up 44-35 with 12:18 remaining.
The Gators answered Vanderbilt's run a short time later when they went on a 6-0 run to get within six with 5:12 remaining. Hayden's hook shot ended the run to put Florida down 52-46.
Following Hayden's lay-up with 1:13 remaining that put Florida within 61-53, the Gators sent Vanderbilt to the line on its remaining possessions. Vanderbilt struggled, however, and a lay-up from sophomore Tamia Williams with 15.6 seconds left brought Florida within three, 61-58, of the upset.
Using its 15th-different starting lineup, Florida held Anderson to a season-low 10 points. The All-American was held scoreless for nearly the first 11 minutes of play before she collected a rebound and hit a short jumper at 9:06.
Vanderbilt was led by Benningfield's game-high 18 points. Abi Ramsey went 4-for-6 on 3-pointers to score 14 for the Commodores.
Florida stuck with Vanderbilt for the first 10 minutes of play. Its offense was able to find holes in the Vanderbilt defense, such as Williams' one-handed pass inside to freshman Brittany Davis for the easy score at 17:48.
Stevenson's 3-pointer at 9:20 brought the Gators within three points, 17-14, but Vanderbilt went on a 13-3 run immediately following the score. The Gators' only points during their drought were scored by Hayden off a hook shot and free throw.
With the Gators trailing 30-17 and 2:52 remaining in the first half, Stevenson led a comeback that brought Florida within six points, its smallest deficit in more than eight minutes. She drilled a three and slipped a pass inside to freshman Dalila Eshe with 1:38 left to put the Gators down 30-24.
Florida returns to action Thursday, Feb. 27, against Mississippi in its final home game of the 2002-03 season. Tip-off at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center is set for 7 p.m.
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