All 11 Gators who played Sunday scored as the Florida women's basketball team notched an 85-56 win over Stetson in the 2005-06 home opener at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
The Gators (3-1) were led by the hot hand of freshman Sha Brooks (Jackson, Tenn.), who scored 17 of the Gators' first 22 points on 5-of-5 shooting from behind the arc. Brooks finished with a career-best 19 and was 5-of-7 from three-point land, while Florida seniors Dalila Eshe (Tallahassee, Fla.) finished with 13 and Brittany Davis (Gainesville, Fla.) netted 11 to round out the Gators in double-figures.
“We saw that Sha was a great three-point shooter when we recruited her, and she knows what to do with the ball when it hits her hands,” UF coach Carolyn Peck said. “She makes great shots whenever she gets open, and she's done a great job for us so far this season.”
The Gators opened with a 13-1 run in the game's first five minutes powered by eight points from Brooks, who had already reset her career-high in points at the 6:30 mark of the opening period. After Brooks knocked down a three-pointer to push the Gators' lead out to 16-4, Stetson (0-3) never got closer than 11 at 19-8 for the remainder of the contest.
Florida played a near-flawless first half as they turned the ball over just twice while converting nine Stetson turnovers into 19 points. A stifling Florida defense kept the Stetson's offense off guard all half as the Hatters did not make a field goal until the 15:21 mark with a three-pointer from Sharnesha Smith.
“This was a good way to start,” Peck said. “We shared the basketball well today. I liked our defense in the first half, and we took care of the ball with only two turnovers. We did a good job of hitting our open shots, and I was impressed with how aggressive we played.”
For the half, Stetson shot just 33.3 percent from the field. On the opposite end, UF made 47.5 percent of its baskets en route to a 49-23 halftime lead. The Gators were 6-of-14 from three-point range in the first 20 minutes and outrebounded Stetson by a 27-16 margin.
Stetson had two players reach double-digits as senior Nefertiti Walker totaled 18 and Smith added 13.
“I thought we didn't defend very well in the first half,” Stetson coach Dee Romine said. “On the other hand, I thought that the second half was the best half we have played all season. We came out and hit open shots, and we had a very good offensive flow the entire half.”
The solid offensive play from UF extended into the second half as Florida narrowly missed school records in assists with 30 (31) and three-pointers made with eight (11).
“I'm most critical of our defense,” Peck said. “Stetson picked us apart in the second half and did a good job of finding the open looks. We are going to have to go back and take a look at the film to see where they were getting open so that we can correct those situations.”
The Gators finished the game with a season-high 45 rebounds, while the Hatters were only able to pull down 29. Florida had 32 points in the paint compared to 14 from Stetson, and the Gators' bench totaled 31 points in the win.
“I like what our seniors are doing right now, but I'm very impressed with our freshmen so far,” Peck added. “They're not just scoring points for us, but they are also getting huge stats in the rebounding columns. We know that rebounding is going to be key in our conference games, and we need to keep getting those numbers from our younger players when we hit the conference schedule.”
Florida returns to the road for a mid-week contest at Charlotte (2-2). The game between the Gators and 49ers will tip off Wednesday, Nov. 30, at 5:30 p.m. EST and will be televised regionally on FoxSportsNet Florida.
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