Depree Bowden scored 18 points and Marshae Dotson added 17 to lead the University of Florida women's basketball team to an 80-65 victory over Alabama on Sunday afternoon in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
On a day when the Gator's welcomed back the program's alumnae, Florida notched its eighth consecutive home victory, tying for the fifth longest home win streak in program history. More importantly, however, the win was the team's first Southeastern Conference victory, as the Gators improved to 12-5 overall and 1-1 in league play. Alabama fell to 8-9 overall, 1-1 in the SEC.
“It was crucial for us to begin our home SEC season with a win, you have to defend your own court,” said UF head coach Amanda Butler, whose team improved to 11-1 overall at home this year. “In terms of confidence, our team did a great job of not looking for excuses, but being accountable and looking for a way to get better after a tough loss at Kentucky. Anytime you can beat an SEC opponent in double figures you've got to be proud, regardless of the circumstances or anything else surrounding it.”
Sunday's 15-point victory was Florida's largest in an SEC regular-season game since its 63-48 win over Mississippi State on February 9, 2006 in Starkville.
Three of the four Gators who scored in double-figures were post players, as Florida outscored Alabama 46-24 in the paint. Joining Bowden and Dotson on the scoreboard were junior center Aneika Henry, who hit 7-of-11 shots in her 14-point performance, and sophomore forward Sharielle Smith, who added 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting, as the Gators hit 56.6 percent of their shots, their second-highest percentage this season.
Dotson and Smith each collected six rebounds, while Bowden swiped a game-high five steals. Junior guard Sha Brooks turned in another solid performance, scoring eight points with six assists and a steal in 31 minutes of action.
“We wanted the ball in the paint,” Butler said. “Aneika (Henry) did an excellent job getting the ball down low and scoring points. She played today like she was going to catch any ball that was thrown to her down low.”
The Gators opened the second half with a 7-3 run, taking a 13-point, 49-36 advantage with 17:12 on the clock. The teams traded buckets for the next five minutes, but Alabama was able to cut the lead to eight points after a three-pointer from Dedrea Magee with 10:07 remaining.
In response, Florida took a commanding 19-point lead, 72-53, thanks to unselfish play during an 11-0 run that was capped by three straight baskets from Bowden, including a running layup off a steal with 8:05 remaining on the clock. The Gators added four more points via the free throws by Jennifer Mosser and Brooks, to take a 22-point lead, their largest of the game.
Florida used a pair of significant runs to head into the halftime locker room with a 42-30 advantage. The Gators opened with a 7-0 run in the first three minutes of play after falling behind 3-0 to start the game. With the Crimson Tide ahead 6-4, the Gators put together the 7-0 run to take an 11-6 lead with 16:24 remaining.
Alabama answered, firing in two straight buckets to cut the lead to 11-10, but a Smith layup with 15:11 on the clock kicked off a 12-2 run, capped by a Dotson layup and ensuing free throw to give Florida a 20-11 lead. Alabama refused to fold, scoring six unanswered points and going on an 8-2 run before Florida found its rhythm once again, outscoring the Crimson Tide, 15-8 for the remainder of the half.
Seven different players scored for the Gators throughout the first half, led by Dotson with 11 points in 15 minutes of play. Florida shot 57.6 percent from the field, bettering Alabama's 40.6-percent.
Florida has a mid-week bye and will return to the court on Sunday, January 20, when the team travels to Fayetteville, Ark., to play Arkansas. Tip-off from Bud Walton Arena is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET (2 p.m. CT) and will be televised live on Sun Sports. The radio broadcast of the game can be heard live in Gainesville on WRUF 850AM and thru www.GatorZone.com, the official website of the Florida Gators.
Post-Game Quotes
Florida Head Coach Amanda Butler:
Opening Statement:
“It was crucial for us to begin our home SEC season with a win, you have to defend your own court. In terms of confidence, our team did a great job of not looking for excuses, but being accountable and looking for a way to get better after a tough loss at Kentucky. Anytime you can beat an SEC opponent in double figures you've got to be proud, regardless of the circumstances or anything else surrounding it.”
On the Alumni in attendance today:
“I didn't think about it too much after the tip, but it was good to have them here. We had a chance to interact; we ate pre-game meal with them. I talked with the team all week about how important it is to understand the history and roots of the program. The alumni really enjoyed being back and showing their Gator pride.”
On the team's first SEC win this season:
“I think today was a great day for our program. It got us off on the right start in terms of defending our home court in the SEC. I thought this was a great response to a tough loss at Kentucky.”
On the dominance down low:
“We wanted the ball in the paint. Aneika (Henry) did an excellent job getting the ball down low and scoring points. She played today like she was going to catch any ball that was thrown to her down low.”
Florida Center Aneika Henry:
On getting the ball inside more today:
"We practice and continue to working on getting the ball inside. Our guards did a great job of getting the ball inside. I did my best to get higher."
Florida Senior Depree Bowden:
On what she did differently today as opposed to at Kentucky:
"I told myself I had to score. I wasn't aggressive in the Kentucky game, I knew I had to be aggressive this game."
On the team's performance today:
"I would say this is one of our best performances. We denied the ball well, we had fewer turnovers than assists."
Alabama Head Coach Stephany Smith
Opening Statement:
“I thought it was a great environment today. I wish more people were yelling for the visiting team but obviously they weren't. I was proud of our team's effort. I thought that we were very poor in execution both offensively and defensively at different times throughout the game. I think that you have to give Florida an awful lot of credit. They started the game by really isolating Aneika Henry throwing it to the rafters and she did a really good job catching the ball and sticking it in the basket. It's something she hadn't consistently done but it really caused us problems around the rim. We just didn't have an answer for that. When she didn't have the shot she dished it out and Florida connected on some shots. I think another place Florida did a really good job on was pushing on the fast break. We didn't do a very good job of stopping transition and it was a snowball effect for us. You have to give Florida a lot of credit for how well they played and how much energy they had. I am proud that are team continued to fight because at one point it looked like it could've really gotten away from us.”
On the play of Sophomore Point Guard Dedrea Magee:
“Dedrea is a player who has scored a lot of points in her career as a high-school athlete but has never really taken a lot of shots at Alabama. She has a nice shot and coming into this game was shooting 44 percent from behind the three-point line. We just kept trying to encourage her. She's an extremely selfless kid and gets as much joy distributing the basketball as taking her own shot. She did have a hot hand so we were looking for opportunities to get her that shot. We had been missing some outside shooting so for her to step up in that regard provided us with a threat from the outside.”
END OF REPORT
