Florida senior forward Sharielle Smith (Bradenton, Fla.) turned in her fourth career double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds, but the Gators fell just short in the final seconds of upsetting No. 13/10 Florida State, falling 66-62 in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center Tuesday evening.
Florida (1-1), which trailed 60-56 with 7:16 to play, got back-to-back 3-pointers by Smith to go up 62-60 with 2:04 remaining, however, those were the last points the Gators would score. FSU cut within one, 62-61, after a free throw by Jacinta Monroe. Alexia Deluzio drained a floater from the right wing with 37.4 seconds left to put the Seminoles up 63-62 and the Gators were unable to convert on their ensuing possession.
“I was really, really pleased with our effort,” Florida head coach Amanda Butler said. “I thought we showed tremendous fight. That's why we were in a position to win the ballgame at the end. I think that was something that we knew we could rely on, I just think we have to get better at closing out ballgames. We have a lot to learn from this game and that's what we'll do.”
Smith's 18 points came on a career-high-tying four 3-pointers and a 6-of-9 clip from the free-throw line in 36 minutes of play. Her 13 rebounds also tied a career high last achieved Feb. 19, 2009 vs. Arkansas.
Sophomore guard Jordan Jones (Suwanee, Ga.) followed with 13 points, including two 3-pointers to complement a career-high-tying five assists. She is averaging 5.0 assists per game through her first two contests in a Florida uniform. Jones also came up with a game-high three steals.
The Gators shot 32.8 percent (20-of-61) from the floor, making just 9-of-31 3-point attempts. Florida State (2-0) connected on 42.4 percent (25-of-59) its shots, including 46.2 percent (12-of-26) in the final period of play.
The Seminoles used their depth to their advantage in the game, out-scoring Florida 33-7 in bench points, as each of the nine players who saw playing time scored at least two points.
“Obviously, Florida State is very good,” Butler said. “We knew it was going to be a tremendous challenge. We showed that we can play with anyone if FSU is the 13th best team in the country and we were right there with them. We showed that it is indeed the level we should be competing at and there's just a few areas here and there that we need to look at and work on.”
A trio of players – Trumae Lucas (Greensboro, N.C.), Steffi Sorensen (Jacksonville, Fla.) and Azania Stewart (Wood Green, England) – each scored eight points for the Gators, whose nine 3-pointers in the game marked their most since draining 10 against Georgia on March 1, 2009.
Florida led 35-32 at intermission in a very balanced first half in which the teams were nearly even statistically. The Gators differentiated themselves at the free-throw line, where Florida connected on 8-of-11 shots, while the Seminoles made just 3-of-8 from the charity stripe.
The Gators raced out to an 8-2 advantage over the first two-plus minutes of the game and Florida extended its lead to 11-4 following a 3-pointer by Jones from the right wing at the 17-minute mark. With the Gators in front 13-7, Florida State used four consecutive baskets, including three by Chasity Clayton, to claim its first advantage of the night at 15-13 with 12:12 left in the opening period.
The Gators were held scoreless for a span of 4:16 until a 3-point play by Stewart allowed them to re-claim their lead at 16-15. That was the beginning of a 7-0 run by Florida that was capped off by a crafty Jennifer George (Orlando, Fla.) basket in deep at the 9:45 mark. The two teams traded points until a pair of free-throws by FSU's Cierra Brevard with 6:30 remaining brought the Seminoles to within one, 22-21. The Gators and Seminoles continued to battle back-and-forth, but Florida closed the half on a 7-3 run thanks to a pair of 3s by Smith to lead 35-32 at intermission.
Out of halftime, Lucas scored four consecutive points for the Gators to widen their edge to seven, 39-32, and force FSU head coach Sue Semrau to burn a timeout less than two minutes into the final frame. The Seminoles quickly responded with four consecutive points to cut within two, 39-37, with 17:39 remaining in the game. The two teams then began trading baskets until FSU's Angel Gray knotted the score at 4-4 with a 3-pointer with 15:19 left. The Seminoles took a 46-44 lead on a pair of Clayton free throws, but Florida was able to tie the score at 48-all on a pair of Smith charity shots.
Florida State surged ahead 52-48 at the 11:21 mark after back-to-back baskets. With the Gators down 54-50, a Stewart free throw and a resounding 3-pointer from the right corner by Sorensen tied the score at 54-all with 8:52 left. After the Seminoles built their lead back out to four, 60-56, a 3-pointer at the top of the key by Smith brought UF to within one with 4:22 left. That set up FSU's late-game heroics.
FSU was led by Clayton's team-high 13 points in just 18 minutes of action. Monroe added nine points and 11 rebounds.
“It was a great rivalry game as it always is,” Semrau said. “We just have to give Florida a lot of credit. They rebounded the ball extremely well, especially in the second half. We have great depth and great complimentary players. They all stepped up tonight.”
Florida returns to action on Friday when it travels to Pittsburgh to face Pitt. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. ET and the game will be carried live on WBXY FM (The Star 99.5) in Gainesville and through the internet at www.GatorZone.com, the official website of the Florida Gators.
POST-GAME NOTES
· Florida's series with Florida State is its longest in program history, as Tuesday's game marked the 66th meeting between the two programs. The Gators lead the all-time series 40-26.
· UF is 78-54 vs. teams in the current alignment of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
· The Gators are 207-60 all-time vs. teams from the Sunshine State, including a 9-4 mark under the direction of head coach Amanda Butler.
· Florida is 57-157 all-time vs. teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 at the time of the game.
· The loss snapped UF's 17-game home win streak against non-conference opponents. FSU was the last non-SEC team that defeated the Gators, back on Nov. 23, 2007.
· Florida head coach Amanda Butler was honored prior to the start of Tuesday's contest for serving USA Basketball as an assistant coach for its Under-19 Gold Medal-winning team this past summer. Butler was presented a plaque by UF's Sr. Associate AD for Women's Sports Lynda Tealer.
· Florida's nine 3-pointers in the game marked its most since draining 10 against Georgia on March 1, 2009.
· The Gators have recorded a 3-pointer in 60 consecutive games.
· Sharielle Smith recorded her fourth career triple-double and her first this season with a career-high-tying 18 points and a career-high-tying 13 rebounds.
· Sharielle Smith played her team-leading 95th career game.
· Steffi Sorensen has hit a 3-pointer in eight consecutive games.
· Steffi Sorensen started her team-leading 33rd consecutive game.
POST-GAME QUOTES
FLORIDA HEAD COACH AMANDA BUTLER
“I was really, really pleased with our effort. I thought we showed tremendous fight. That's why we were in a position to win the ballgame at the end. I think that was something that we knew we could rely on, I just think we have to get better at closing out ballgames. We have a lot to learn from this game and that's what we'll do.”
On the game against Florida State serving as a measuring stick for the Gators …
“Obviously, Florida State is very good. We knew it was going to be a tremendous challenge. We showed that we can play with anyone if FSU is the 13th best team in the country and we were right there with them. We showed that it is indeed the level we should be competing at and there's just a few areas here and there that we need to look at and work on.”
On Florida shooting 9-of-31 from beyond the arc …
“We know that this was a bad shooting night for us, but we didn't hang our heads – we kept fighting. I think Sharielle's effort on the offensive glass is what you want to see, especially from a senior. If we play with that sort of effort, it doesn't matter if the 3s are falling or not, we can compete with the best teams in the country.”
On if there is anything the Gators will do to work on their 3-point shooting …
“I think that shooters are confident ballplayers. I don't know that there's anything we need to correct other than to keep shooting. If players don't hit shots, they won't hit shots unless they keep shooting. I don't think there's anything we need to do differently because those shots are going to fall.”
On how pleased she was with Florida's effort …
“One thing we knew we had to do was be the tougher team tonight and I think that's what you saw. The first thing I told our team in the locker room is that we should take great confidence in the fact that we didn't play well, but our effort and toughness sustained us and put us in a position to win the game. We just didn't finish the ballgame. Our effort took us to that point, but we have to be smart enough to execute at the end.”
#33 Jordan Jones, So., G
On her 3-pointer with seven seconds remaining …
“I knew we were down three and we had to get a shot up. I wanted to leave time for us to get the rebound if the shot didn't fall. I thought it was the best shot we were going to get, so I put it up there. They [FSU] played tough defense all night. They pressured us and played really physical. That's part of basketball and I think we took a lot away from this game. Next time the situation comes up, hopefully it ends a little bit differently.”
FLORIDA STATE HEAD COACH SUE SEMRAU
“It was a great rivalry game as it always is. We just have to give Florida a lot of credit. They rebounded the ball extremely well, especially in the second half. We have great depth and great complimentary players. They all stepped up tonight.”
On if she made any halftime adjustments …
“We felt like we were just rushing everything in the first half. We weren't reversing the basketball and when we were reversing the basketball, good things were happening.”
On FSU's bench out-scoring Florida's bench 33-7 …
“I don't even think we have a bench. I feel like we have 11 strong players and five of them happen to start the game. I think that says a lot about who we are.”
-UF-
