The University of Florida women's basketball team had expectations of being a solid outside shooting team when the season began, however, the Gators didn't find their shot until very late Friday evening, as they missed their first 12 from the three-point arc and dug themselves a hole they couldn't dig out of and lost to Pittsburgh, 81-58, in the Petersen Events Center.
The Gators (1-2) actually heated up to hit 7-of-25 (28 percent) from long range and 21-of-59 (35.6 percent) overall, playing even ball in the second half.
Pittsburgh (2-0), ranked No. 25 in the ESPN-USA Today Coaches Poll and receiving votes in the Associated Press rankings, shot 46.9 percent from the floor during the night, including a 7-of-15 effort from the three-point arc, with all seven makes coming during the decisive first half.
Florida missed all 12 of its three-point shots from beyond the arc during the first half and connected on just 30 percent overall, while Pitt nailed 7-of-13 from long range, 17-of-34 overall, as the Panthers assumed a commanding 43-20 half time lead.
Taneisha Harrison accounted for 20 of her career-high 25 points in the first-half for Pitt, which scored 11 points off of eight turnovers in the opening frame. The undersized Gators did hold their own on the boards in the first 20 minutes, trailing just 21-20.
For the first nine and half minutes, the Gators battled hard, answering every Panther run with one of their own. With Pitt holding a 14-10 lead, Jennifer George (Orlando, Fla.) sank a pair of free throws and Susan Yenser (Marietta, Ga.) canned an eight-footer from the side to tied the score at 14-all with 10:34 remaining in the first half.
That's when Pitt ripped off a 12-0 run over the next five-plus minutes and took a 26-14 lead. Ndidi Madu (Antioch, Tenn.) halted the spree with a jumper in the paint at the 5:04 mark, but Jania Sims came right back with a 3-pointer. Trumae Lucas (Greensboro, N.C.) followed with a floating layup on a nice assist from Jordan Jones (Suwanee, Ga.), but again Pitt answered with six straight points, before Jones could hit a 14-footer for the Gators with 2:27 on the clock. Those were the last points of the half for Florida, as Pitt closed the period scoring the last eight to take the 23-point lead.
“We had a lot of problems tonight and one was our effort. It was disappointing from the beginning,” UF head coach Amanda Butler said. “Our shots didn't fall and we didn't prepare well enough on all fronts and Pitt just kicked our butt.
“The missed shots were certainly a problem, but when Pitt can score 43 points in the first 20 minutes of play, it's a bigger problem because we've experience a game already when our shots haven't fallen and we were able to count on our defense. Tonight we couldn't do that at all,” Butler continued.
Pitt scored the first five points of the second half, quelling any energy the Gators may have generated in the locker room.
Jones, who tallied a four-point play with 8:40 remaining in the game, scored 12 of her 14 points in the second half, while adding five assists and two steals in 31 minutes of action. Yenser added 11 points and Sharielle Smith (Bradenton, Fla.) tallied 10 points on 3-of-3 shooting for the Gators, who were outscored 38-14 in the paint.
“I felt like we had two good days of preparation, but clearly I was wrong and we will correct that,” Butler said. “I don't think that we were ready to come in here and compete on someone else's home floor. Our first road game and we didn't have the right mentality or the right approach.”
Pitt led by as many as 39 points midway through the second half, but the Gators never gave up and dropped the final deficit to 23 points.
“We have to figure out who wants to fight and who wants to battle,” Butler added. “We saw some good things from some of our young players. They got out there and hustled. They took advantage of their time on the floor, but we're not going to beat a team like Pitt with four freshmen on the floor.”
Harrison's 25 points led five Panthers in double-figure scoring, with Jania Sims adding 16 and Chelsea Cole tallying 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The Gators return to action on Tuesday, Nov. 24, when they play host to UAB in the O'Connell Center beginning at 4:30 p.m. The game is the first of four UF basketball doubleheaders this season, with the Gator men's team hosting Florida State at 7 p.m.
Tuesday's game will air live on the radio at WBXY-FM 99.5 in Gainesville, as well as through the internet at www.GatorZone.com, which also will provide live streaming video of the game.
-UF-
