Four Florida players scored in double figures as part of a balanced effort Thursday, but a reverse lay-up by Tennessee's Angie Bjorklund with 2.3 seconds remaining gave the No. 4 Lady Vols a 66-64 win in front of 4,103 fans in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center, the 11th-largest crowd in school history.
Florida (9-8, 2-2 Southeastern Conference), which led for the majority of the second half, was ahead 56-48 with 7:33 remaining. The Lady Vols cut within two, 60-58, with 3:54 to go after back-to-back Kelley Cain baskets capped a 5-0 Tennessee run. Down 62-58, the Lady Vols scored four in a row to knot the score at 62-all on a Kamiko Williams jumper.
After another tie at 64, Tennessee held the ball for the majority of the shot clock before Bjorklund connected on her game-winning reverse lay-up. Florida's Lonnika Thompson (New Orleans, La.) launched a 3-pointer on a designed play with less than a second left, but it bounced off the rim as time expired.
It was Florida's seventh game this season decided by 10 or fewer points and fourth in a row.
“I'm very, very proud of the way that we played,” Florida head coach Amanda Butler said. “I thought we showed tremendous toughness and tremendous fight. There were a lot of reasons for us not to play with that consistent fight. The biggest was that we didn't start that quickly. I am proud of how hard we battled. I knew for us to win, it would come down to toughness. We know that we should have won. Playing Tennessee close was not our objective; it was to win. I'm disappointed we couldn't close it out.”
Senior guard Steffi Sorensen (Jacksonville, Fla.) led the way for the Gators with a squad-best 12 points, including four 3-pointers. She added five steals, one shy of her career high in 36 minutes of action.
Senior guard Jennifer Mossor (Orlando, Fla.) added 10 points and tied her career high with five assists. Freshman center Jennifer George (Orlando, Fla.) and Thompson each chipped in 10 points. George came up with a career-high five steals and brought down a team-high seven rebounds, including five on the offensive end.
“Jennifer George was huge in stepping in there and just battling kids much taller than her,” Butler said. “There's not much better athletes in the country than Glory [Johnson] in terms of athletic ability. It was a great growing up game for George.”
Tennessee shot 47.2 percent (25-of-53) from the floor for the game, including an electric 60.9 clip (14-of-23) from the field in the second half alone. The Gators shot 38.3 percent (23-of-60) from the floor and were out-rebounded 46-24 in the game.
Florida recorded 16 steals in the game, its second most of the season and its most take-aways in a league contest this year.
The Lady Vols took a 32-29 advantage into the locker room at intermission following a tightly contested opening half. The Gators shot 37.5 percent (12-of-32) from the floor in the first period, while Tennessee shot 36.7 percent (11-of-30). The Lady Vols out-rebounded Florida 24-17 in the first 20 minutes.
Tennessee raced out to an early 8-0 lead over the first 2:25 of the game thanks in large part to three Cain baskets. The Gators broke the Lady Vols' scoring spree with a 3-pointer from the left wing by Sorensen. She then hit two more 3s in less than a one-minute span, the last of which sparked a 9-0 run that put Florida in front 15-14 at the 11:31 mark.
With the score tied at 17-17 and 10:59 remaining in the opening period, Tennessee used a 6-2 run to go in front 23-19 with 8:21 left until intermission. After the two teams traded points, the Gators went on a 7-0 run, including consecutive baskets by Thompson to reclaim the lead at 28-26 at the 3:58 mark. The squads continued to battle evenly for the remainder of the half.
The two teams again traded baskets to begin the second half until a three-point play by Thompson pushed Florida's edge out to five, 42-38, with 16:19 remaining. With the Gators leading 45-40, the Lady Vols ran off five in a row to knot the score. Sorensen then drained a 3-pointer from the deep left corner and George followed with a basket at the end of the shot clock on the ensuing possession to put Florida in front 50-45 with 9:02 remaining.
After a Tennessee hoop, Mossor launched a 3 and then added three free throws to extend the Gator lead to eight, 56-48, with 7:33 remaining.
Tennessee (15-1, 3-0 SEC) was led by Cain's 17 points, while Shekinna Stricklen added 14.
"Our basketball team didn't come ready to play tonight,” UT head coach Pat Summitt said. “Florida played us tough a majority of the game. I don't know if that was due to a lack of leadership or ownership on our part. When the people you count on don't make shots, you switch into panic mode. We tried to keep calm and focused and played to get a win. After last year, I thought we were at a different level mentally and emotionally than tonight. We certainly dodged a bullet."
Florida returns to action Sunday when it travels to Starkville, Miss., to take on Mississippi State. Tip-off is slated for 3 p.m. ET and the game will be carried live on FSN and WBXY-FM (The Star 99.5 FM in Gainesville).
POST-GAME NOTES
? Attendance: 4103, marking the 11th-largest crowd in program history.
? It was Florida's seventh game this season decided by 10 or fewer points and fourth in a row. The Gators are 2-5 in those contests.
? The Gators used the starting lineup of Jordan Jones, Sharielle Smith, Steffi Sorensen, Azania Stewart and Lonnika Thompson for the eighth consecutive game and ninth time this season. UF is 5-4 with the current starting lineup.
? Steffi Sorensen is the only Gator who has started every game this season.
? Sophomore guard Jordan Jones knocked down two 3-pointers Thursday and has hit at least one 3-pointer in all 17 games this year – the sixth-longest streak in UF history. It's also part of a 28-game streak that dates back to Jones' freshman year at South Carolina.
? Jones finished with eight points to increase her career total to 603, including 184 in her first year at Florida.
? Senior guard Lonnika Thompson had two steals in the game and recorded at least one steal in 13 of the last 14 games this season.
? Senior guard Jennifer Mossor tied her career high with five assists.
? Freshman center Jennifer George came up with a career-high five steals and brought down a team-high seven rebounds.
POST-GAME QUOTES
FLORIDA HEAD COACH AMANDA BUTLER
“I'm very, very proud of the way that we played. I thought we showed tremendous toughness and tremendous fight. There were a lot of reasons for us not to play with that consistent fight. The biggest was that we didn't start that quickly. I am proud of how hard we battled. I knew for us to win, it would come down to toughness. I thought we did as good as we possibly could have with our toughness, we just couldn't get a couple of rebounds that we needed. We know that we should have won. Playing Tennessee close was not our objective; it was to win. I'm disappointed we couldn't close it out.”
On any adjustments Florida made after its first timeout …
“We didn't change anything significant. We played a little bit more zone because [Kelley] Cain did a great job starting off of dominating the paint. She's one of the best posts in the country. In terms of adjustments on the offensive end, we just kept doing what we were doing – attacking, staying confident and a couple of shots fell.”
On Tennessee's Angie Bjorklund …
“[Angie] Bjorklund is a very, very talented player. I admire the way she leads her team. I didn't think she played very well tonight, but a lot of that had to do with our defense. You know she's a champion because she had a tough night, but she made plays when her team needed her to. I still don't know how she got that shot off. It was a tough play and that's the kind of plays you expect a player like her to make.”
On Florida freshman Jennifer George …
“Jennifer George was huge in stepping in there and just battling kids much taller than her. There's not much better athletes in the country than Glory [Johnson] in terms of athletic ability. It was a great growing up game for George.”
On Florida's defense and 16 steals …
“I thought LT [Lonnika Thompson] really set the tone for that. As good of a player as [Shekinna] Stricklen is, I don't know that point guard is her biggest strength. We tried to exploit that with our point guard and it fell on the shoulders of Lonnika. She did a great job of setting the tone and she's so talented. On every play, we expected to get a stop or be disruptive. I just really thought our consistent toughness led to all of those turnovers.”
FLORIDA PLAYERS
#10 Steffi Sorensen, Sr. G
On her four three-pointers …
“I was just taking what the defense was giving me. I got in a good number of shots the past couple of days in practice. I was ready for this game. They're Tennessee; every time they come on your home court, you want to protect it. We didn't get the stops or rebounds that we needed that ultimately lost the game for us.”
On the final play that included a last-second Lonnika Thompson 3-point attempt …
“That play is something we run every single day. My heart goes out to LT, but plenty of things – when you look back at it – are why we lost the game. If I stop my man [Angie Bjorklund] from scoring on the last play of the game, we would be having a different conversation. It was a well-designed play, the shot just didn't fall. I couldn't be more proud of our team tonight. We fought hard and it speaks a lot about Florida basketball.”
On Tennessee's Angie Bjorklund and her game-winning shot …
“She's a great player and she hadn't been hitting all game. I was as close as I could be without fouling. She cut backdoor, which I was expecting, and then she just caught the ball on the baseline and did a reverse. She's a great player and she made a great play.”
TENNESSEE HEAD COACH PAT SUMMITT
"Our basketball team didn't come ready to play tonight. Florida played us tough a majority of the game. I don't know if that was due to a lack of leadership or ownership on our part. When the people you count on don't make shots, you switch into panic mode. We tried to keep calm and focused and played to get a win. After last year, I thought we were at a different level mentally and emotionally than tonight. We certainly dodged a bullet. If we play them again, it will be with the utmost respect."
On Tennessee's 25 turnovers in the game …
"The ball was like a hot potato tonight. We had some really poor passing angles, but we have to give Florida credit. I really think they made us rush, and that disappoints me, but it also says something about their defense and their overall play."
On Angie Bjorklund's cold shooting night until two late 3-pointers …
"Angie is a great shooter, but tonight she was rushed. We wouldn't trade her for anybody in the world. She'll come back, get home and get back in the gym. She's a marked woman, everyone is after her."
On coming back to win such a close game …
"Everyone really had composure and kept it together. Our huddles were good. The team's composure was an indication they wanted to win and weren't going to give the game away."
On Kelley Cain's injury …
"With Kelley Cain, it was more her hip than anything. She fell on her hip. Kelley is a lot more mature and tough mentally than a year ago. She's definitely been a difference-maker."
TENNESSEE PLAYERS
#52 Kelley Cain, So., C
On coming back after her injury …
“It was very difficult to come back, but I knew my team needed me. I felt like I would be leaving the team hanging if I couldn't go back out there. I had to suck it up and go out there for my team.
#5 Angie Bjorklund, Jr., G
On her game-winning reverse lay-up with 2.3 seconds left …
“I'm definitely a shooter. I don't shoot too many lay-ups, I'm glad that one went in.”
On her decision to take the ball to the hoop on the final play …
“I saw Glory [Johnson] get doubled, so I just cut to the hoop and it was open.”
On the designed final play …
“Initially it was to get our posts the ball, but it just broke down. Florida's aggressive defense caused us trouble executing our offense the entire game. We are lucky to get this win.
On Florida's late-game lead …
“I give a lot of credit to Florida. They came out a lot tougher than us. We have to match their intensity. We didn't and that's how they started to build their lead. In the end, we became more composed and calm in our offense. At the same time, we were making defensive stops.”
Results Other SEC Games Played Thursday
AUBURN d. Alabama, 74-62
SOUTH CAROLINA d. Kentucky, 79-71
VANDERBILT d. Georgia, 66-44
Mississippi State d. ARKANSAS, 78-60
-UF-
