Brittany Shine (Sacramento, Calif.) scored a game-high 19 points and helped Florida defeat Robert Morris 70-50 in the championship game of its own Gator Holiday Classic on Tuesday in the O'Connell Center.
Shine was voted the tournament's Most Valuable Performer after totaling 47 points and 10 assists during the two games and leading Florida to its 10th consecutive non-conference home win. Shine, who is the third freshman in the Gator Classic's 20-year history to earn the tournament's top individual honor, also hit 6-of-14 three-pointers.
Freshman Jaterra Bonds (Gainesville, Fla.) earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team, as she produced 26 points and 12 assists in the two-game event, including 13 points in Tuesday's title game. Bonds just missed a double-double in the first round when she dished nine assists.
· WATCH the postgame press conference with Coach Amanda Butler, Brittany Shine, Jaterra Bonds and Azania Stewart – FREE courtesy GatorVision OnLine
“They are doing what we brought them here to do,” UF head coach Amanda Butler said of the Gator rookies. “We put them on the floor and put them in very important positions early on to win ballgames and be in position to win ballgames and combined with a solid group of returners to complement where we were weak and make us stronger in some areas where we were already strong. Of course I'm proud of them. Top to bottom in these last two games, the freshmen gave us a lot of energy, a lot of spark. There's a great chemistry and a great blend there that can't be overlooked.”
Had Shine and Bonds not produced the kind of impressive numbers they did, several other Gators made a case for a spot on the All-Tournament team.
Junior newcomer Lanita Bartley (Jacksonville, Fla.) scored 13 points with a team-high seven rebounds and four assists against Robert Morris, while sophomore Jennifer George (Orlando, Fla.) collected six boards and blocked a shot, one night after swatting nine shots in the victory against Alabama State.
Florida (10-3) led Tuesday's game wire-to-wire, as the Gators raced out to a 6-1 lead less than two minutes into the game thanks to field goals by junior Ndidi Madu (Antioch, Tenn.), junior Azania Stewart (Wood Green, England) and Shine.
Robert Morris traded scores with Florida for the next two minutes, as Madu added another bucket and Bartley added her name to the score sheet.
With the Gators holding a 10-7 advantage, Madu converted an inside jumper and Stewart sank and started a 9-2 run, as George put back an offensive rebound before Bonds and Shine combine for three free throws to give UF a 19-9 cushion.
The Colonials clawed back with the next five points, but Florida responded with a 12-3 run, as Shine scored seven, Bonds two, freshman Deaundra Young (Titusville, Fla.) two and red-shirt freshman Lily Svete (Granger, Ind.) one point during the spree that extended the Gator lead to 14 points, 31-17, with 5:30 left in the half.
The teams traded buckets for the rest of the way and RMU whittled the margin to nine with 34 seconds remaining, but Bonds nailed a jumper with 11 ticks on the clock and Florida entered intermission with an 11-point lead.
Kristine Silaraja, who represented Robert Morris on the All-Tournament Team, scored the first points of the second half and cut the Gator's lead to single-digits. Madu answered with a six-foot floater and Bartley put back on offensive rebound for UF which was building momentum. Silaraja struck back with a three-pointer and had the Colonials back within 10 points at 43-33 with less than 17 minutes remaining.
Florida then staged a deciding 17-4 run that spanned the next seven-plus minutes to take a 60-37 lead with 7:46 remaining and never looked back en route to its second straight decisive victory and post the 599th win in the 37-year history of the program.
UF shot 45.8 percent (27-of-59) from the field in the game, marking the fourth consecutive game and the fifth time in the last six contests that the Gators have shot better than 40 percent from the field.
The Gators won the rebound battle 39-33 on Tuesday and have won the battle of the boards in 12 of the team's 13 contests this season.
“I thought we did a great job. For us to be able to mentally adjust to the way we are playing folks, and we even adjusted at halftime the way we were playing, in particular Yohanna Morton,” Butler said. “We really wanted to pressure her and, any time a point guard of her caliber can be forced into 11 turnovers, that's significant. Our changes that we made from day one of the tournament to day two and even at halftime, I think it's an indication that we are getting better and maturing a little bit and that we are wanting to be a really good team.”
Robert Morris, which fell to 4-6 and had its four-game winning streak halted, was led by Silaraja's 16 points. Mary Duojaye added 11 points and 13 rebounds, while Yohanna Morton tallied 12 points, but committed 11 of RMU's 20 turnovers.
Florida has won its home tournament 16 times in the 20 years of its existence.
The Gators have a few days off from classes and basketball for the holiday season and return to Gainesville for practice on Dec. 26. The team travels the following day to Tallahassee, where it plays at 22nd-ranked Florida State on Tues., Dec. 28. That will be the final non-conference game of the year for the Gators, who play host to Arkansas on Sun., Jan. 2 in their Southeastern Conference opener. The radio broadcast of game against the Seminoles will air live in Gainesville on WBXY-FM 99.5 The Star, as well as through the internet at www.GatorZone.com, the official website of the Florida Gators.
POST-GAME QUOTES
FLORIDA HEAD COACH AMANDA BUTLER
Opening Remarks
“I'm very pleased. I think it's a big step for us to have two quality opponents and beat them by a sizable margin. We did that back-to-back with little preparation, especially for Robert Morris today, which I think is a very good team. Also, for our defense to take the step that they did these past two days. In general, I am really pleased with the maturity we had this past week because in practice, this is what we prepared to do. We prepared to get after two teams, not knowing exactly who they were going to be. It's rewarding and gratifying for them to put in that kind of energy and to get that reward by having a championship.”
On using last year's Gator Holiday Classic loss to High Point as motivation …
“We talked about it a little bit. There was one day in practice where we did have a little dip in intensity and I challenged the returners with that. Surely, we remember not preparing as we needed to going into last year and then going home at Christmas with disappointment. There were little reminders but we didn't dwell on it that much because we are so new. The negative things from last year, we don't want to bring those into this year. We just want to be fresh and attack the opportunities we have this year, but one little reminder in practice one day.”
On Tuesday's overall performance …
“I thought we did a great job. For us to be able to mentally adjust to the way we are playing folks, and we even adjusted at halftime the way we were playing, in particular Yohanna Morton. We really wanted to pressure her and, any time a point guard of her caliber can be forced into 11 turnovers, that's significant. Our changes that we made from day one of the tournament to day two and even at halftime, I think it's an indication that we are getting better and maturing a little bit and that we are wanting to be a really good team.”
On Florida's freshmen …
“They are doing what we brought them here to do. We put them on the floor and put them in very important positions early on to win ballgames and be in position to win ballgames and combined with a solid group of returners to complement where we were weak and make us stronger in some areas where we were already strong. Of course I'm proud of them. Top to bottom in these last two games, the freshmen gave us a lot of energy, a lot of spark. There's a great chemistry and a great blend there that can't be overlooked.”
On what needs improvement with one game left before SEC play opens …
“That one game to go [vs. Florida State] is pretty significant. I want them to go home, take a deep breath, enjoy their families and celebrate Christmas and have that special time, but I want them to have FSU on their minds. I want them to understand how important that game is. It's the biggest game of the season because it's the next game of the season. As Gators, we always know that that one is a little bit special. They are very good and it's going to be on their home floor so we already have to be thinking about it, planning for it and dreaming about it so we are ready to go when we get to Tallahassee.”
On UConn's winning streak …
“I think it's amazing. I think it's fantastic. We even talked about them a little bit in the locker room. I think they are a great program because that's what they prepare to do in practice. I think they have very talented players and obviously a great coaching staff, but I think their preparation is probably the best in the country and that's another reason why they have played so consistently and won so many games. They just have fantastic preparation mixed in with elite talent.”
FLORIDA PLAYERS
#10 Jaterra Bonds, Fr., G
On her mindset during the game …
“I just played within myself and played my game. When somebody was open, I got them the ball and they knocked down the shots for me.”
#13 Azania Stewart, Jr., C
On how it benefits the team to have quality shooting from the team's freshmen …
“I would like to say that our freshmen are bringing so much more to the table than I ever thought. They are leading us in scoring, guard scoring, pushing the ball and the tempo and it's really making our team better. Brittany Shine, the MVP and even Jaterra getting on the All-Tournament Team, it's a good step in the right direction. It does make life a little easier because I haven't had any top scoring games and that's fine with me. They dump it down to me and I bring so much attention that whenever I see that, I have faith in all of my shooters to knock down shots.”
#23 Brittany Shine, Fr., G
On whether she heard much from her teammates about last year's loss to High Point …
“A little bit, but everybody hates losing. We had to make sure we got this 'W' at home. We just wanted a championship. It feels great.”
ROBERT MORRIS HEAD COACH SAL BUSCAGLIA
“It was a hard fought game. Florida is a tough team, especially on their home court. They play on another level when on their home court and that's indicated by their record. They're a very athletic team and they use their athleticism very well. They do a lot of things that athletic teams do - they press, they trap you and they push the ball up the floor. I think they played the style of game they should've played and that's a very athletic style. We don't have the depth they have.”
POST-GAME NOTES
· Florida improved to 10-3 overall with the win, while Robert Morris dropped to 4-6 on the season.
· The Gators won their 16th Gator Holiday Classic Title out of the 20 events since the inception of the tournament.
· UF is 16-17 since the 1978-89 season in its last game prior to the winter holiday break, and the Gators have captured victories prior to the holiday break in three of the last four seasons.
· Florida improves to 2-0 all-time vs. Robert Morris, meeting the Colonials for the first time since the 2007 season. Both of those meetings have come in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
· The Gators are now 4-1 all-time vs. teams in the current alignment of the Northeast Conference, including a 2-0 record under Butler.
· Florida has charted 599 wins in the history of the program, which began in the 1974-75 season.
· The Gators improve to 7-0 at home this season and are sporting a modest 10-game non-conference home winning streak dating back to last year.
· Florida is 45-13 all-time at home under the direction of head coach Amanda Butler.
· The Gators used the starting lineup of Lanita Bartley, Jaterra Bonds, Ndidi Madu, Brittany Shine and Azania Stewart for the second consecutive game and are now 2-0 with the current starting lineup. It is Florida's fifth different starting-five of the year.
· Tuesday's game marked the eighth time this season that the Gators have placed three or more players in double-figure scoring in a single game this season.
· UF shot 45.8 percent (27-of-59) from the field in the game, marking the fourth consecutive game and the fifth time in the last six contests that the Gators have shot better than 40 percent from the field.
· The Gators won the rebound battle 39-33 on Tuesday and have won the battle of the boards in 12 of the team's 13 contests this season.
· Freshman guard Brittany Shine became the third rookie in school history to be named the Most Valuable Player of the Gator Holiday Classic, joining Brandi McCain (1998) and Bernice Mosby (2002) as the only other freshmen in school history to earn that distinction.
o Coming off her career high of 28 points in Monday's win against Alabama State, Shine followed that up with 19 points against Robert Morris on Tuesday. She averaged a squad-best 23.5 points per game over the course of the tournament.
o Shine tied her career high of 31 minutes played, matching her minutes played from Monday's game against Alabama State.
· Freshman guard Jaterra Bonds played a career-high 36 minutes, totaling 13 points, four rebounds and three assists. She scored in double figures for the sixth time in her UF career and the third time in the last four games.
· Junior guard Lanita Bartley tied her career high with 12 points, matching her output from Monday night's game vs. Alabama State. She also brought down seven rebounds in the win.
· Junior center Azania Stewart tied her career high with two steals.
o Stewart increased her career blocks total to 92. She needs eight more to become the seventh player in program history to swat 100 career blocks.
GAME 3: Alabama State defeats Texas A&M-CC in Gator Holiday Classic Third-Place Game, 61-55
Tanika Jackson scored 32 points and collected 12 rebounds leading Alabama State to a 61-55 win against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the third-place game of the 2010 Gator Holiday Classic held at the O'Connell Center on Tuesday afternoon.
It was a tight first half that featured three ties scores and eight lead changes, with Alabama State holding the largest advantage of the opening frame, 22-15, with 6:28 to play.
A&M-CC (0-10) scored the final five points of the first period and took a 30-29 halftime lead.
The Islanders held the lead until 10:30 remaining in the game, when Tanika Jackson hit a fade-away jumper from the corner and gave the Hornets a 39-38 lead. That bucket capped an 8-0 run after A&M-CC had built a 38-31 lead with 13:42 remaining.
The Lady Hornets extended their 8-0 spree into a 21-7 march when Jackson scored 14 points and carried ASU to a 52-45 lead with 5:50 on the clock and the team never trailed again.
A&M-CC connected on three straight free throws and cut its deficit to four with 3:16 to play, but ASU (3-7) matched the three points and maintained its seven-point cushion.
In all, there were nine lead changes and five tied scores in the game that also had a combined 51 turnovers.
Quentori Alford helped Jackson on the boards by collecting 12 rebounds for ASU, which held a 48-35 rebounding advantage and overcame 27 miscues.
Lauren Smith and Adrian Scott both scored 16 points for the Islanders, while Ashley Darley chipped in 11 points and Zoey Vega-Vega grabbed 10 rebounds.
2010 GATOR HOLIDAY CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Brittany Shine, Florida - MVP
Jaterra Bonds, Florida
Kristine Silaraja, Robert Morris
Tanika Jackson, Alabama State
Lauren Smith, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
2010 GATOR HOLIDAY CLASSIC RESULTS
Monday, December 20
Robert Morris 73, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 47
Florida 95, Alabama State 38
Tuesday, December 21
Alabama State 61, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 55
Florida 70, Robert Morris 50
