Gators Open 2015-16 Season at Temple on Friday
Friday, November 13, 2015 | Women's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Florida travels to Philadelphia and plays Temple on Friday, November 13, when the Gators officially begin their 2015-16 season. Tip-off at the Liacouras Center (10,206) is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
Quick Hits
· This is the Gator's 42nd season of varsity competition. 1974-75 was the first year of non-club play.
· This is the first time since the 2008-09 season that the Gators will open on the road (Florida lost at Florida Gulf Coast, 88-86, Nov. 14, 2008)
· Florida had opened each of its last six seasons at home, posting a 5-1 record during that span.
· The Gators sport a 24-17 all-time record on opening day, including a 3-7 mark when starting their campaign on an opponent's court. UF is 6-2 under head coach Amanda Butler on opening day.
Florida vs. Temple
· The Gators lead the all-time series, 5-1, including a 3-0 record when playing in Philadelphia.
· The last meeting between the two teams was on March 22, 2009, when UF claimed the 70-57 victory in the first round of the NCAA Tournament played at Storrs, Conn.
· UF head coach Amanda Butler sports a 2-2 all-time record against Temple. Both of the losses game when she was at Charlotte and her 49ers and the Owls were members of the Atlantic-10 Conference.
No Paraskevidekatriaphobia for the Gators!
· Paraskevidekatriaphobia is the fear of Friday the 13th and comes from the Greek words Paraskev? (Παρασκευή, meaning “Friday”), and dekatre?s (δεκατρείς, meaning “thirteen”).[from wikipedia]
· Friday's game at Temple marks just the second time in the 42-year history of the program that the Gators will suit-up on Friday the 13th.
· We're 1-0 on this day!
Friday the 13th
· This is just the second time in program history that Gators will play a game on Friday the 13th.
· The only other time: Dec. 13, 1996, when the No. 24-ranked Gators upset No. 12 Iowa, 68-58, in a game played in Madison, Wisconsin.
Friday the 13th - the Movie!
· During the preseason, head coach Amanda Butler and the Gators spent the night at Camp Crystal Lake in Starke, Florida, located just a few miles outside Gainesville.
· The cinematic thriller “Friday the 13th” was filmed in Blairstown, New Jersey, at Camp Crystal Lake.
Quick Scout
· Four the Owls' top five scorers return from last year's WNIT Final Four run. Their top five scorers each averaged a double-figure scoring effort, paced by guard Alliya Butts' 12.3 points per game.
· Temple was picked to finish third in the American Athletic Conference, behind UConn and USF.
Keystone State Stuff
· Florida is 16-6 all-time against schools from the state of Pennsylvania
· The Gators sport a 7-6 all-time record when playing a game inside the state of Pennsylvania, most recently March 25, 2014, when UF competed in the 2014 NCAA Tournament played at University Park, Pa.
· UF has played at least one game against a team from the Keystone State in 12 of the last 13 seasons. Last year schedule was the only time during that span a did from Pennsylvania did not appear on the slate.
Homecoming
· Redshirt freshman Isis Young will make her collegiate debut this season and is expected to play in the opener at Temple located just 22 miles from her hometown of Berlin, N.J.
High FIVE
· There are FIVE seniors on the Gators roster - the most since the 2011-12 squad also featured five seniors.
· Of those five, only January Miller is a 'true' fourth-year senior - Carla Batchelor played her first two years at NW Florida State College; Viktorija Dimaite is playing just her second year of college ball after because of an injury-plagued career; Carlie Needles redshirtted her initial season due to injury; and Cassie Peoples transferred from Texas after playing six games and sat out the next year due to NCAA rules for transfers.
· The 2011-12 senior class: Deana Allen, Lanita Bartley, Jordan Jones, Ndidi Madu and Azania Stewart (Stewart was the only 'true' senior that year)
Flashback
· Florida, which finished the 2014-15 season with a 13-17 overall record, lost just one player to graduation. Redshirt senior Kayla Lewis, who capped her final collegiate season as the team's leading rebounder (6.4 rpg) and third-best scorer (9.1 ppg) and closed her career with 1,053 points, a total that ranked No. 22 in program history.
Season Review: Gator Watch
· POINTS: Sophomore Ronni Williams led UF in scoring - overall and in SEC games - at 10.3 and 10.7 points per game, respectively; first sophomore to lead the Gators in scoring since Sha Brooks did so during the 2005-06 season.
· REBOUNDS: Lone senior Kayla Lewis patrolled the paint for UF and collected a team-best 6.4 and 6.5 rebounds per game overall and in SEC games, respectively.
· FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE: Lewis hit what would have been an SEC-leading 55.3 and 59.1 percent from the floor (all games, SEC Only), but did not have enough attempts to qualify in either stat chart.
· UTILITY - 1: Cassie Peoples led the Gators in assists (126, 4.2 pg), steals (59, 2.0 pg) and was second in trips to the free throw line (81), where she would have led the SEC with a 87.7 percent clip but didn't have enough attempts to qualify.
· UTILITY - 2: Carlie Needles emerged as UF's Ms. A-Little-Bit-of-Everything! Standing 5-foot-6, she ranked No. 3 on the team for rebounds (4.6 pg) and was No. 1 for three-pointers (45), No. 1 average minutes played (31.9 pg), No. 2 assists (54, 1.9 pg), No. 2 free throw percentage (84.0%, 42-50), tied-No. 2 steals (46, 1.6 pg) and No. 4 for scoring (7.3 pg)!
Sharp-Shooting Career
· Carlie Needles is 158-466 (33.9%) in her career from the three-point arc.
· She ended the 2014-15 season ranked No. 6 for the most in Gator history.
· Next on the chart: 161 by Steffi Sorensen (2008-10).
Quotes from the Court
· “I'm just excited to get started playing games. I'm happy for our team to be at this point. They've worked very, very hard in the off-season, the preseason and since we started official practice. Games are the celebration of all that hard work that you put in when no one else is looking. I'm really excited for our team and in particular, our seniors.” - UF Head Coach Amanda Butler on starting the season
· “Temple is really good. They have dynamic guards, playmakers with a lot of experience. They went deep into the postseason WNIT last year. Their coaches do an excellent job of coaching them at the tempo they need to play and putting them in position to succeed.” – Coach Butler on Temple
· “For us, one of the things we've worked really hard on that translates well into handling Temple is defense. We have to play great defense, starting with our transition defense.” – Coach Butler on one of the keys to the game
Game Day Data
· Who: Florida (0-0, 0-0 SEC) at Temple (0-0, 0-0 American Athletic)
· Where: The Liacouras Center (10,206) * Philadelphia, Pa.
· When: Fri., November 13, 2015 * 7 p.m. ET
· Game Notes:
o Florida - http://www.gatorzone.com/basketball/women/stats/notes/pre/20151113190000.pdf
o Temple – http://www.owlsports.com/documents/2015/11/12//01_Florida_11_13_15_compressed.pdf
Game Coverage & More!
· Radio: LIVE on ESPN Gainesville (850AM) in Gainesville with Adam Schick & Brittany Davis
· Internet Audio: LIVE thru www.Gatorzone.com (FREE)
· Television: none
· Internet Video: LIVE & FREE http://owlsports.com/watch/?Live=314
· Internet Scoring: LIVE thru owlsports.com and gatorzone.com
Opening Tip
· The 2015-16 Gators feature four new faces on the court, as well as a pair of new assistant coaches.
· Florida has played at least one game against a school from the state of Pennsylvania every year but one (last year) since the 2003-04 season
· Temple is the first of two teams from the American Athletic Conference the Gators will play during the regular season, the other is UCF on December 30 in Jacksonville at the SEC-AAC Challenge.
· UF is scheduled to play 16 games vs. 2015 Postseason teams
· (10 NCAA, 6 WNIT)
· 14 of UF's 30 games last year were decided by 10 points or less (5-9 record), including eight in SEC play (2-6 record)
· Gator standout Sarah Lowe resides in Philadelphia and is expected to attend Friday's game
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