Gators Face Third Consecutive Ranked Foe in #13/15 Mississippi State on Sunday

STARKVILLE, Miss. – Another February road game and another nationally ranked opponent awaits Florida, which travels to Starkville, Miss., and plays No. 13/15 Mississippi State at Humphrey Coliseum on Sunday with tip-off scheduled for 4 p.m. ET (3 p.m. CT).

First the Venue

· Sunday's game against Mississippi State is the second of a two-game road trip, as well as the second game in a five-game spell that features four road contests for the Gators.

Next the Ranking

· Sunday's game is Florida's third in a three-game span against a nationally-ranked opponent.

· The stretch began February 8 with a 64-56 setback to No. 6 Tennessee and was followed on February 12 with a 51-48 victory at No. 24 Georgia.

Florida vs. Mississippi State: The Series at a Glance

· 43-Game Series: UF leads 25-18

· UF Home: 13-6; Away: 8-11; Neutral: 4-1

· The Gators have won the last nine games against the Bulldogs.

· Six of the last eight games have been decided by 10 points or less.

· The last meeting between the two teams was a 71-67 Gator thriller in the second round of the SEC Tournament.

Gripping Gators

· 11 of UF's 24 games this year have been decided by 10 points or less (4-7 record)

· Five of the Gators' 11 SEC games have been decided by eight points or less (1-4 record)

You Say Daunting, We Say Challenging and Exciting!

· Only FIVE games remain in Florida's regular season.

· Five of the Gator's final seven games are against ranked teams:

o No. 6 Tennessee

o No. 24/rv Georgia - TWICE

o No. 13/15 Mississippi State

o No. 15/16 Texas A&M

· The only two games against non-ranked teams:

o host Vanderbilt (Feb. 19)

o at Alabama (Feb. 26)

Florida vs. Ranked Teams

· The Gators are 1-3 vs. ranked teams this season.

· Three of the four games were decided by eight points or less.

· Seven of UF's final 12 regular-season games are against teams currently ranked in the top-25.

· Most recently, the Gators knocked off No. 24 Georgia, 51-48, to claim their first win against a ranked foe, as well as their first victory in Athens since 2004!

Biggest Stat Differential vs. Ranked Teams

· Free Throws: the Gators have ATTEMPTED 26 free throws (23-36, 63.9%) in FOUR games against ranked teams ... while opponents have MADE 47 free throw attempts (47-75, 62.7%)

Gators vs. Ranked Teams

· Cassie Peoples has averaged a team-leading 10.8 points in the three games this season against ranked opponents, including the season-best 18 points she put up against Tennessee (Feb. 8).

· Peoples scored all of her team-high 11 points in the second half win at No. 24 Georgia, with a pair of threes in the final 3:17 as part of a 13-0 run.

· In the games against ranked teams, Peoples also dished 16 assists, hit 8-of-21 three-pointers (38.1%) and converted 7-of-8 free throws (87.5%).

Team Ties

· Gator assistant coach David Lowery is a native of the Magnolia State and graduated from MSU in 2000 with a degree in secondary education.

· The Kosciusko, Miss., native worked with the Lady Bulldogs' basketball team during his time in Starkville, first as a manager and practice player, before getting his debut collegiate coaching experience as a graduate assistant during the 2000-01 season.

SEC Cluster

· Every Game Counts!

· Entering Sunday's action, Florida (4-7) is in a four-team tie for eighth place in the 14-team standings!

· Teams within a game of Florida:

o Georgia (5-7) - half-game ahead

o Arkansas (4-7) - tied

o Ole Miss (4-7) - tied

o Vanderbilt (4-7) - tied

o Missouri (3-8) - one game back

Gator Watch

· POINTS: Sophomore Ronni Williams narrowly sits atop UF's scoring chart at 9.7 points per game. She's closely followed by senior Kayla Lewis and junior Cassie Peoples with 9.5 points each.

· REBOUNDS: Lone senior Kayla Lewis patrols the paint for UF, collecting 7.2 rebounds per game and hitting what would be an SEC-leading 54.3 percent from the floor - IF she had enough attempts.

· UTILITY - 1: Cassie Peoples leads the Gators in assists (94), steals (49) and trips to the free throw line (75), where she leads the SEC with a 86.7 percent clip.

· UTILITY - 2: Carlie Needles has emerged as UF's Ms. A-Little-Bit-of-Everything this season! Standing 5-foot-6, she ranks No. 3 for rebounds, while ranking No. 1 for three-pointers, No. 1 minutes played, No. 2 assists, No. 2 free throw percentage, No. 2 steals and No. 4 for scoring!

Who's on top?

· For the fourth consecutive game, not one Gator is averaging a double-figure scoring effort - and that's because there's balance!

· Seven Gators average at last 5 points per game.

· Eight Gators average at least 12.7 minutes on the court.

Who's Hot:

· Cassie Peoples followed her season-high 18-point performance against Tennessee by scoring all of her team-best 11 points in the second half - 6 in the final 3:17 - of the Gator's 51-48 win at No. 24 Georgia

· In the last two games, Peoples is averaging 14.5 points and 4.5 assists, while hitting 50 percent (9-18) overall from the floor, 55.6 percent (5-9) from the three-point arc and 85.7 percent (6-7) from the free throw line.

StatRow:

Florida

· Points Per Game: 63.7

· Scoring Defense: 61.3

· Scoring Margin: +2.3

· Rebounding Margin: +0.2

· FG%: 40.0%

· 3FG%: 30.9%

· FT%: 70.5%

Gator Leaders

· Scoring: R. Williams, 9.7

· Rebounding: K. Lewis, 7.2

· Assists: C. Peoples, 3.9

Mississippi State

· Points Per Game: 76.6

· Scoring Defense: 56.9

· Scoring Margin: +19.7

· Rebounding Margin: +4.6

· FG%: 40.9%

· 3FG%: 33.8%

· FT%: 71.0%

Bulldog Leaders

· Scoring: Vivans, 15.1

· Rebounding: Alwal, 6.1

· Assists: William, 3.6

Quotes from the Court – UF Head Coach Amanda Butler:

On what Mississippi State has been doing well this season:

“They have really great players. They have seniors and players like Martha Alwal, who has emerged as one of the best interior players in our league. The addition of freshman Victoria Vivians to what they returned has made them really, really potent offensively.”

On MSU freshman Victoria Vivians:

“She's a scorer. She's just a straight up scorer. She always sees the basket and always believes the next shot is going in. She doesn't believe there is a shot too far or a shot she shouldn't take. It's the exact mentality you want a scorer to have.”

On the Gator's mental attitude after Thursday's road win at Georgia:

“I believe we've had a pep in our step this entire month of February. This team believes that they are playing their best basketball and has a much better understanding than we did a month ago of what our best basketball looks like. I like our fight and our execution. They feel really good about themselves right now and that's very powerful.”

Game Day Data:

· Florida (12-12, 4-7 SEC) at #13/15 Mississippi St. (23-4, 8-4)

· Humphrey Coliseum (10,500) * Starkville, Miss.

· Sun., February 15, 2015 * 4 p.m. ET

Game Notes (PDF):

· Florida

o http://www.gatorzone.com/basketball/women/stats/notes/pre/20150215160000.pdf

· Mississippi State

o http://www.hailstate.com/fls/16800/pdf/wbk/wbk_notes_021515.pdf?SPSID=96974&SPID=10995&DB_OEM_ID=16800

Game Coverage & More!

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