Gators Continue Road Show Wednesday in Ocala, Fla.
Freshman Sydney Searcy leads the Gators in steals and one of the team's top defenders.
Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Gators Continue Road Show Wednesday in Ocala, Fla.

Kathy Cafazzo
Florida plays Wofford at the College of Central Florida's Patriot Gym on Wednesday at 7 p.m. and admission is FREE!

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OCALA, Fla. – Florida is looking to regroup and get back to its winning ways when the Gators meet Wofford College on Wednesday at the College of Central Florida's Patriot Gym and admission is FREE!
 
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET
 
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Three Games in Five Days
  • Wednesday's game marks the first of a three-game run over a five-day span that includes a trip to Tempe, Arizona.
  • The Gators will depart Gainesville on Friday morning, play Long Beach State on Saturday and then either Arizona State or Boston U. on Sunday, before flying home on Monday.
  • This five-day run will encompass approximately 4,136 miles.
 
Three Games in Six Days: Check
  • Florida just completed a similar run that spanned six days, however, it involved three different states.
  • The Gators defeated Temple on Sat., Nov. 19, played at Arkansas State on Tue., Nov. 22 and capped the trip with a tough loss at Northwestern on Fri., Nov. 25.
  • The round-trip mileage for the Gators was 2,479.
 
First-Time Florida Foes
  • Wofford is one of five teams on UF's schedule that the Gators will play for the first time.
  • The other first-time foes: Chattanooga, Northwestern, North Carolina A&M and Southeastern Louisiana.
 
Last Time Out: Northwestern 73, Florida 68 (Nov. 25 at Evanston, Ill.)
  • Through its first four games of the season, Florida had convincingly won each of the fourth quarters it had played. Friday's game was a different story, however, as the Gators managed just four points until there were 10 seconds remaining and Northwestern used a 13-2 run that fueled a 73-68 decision against visiting Florida at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
  • The Wildcats outscored the Gators 17-8 in the deciding final quarter after Florida entered the stanza with a 60-56 edge.
  • Florida hit just 4-of-22 overall from the floor (18.2 percent) during the period after converting steadily prior to those last 10 minutes.
  • The Gator's first loss of the season offset senior Ronni Williams' 19-point, 13-rebound performance, her second double-double of the season.
 
Terrific Gator Trio
  • Eleanna Christinaki, Haley Lorenzen and Ronni Williams have been UF's top three scorers in nearly every game this season.
  • All score in very different ways!
  • Christinaki, a sophomore, is a guard who can shoot from anywhere on the court, is a fantastic passer (led UF in assists last year) and can create her own shot. She is contributing 20.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists.
  • Lorenzen, a junior, has a great rapport with fellow frontcourt member Williams and knows how to get her the ball. Coach Butler stated that Lorenzen had extended her shooting range and Lorenzen backed that up by hitting the first three-pointer of her career during the win against Temple (Nov. 19) and has converted one trey in each of the last three games! Entering the season, Lorenzen had not even attempted a three-pointer. She is averaging 15.0 points and 6.0 rebounds.
  • Williams, the lone four-year senior, runs the floor like a guard and has been seen on numerous occasions snaring a defensive rebound, dribbling the length of the court and sinking the layup. Williams, who has been UF's leading scorer each of the last two years, is averaging 14.2 points and a team-best 8.4 rebounds. She has two double-doubles this year; 15 in her career.
 
Fine with Nine ... Better with 10
  • The Gators opened the season with a 12-player roster, however just nine suited up for the first four games of the 2016-17 campaign.
  • During the fifth game (at Northwestern, Nov. 25), freshman Sydney Morang suited up and played three minutes. Morang had not played prior to this due to concussion symptoms. After undergoing months of testing and observation, she was cleared by physicians to finally play in a game.
  • Senior Simone Westbrook, a member of the 2016 SEC All-Defensive Team, tore her ACL in August and will miss the season.
  • Junior Funda Nakkasoglu joined the Gators from Utah State and must sit out the year per NCAA rules for transfers.
 
On the Road Again and Again and Again
  • Florida will play its first 12 games on the road due to the $64.5 million renovation of the Exactech Arena at the O'Connell Center, which is slated to be completed in mid-December.
  • During that season-opening road swing, the Gators will have traveled a total of 8,289 miles without leaving the contiguous United States or playing in the Pacific Time Zone before playing host to Southeastern Louisiana in their home opener.
 
Quoting UF Head Coach Amanda Butler
  • "Wofford is a very well-coached team. They've already been tested in their previous games with a tough schedule and several of those games on the road. They have a lot of balance and they run a lot of sets. We're going to have to be very sharp against the mentally."
 
 
Gator Pronunciations:
  • ELEANNA CHRISTINAKI: L-ee-on-uh chris-tin-OCK-ee
  • TYSHARA Fleming: tie-SHEER-uh
  • Sydney MORANG: mur-RANG (like meringue pie)
  • FUNDA NAKKASOGLU: FOON-da knock-a-SO-glue
  • Sydney SEARCY: SIR-see
 
 
 
Game Day Information
  • Who: #19/23 Florida (4-1, 0-0 SEC) at Wofford College (3-2)
  • When: Wed., November 30, 2016 * 7 p.m.
  • Where: Patriot Gym (900) * Ocala, Florida
  • Location: played at the College of Central Florida (3001 SW College Road, Ocala, FL 34474)
  • Tickets: FREE
 
Game Notes:  
Game Coverage & More!
  • Radio: LIVE on ESPN Gainesville 95.3 with Adam Schick & Brittany Davis
  • Internet Audio: LIVE thru FloridaGators.com (FREE) [direct link]
  • Television: none
  • Streaming Video: SEC Network + with LIVE link through FloridaGators.com [direct link]
  • Internet Scoring: LIVE link through FloridaGators.com [direct link]
 
Opening Tip
  • Wednesday's game will be the first meeting between Florida and Wofford.
  • Both teams enter Wednesday coming off a loss in its most recent game.
  • UF is 1-0 this year against teams from the Southern Conference. The Gators topped Chattanooga, 72-61, on Nov. 14
  • This is the second of two games the Gators are playing at the College of Central Florida's Patriot Gym, as they wait for the renovations to be completed to their own court - Exactech Arena.
 
 
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