The first 250 fans in attendance will receive a Gators chip and dip tray to help bring in the New Year!
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Now, the real season begins! Florida plays host to Auburn on New Year's Day at 2 p.m. in the SEC opener for both teams.
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- Sunday's game will be the 56th meeting between the Gators and Tigers.
- The 56 games played against Auburn is tied for the third-most in Florida history, tying with the 56 versus Alabama, a team the Gators will play on February 12 in Tuscaloosa.
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The Series: Florida vs. Auburn
- 55-Game Series: UF trails 21-34 (UF Home: 11-10; Away: 6-16; Neutral: 4-8)
- Last 10: Florida 6-4
- Last Game: Florida, 56-49 (Gainesville)
- Streak: Florida - 1
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Tail of the Tape
Florida
- Points Per Game: 76.3
- Scoring Defense: 62.7
- Scoring Margin: +13.6
- Rebounding Margin: +7.2
- FG%: 47.7%
- 3FG%: 26.0%
- FT%: 64.5%
Gator Leaders
Auburn
- Points Per Game: 65.7
- Scoring Defense: 57.9
- Scoring Margin: +7.8
- Rebounding Margin: -2.0
- FG%: 39.5%
- 3FG%: 28.6%
- FT%: 72.0%
Tiger Leaders
- Scoring: Katie Frerking, 15.7
- Rebounding: Freking, 7.5
- Assists: Janiah McKay, 3.1
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Florida vs. Auburn: The Series
- Auburn leads the overall series, 34-21.
- The teams played twice last year and each won on its respective home court.
- Tiger senior Katie Frerking scored 18 points in both games played last year.
- The Gators and Tigers have met just once in an SEC opener and that took place during the 1996-97.
- Florida holds a slights 12-11 edge against the Tigers in games played in Gainesville.
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Twice the Fun
- During the 2016-17 season's 16-game SEC schedule, the Gators will play Georgia (their 'permanent' rival), Tennessee and Texas A&M twice.
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Worth the Wait!
- After 8,799 round-trip miles traveled via 13 bus trips, seven airplane flights, 11 different hotels and 12 games played over a 48-day span, the Gators finally played a home game!
- Florida played host to and defeated Southeastern Louisiana on December 28, 102-51, after patiently waiting for the $64.5 million renovations to be completed on the newly renamed Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
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Home Sweet Home
- Florida boasts a modest seven-game home win streak dating back to last season.
- 11 of UF's 21 wins against Auburn have been in Gainesville.
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Orange You Glad We Didn't Say Road Game Again?
- To celebrate their first home game of the year, as well as their 12-game season-opening road trip, the Gators wore special orange uniforms
- The last time the Gators wore orange uniforms was during the 2007-08 season, when the team logged a 5-1 record (4-0 at home, 1-0 away, 0-1 neutral site).
- The last home game the Gators wore orange uniforms was back on December 28, 2007, when Florida defeated Holy Cross, 66-52.
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What Just Happened
- Florida carries a modest two-game win streak into Sunday's game. The Gators most recently defeated Southeastern Louisiana, 78-55
- Auburn defeated Jacksonville, 53-41 in its last outing on December 28.
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Common Foes
- The Gators and Tigers face a couple similar non-conference opponents - North Carolina A&T and Indiana.
- UF went 1-1 against those foes, while AU was 2-0.
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Gator Watch
- Ronni Williams - the lone four-year senior on the roster - led UF in scoring as a sophomore and junior and is doing so again this season.
- Williams became the 24th Gator to score 1,000 career points, doing so on Dec. 3 vs. Long Beach State.
- In addition to scoring (17.9 ppg), Williams also leads the Gators in rebounding (8.3 pg) and is second for assists (37) this year.
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Who's Hot
- During the last THREE games, Ronni Williams, the senior is contributing 27.0 per game, hitting 73.3 percent (33-45) from the field percent (19-29).
- Tyshara Fleming has corralled a team-best 8.3 rebounds over the last three games
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Quotes from the Court – UF Head Coach Amanda Butler
"(The December 28 win against Southeastern Louisiana) was very important because you have to enter SEC play feeling very good about yourself. You can't fake confidence. You have to have a true sense of who you are and what makes you good because you can get humbled very quickly in this league."
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"Auburn is a fantastic team. They had a very solid non-conference schedule. I think they are an NCAA Tournament team. They are not going to come in here at all shy and scared away because we have this new building and increased energy. They could care less. They just want to beat us. It's going to be a great SEC battle. My hope is that we see that crowd grow even more. It's going to be two great teams going against each other in the toughest conference in the country."
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Game Day at a Glance
- Who: Florida (9-4, 0-0 SEC) hosts Auburn (10-4, 0-0 SEC)
- Where: Exactech Arena (10,133) * Gainesville, Florida
- When: Sun., January 1 * 2 pm ET
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Game Notes
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Game Coverage & More!
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Opening Tip
- Sunday's game is the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams.
- Florida is 16-18 all-time on SEC-opening day.
- The Gators have lost their last two conference openers, as well as four of their last five, digging themselves into an early hole.
- This is just the second time UF and Auburn are meeting in the SEC opener; the Gators won, 71-58, to start the 1996-97 league season.
- The Gators played their first 12 games on the road trip due to the $64.5 million renovations to its newly renamed home arena - Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
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Additional Hoopla for this Game
Presented by KISS 105.3
- Chip and Dip Tray Giveaway – The first 250 fans in attendance will receive a Gators chip and dip tray to help bring in the New Year!
- Sunday Layup Line – All kids 12 and under will be able to participate in post-game layups on the court for 15 minutes.
- Kids Club – Kids Club members and their families receive free admission.
- Kids Korner – Check out great games and activities for kids in attendance, featuring poster making, tailgate games, face paint, and more!
- Enter to Win – Apple TV
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