GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Playing its fifth game in a nine-day span, the University of Florida women's basketball team (4-1) resumes game action Wednesday, Dec. 9 when it travels to UNC Asheville to battle the Bulldogs inside Kimmel Arena. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. ET as Florida and UNC Asheville meet for the first time and UF handles it second road challenge of the season.
Florida faces a quick turnaround after taking on Florida Atlantic in Gainesville late Monday night. Making their national television debut this season, the Gators showcased their depth and impressive offense against the Owls, scoring over 80 points for the third time this season. Behind a career-best 27 points from do-it-all senior guard
Kiki Smith, Florida dispatched the Owls 88-76. In a very physical and spirited matchup, Florida held the upperhand.
Lavender Briggs, compiling her ninth career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, joined Smith in double figures along with redshirt-sophomore
Yasmeen Chang, who in just her second game with the team, registered 12 points. The game featured just four lead changes and two ties, and at a point Florida led by as many as 18.
Smith led the Gators in scoring, rebounds, assists, steals, minutes and three-straight home wins in four games played this past week. The senior capped off what was the best four-game scoring stretch in her career with a career night as she established a new career best with 27 points in UF's 88-78 win over FAU Monday night. In the same contest, Smith tied her career best with 11 rebounds and notched her second double-double (both with 20 or more points) for the second time this campaign. Earlier in the week, Smith set a new career high with six steals against Charleston Southern.
Leading the way for the Gators, who played four games in a seven-day span, Smith scored 14 or more points in all four games and shot an impressive .519 percent from the floor. The lefty is also a lock down defender and leads the SEC in steals (16) through five games.
The Preseason All-SEC selection, Briggs, is off to another great start, averaging 15.6 points per game along with 6.6 rebounds through five games. Briggs has established herself as one of the best scorers in the SEC, but she has shown she can facilitate as well. The sophomore has recorded five or more assists in two of UF's first five games and led the team in assists four times.
Snap Shot Through 5 Games
| ** Through first 5 games of season |
2019-20 |
2020-21 |
| Points Per Game |
67.2 |
80.2 |
| Opp. Points Per Game |
57.2 |
62.8 |
| Free Throws Made |
9.4 |
15.6 |
| Free Throw Percentage |
56.0 |
70.9 |
| Field Goal Percentage |
41.2 |
43.2 |
UNC Asheville enters the game with a 1-2 record with a win in its opener against Western Carolina and back-to-back losses against Appalachian State and Wofford. Through their three games played, the Bulldogs feature a trio of double figures scorers with Nadiria Evans leading the way at 16.7 points per game. Evans, a senior, hails from Gainesville and had an impressive career at Oak Hall. After earning All-Big South Honorable Mention honors a season ago Evans, who was also a heralded track and field athlete in high school, collected Preseason All-Big South First Team recognition this year. Senior guard Amaryah Corpening also enters the game averaging double figures at 13.7 and leads the team in assists. The North Carolina native led the team in assists and minutes played during the 2019-20 campaign. Sophomore Kai Carter, who averages 14.0 points per game, ranks near the top of the Big South in three-pointers made and three-point percentage.
The Bulldogs, who finished 16-14 overall last season and 9-11 in league play, were slated to finish seventh in the Big South this season. Honey Brown is in her first season as the head coach of the program after spending six seasons as an assistant and one as the associate head coach.
While the Gators have yet to face UNC Asheville, they are 12-2 against the Big South all time and have taken on six teams from the conference since
Cam Newbauer took over the program prior to the 2017-18 campaign. Florida battled fellow Big South squad, Charleston Southern, on Dec. 2 and walked away with a 67-52 victory.
Tipoff Tip Ins
- The Gators have scored 80 or more points in three games this season. In 30 games a season ago, they only scored 80+ four times. The Gators have scored 20 or more fast break points in two of their first five games. A season ago, Florida's season high in fast break points was 16.
- The Gators have shot above 70 percent from the line in four games already this season and are shooting 70.9 percent as a unit. A year ago, Florida struggled to shoot it from the free throw line, converting at just a 59 percent clip. Amid her career night against FAU Monday, a stat that may get lost in the shuffle is Kiki Smith's performance from the free throw line. The lefty made eight of her 10 tries, both career highs as well.
- After entering the game against FAU with 499 career points and registering 14 in the win, Lavender Briggs became the fastest player to score 500 points in a Florida uniform since Sha Brooks eclipsed the 500-point mark in 34 games in the 2006-07 campaign. Brooks finished her Gator career with 1,820 points, the fifth-most all time.
- Playing in just her second game with the Gators after being granted an NCAA waiver late last week, Yasmeen Chang added a career-best 11 points and a palpable buzz off the bench in UF's victory over Florida Atlantic.
- Florida put together another big scoring quarter Monday night as it tallied 27 in the second stanza. On Dec. its 28 second quarter points against Charleston Southern were its most in a period since scoring 28 in the first quarter against Samford on Nov. 16 of last season. UF also scored 27 in the fourth quarter versus Grambling and 26 against Cincinnati.
- Smith enters Wednesday's game with 95 points scored. Smith didn't score her 100th point last season until UF's ninth game.
- The Gators have defended the three-point line effectively this season, allowing just .213 shooting from distance. They rank second in the SEC in the category. The Gators are making their fair share too, netting 7.4 triples per contest.
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