Gators Tangle With No. 3 South Carolina, Sunday at 2 p.m., In SEC Home Opener

Sunday, January 4

Gainesville, FL

2 p.m.

Florida Gators

South Carolina

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Laila Reynolds lays one in against Tulsa

Gators Tangle With No. 3 South Carolina, Sunday at 2 p.m., In SEC Home Opener

Friday, January 2, 2026 | Women's Basketball

Pregame Notes

By: John Maxwell

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Women's Basketball Team faces its toughest test of the season to date, this Sunday, as the Gators (12-4, 0-1) welcome the No. 3 South Carolina Gamecocks (14-1, 1-0) to Gainesville. Tip at the Exactech Arena at Stephen C. O'Connell Center is slated for 2 p.m. EST, and the game is being broadcast on the SEC Network.

Florida nearly pulled off the upset on the road New Year's Day, erasing a 17-point deficit to take the lead in the third quarter against No. 23/21 Tennessee. But the Lady Vols clamped down on defense in the final period to pull out the 76-65 victory (Recap/Box Score).

Liv McGill recorded her fourth game of 30 or more points, scoring 32 in the team's SEC opener. The only players in the country with more 30-point games this season are Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo (four) and Iowa State's Audi Crooks (six). McGill is third in the nation in scoring (24.9 ppg), 18th in assists (5.9 apg), and 13th in steals (3.50 spg).

Me'Arah O'Neal, coming off of a Co-SEC Player of the Week performance a week ago, is averaging 13.8 points and a team-high 7.9 rebounds on the year, while Laila Reynolds gives the Gators a trio of double-figure scorers averaging 12.8 points per contest.

Florida's defense has become their calling card this season, as they rank 38th in the nation in three-point field goal percentage allowed (.264), and tied for 35th in steals per game (11.50). The Gators have held 14 of 16 opponents under 70 points this year.

South Carolina began the season ranked second in the nation, but a neutral site defeat to then-fourth-ranked Texas on Nov. 27 dropped them to third in the rankings. They opened SEC play Thursday with an 83-57 decision over visiting Arkansas.

Preseason All-Conference honoree Joyce Edwards paced the Gamecocks with 25 points on 11 of 18 shooting, and South Carolina held the Razorbacks to eight of 29 shooting after the intermission.

South Carolina ranks second in the nation in field goal percentage (.540) this season, and 11th in three-point field goal percentage (.385). Their scoring average of 92.2 points per game is the fourth highest in the country. Two members of the Gamecocks are making more than 60 percent of their field goal attempts on the year—Madina Okot (.623, T 10th in the nation) and Joyce Edwards (.618, 12th).

Florida is 20-25 all-time against South Carolina and 8-13 at home, but the Gamecocks have won 17 straight in the series. The last Gators win against USC came on January 29, 2011. Last season, the Gamecocks picked up a 101-63 win over Florida. Edwards came off the bench to score 28 in the win, while McGill and Ra Shaya Kyle led the Gators with 15 points apiece.

South Carolina (14-1, 1-0)

Date: Sunday, Jan. 4
Time: 2 p.m. EST
Site: Exactech Arena at Stephen C. O'Connell Center
Listen: wruf.com/listen-live/
Watch: SECN
Live stats: StatBroadcast

A FLORIDA WIN WOULD …

Improve the Gators record to 13-4 on the year, and 1-1 in the SEC.
Improve Florida's record to 10-1 at home on the season.
Snap a 17-game losing streak to South Carolina (Last win was 65-63 on Jan. 9, 2011)
Be Florida's first victory against a nationally-ranked opponent since Mar. 6, 2025 (63-61 vs. No. 20 Alabama, SEC Tournament).
Be Florida's first victory against a top-five opponent since beating No. 5 Tennessee on Feb. 26, 2006.
Be Florida's first victory over a top-three opponent.

TALE OF THE TAPE

Florida		USC
77.0	PPG	92.2
59.3	OPP PPG	53.3
+17.7	SCORING MARGIN	+38.9
45.8	FG %	54.0
36.6	OPP FG%	32.0
25.2	3 FG%	38.5
26.4	OPP 3 FG%	24.9
4.6	3FG/G	6.2
69.4	FT %	69.7
40.9	REBOUNDS/G	44.8
35.9	OPP REBOUNDS/G	31.0
+5.0	REB MARGIN	+13.8
13.7	ASSISTS/G	19.8
16.5	TURNOVER/G	11.3
+0.83	A/TO RATIO	+1.75
11.5	STEALS/G	9.4
5.00	BLOCKS/G	6.40

PROJECTED FLORIDA STARTERS

	No.	Ht.	Pos.	Class	Hometown/Previous School
Me'Arah O'Neal	8	6-4	F	So	Houston Texas
Alexia Dizeko	9	5-11	G	Gr.	Sion, Switzerland
Laila Reynolds	13	6-1	G	Jr.	PG County, Md.
Caterina Piatti	14	6-4	F	Fr.	Scandiano, Italy
Liv McGill	23	5-9	G	So	Minneapolis, Minn.

GATOR BITES

Through games of Thursday, Jan. 1 (Happy New Year!), Florida is … 12th in the SEC this season in points per game (77.0) ... 11th in scoring defense (59.3) ... 12th in scoring margin (+17.7) ... 11th in field goal percentage (.458) ... 10th in field goal percentage defense (.366) ... 16th in three-point field goal percentage (.252) ... 3rd in three-point field goal percentage defense (.264) ... 10th in offensive rebound percentage (.373) ... 15th in defensive rebound percentage (.680) ... 14th in assists (13.7) ... 7th in steals (11.5) ... tied for 9th in blocked shots (5.00),
The Gators have held 14 of 16 opponents this season below 70 points.
Florida is ranked 32nd in the nation in free throws made per game (15.4), and 26th in free throw attempts per game (22.3).
Florida's NET rating, which helps determine which teams make the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship, is No. 61 through games of Thursday, Jan. 1 (Happy New Year!).
Liv McGill and Me'Arah O'Neal have each earned SEC Player of the Week honors this season.
Liv McGill became the first player in Gators women's basketball history to be named a US Basketball Writers Association National Player of the Week on Tuesday, Nov. 11. She averaged 27.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, 7.3 assists, and 5.00 steals while connecting on 40.9 percent of her three-point field goal attempts in Florida's three wins. She also was named the SEC Player of the Week for her performance during that same stretch of games.
Liv McGill was named the most outstanding player of the Grand Cayman Classic over Thanksgiving weekend when she averaged 27.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.00 steals and 1.00 blocked shots.
Liv McGill has three games this season of at least 25 points, five rebounds, five assists and five steals. The other 4,500-+ players competing in women's basketball at the Division I level have six 25-5-5-5 games … combined.

PROJECTED SOUTH CAROLINA STARTERS

	No.	Ht.	Pos.	Class	Hometown / Previous Schools
Tessa Johnson	5	6-0	G	Jr.	Albertville, Minn. /
Joyce Edwards	8	6-3	F	So.	Camden, S.C. /
Madina Okot	11	6-6	C	Sr.	Mumias, Kenya / Mississippi State
Raven Johnson	25	5-9	G	Sr.	Atlanta, Ga. /
Agot Makeer	44	6-0	G	Fr.	Thunder Bay, Ontario /

GAMECOCKS QUICK HITS

South Carolina has won three national championships in the last nine seasons, including two of the last four
The Gamecocks are ranked second in the nation in field goal percentage (.540), and 11th in three-point field goal percentage (.385).
South Carolina's scoring average of 92.2 points per game is the fourth highest in the country.
Two members of the Gamecocks are making more than 60 percent of their field goal attempts on the year— Madina Okot (.623, T 10th in the nation) and Joyce Edwards (.618, 12th).
Tessa Johnson is ranked 11th in the nation in three-point field goal percentage (.478).
South Carolina is 3-0 on the road this season.
The Gamecocks were picked to finish first in the SEC this season in the preseason media poll. Joyce Edwards was named to the preseason All-SEC First Team, and Ta'Niya Latson was named to the All-SEC Second Team. The coaches picked South Carolina to finish second behind Texas, and Edwards and Latson both received preseason All-SEC First Team nods.