Gator Backcourt Club

The Official Booster Club of the University of Florida Women's Basketball Team

Washington and Williams Net Double-Doubles in Road Win

LINKS OF NOTE

Final Box – http://floridagators.com/documents/2017/2/12/25_UF66_A56.pdf

SEC Network Recap – http://floridagators.com/watch/default.aspx?Archive=5349

Postgame with Head Coach Amanda Butler – http://youtu.be/okGY6R28yqU

Postgame with Ronni Williams – http://youtu.be/C-Wmmf8tj00

Postgame with Haley Lorenzen – http://youtu.be/n21-C_DUcY4

 

A game of runs ended in Florida’s favor as three Gators scored in double figures and the Gators topped the Tide 66-56 at Coleman Coliseum.

Florida dominated the rebounding battle outrebounding Alabama, 50-30, thanks to double-digit efforts from Ronni Williams and Delicia Washington.

Washington recorded her first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds while Williams picks her up second consecutive double-double and her eight of the season with her 19 points and 11 rebounds. Junior Haley Lorenzen added 18 points to the mix and helped to control the boards with her seven rebounds.

The story of the game was a series of runs, as each of the first 35 points came during sprees by both teams with Alabama coming out on top 21-14, with 6:01 remaining in the first half and it was a lead the Tide maintained throughout the half, taking a 31-26 advantage into the locker room.

Florida came out of the locker room to start the second half on an 18-0 run over a 5:51 span, dominating the boards at both ends. Alabama quickly responded with another run of its own finally ending its second-half drought with a pair of free throws with 4:09 remaining that sparked a 10-0 march and closed within three points, 44-41 with 2:55 left in the third.

Washington then scored all of UF’s points during ensuing 8-2 march and the Gator lead was back to nine, 52-43, with 22 seconds left Florida held that score through the end of the quarter.

Alabama opened the fourth with a 7-1 run and whittled Florida’s lead to three, 53-50, with 7:22 on the clock, but Lorenzen and Dyandria Anderson hit back to back free throws that ignited a 8-0 run and the Gator’s regained an 11-point advantage, 61-50, with 4:02 remaining.

For virtually the first time in the game, the teams exchanged points instead of runs and Florida captured its third SEC road win of the year.

Updated Records

  • Florida: 13-12, 4-8 SEC
  • Alabama: 15-10, 3-9 SEC

Double-Digit Gators

  • Haley Lorenzen: 18 points (8-12 FG, 1-1 3FG, 1-2 FT), seven rebounds, three blocks; 20th double-figure scoring game this year, 37th of career
  • Ronni Williams: 19 points (8-15 FG, 3-6 FT), 11 rebounds, two blocks; 20th career double-double
  • Delicia Washington: 12 points (5-15 FG, 2-2 3FG, 0-2 FT), 11 rebounds; first double-double of career

Leading the Tide

  • Quanetria Bolton led three players in double-figure scoring with 14 points

Numbers of Note

  • Florida enjoyed a 50-30 rebounding advantage
  • Dyandria Anderson dished a game-high seven assists
  • Florida missed its first seven three-point attempts of the game before connecting on three straight

Quick Quotes from UF Head Coach Amanda Butler

Opening Statement:

“I thought we had a tremendous rebounding effort. There were a lot of things that were not easy for us tonight- the free throw line wasn’t easy for us, the three-point line wasn’t easy for us. We were fouling them too much in the first half and giving up too many points, but our kids did a great job of really adjusting. The way they were playing defense in the second half was great, we didn’t foul as much and did a better job containing penetration, and we took a little better care of the basketball. But ultimately, rebounding was the separating factor today and that was a great team effort. Delicia (Washington) with 11, Ronni (Williams) with 11, and Haley (Lorenzen) with a hard 7. It seems like every one of Haley’s was a back breaker for them and an extra effort for her, so I couldn’t be more proud of this effort.”

On finding a rhythm offensively:

“You know, we didn’t score as many points in the first half as we normally do. I thought we settled a little bit too much for jump shots. Our paint touches weren’t exactly what they normally are, and you’ve got to give Alabama credit for that. Kristy is an excellent coach and always has great game plans. Their kids wanted to defend their home court, so they played us really tough.”

On the defensive pressure on Alabama’s Hannah Cook:

“Well she got nine three point shots off, and some of those were obviously contested with good defense on her. But she is an excellent shooter and we compared her to Steph Curry in our preparation. I think we did a pretty good job of marking her most times down the floor. We had a couple breakdowns of dribble penetration there in the second half and didn’t really execute defensively the way we wanted to. But overall, I’m really proud. Whenever you can hold an SEC team in the 50s at home, then you are playing pretty good defense.”

On the explosive run to start the second half:

“I can’t take credit for that. The players play the game, and we just tell them what we see and what we think will work. But really at halftime we just talked about our desire level and what our heart and passion need to look like. Our game plan will work if we infuse it with the right amount of energy. I thought we were a little bit flat in the first half. But all the credit goes to them, that didn’t have anything to do with what the coaches said.”

No Place for the Weak this Week

  • Florida played three SEC games in seven days this week.
  • The Gators opened the seven-day span with a home loss to Ole Miss on Monday, before defeating Arkansas on Thursday.
  • Sunday’s game at Alabama wrapped the hectic league run!

Florida vs. Alabama: The Updated Series

  • 57-Game Series: UF trails 28-29 (UF Home: 15-7; Away: 10-12; Neutral: 3-10)
  • Trend: Each of the last five games in the series, as well as eight of the last 10 have been decided by 10 points of less
  • Florida has won seven consecutive games in the series against the Tide.
  • The Crimson Tide’s last win against the Gators was on Feb. 13, 2011 – a 64-59 decision at Foster Auditorium.

Four and Counting

  • It’s hard to believe, but Florida has just four regular-season games remaining before the SEC Tournament.
  • Florida’s remaining schedule includes two home games (Missouri and Georgia) and three on the road (Alabama, Kentucky and Tennessee).
  • The Gators are 2-2 in the second half of the league schedule.
  • Florida wrapped up the first half of its 16-game SEC slate with a road win at Vanderbilt (Jan. 29) and a 2-6 record.

Gripping Gators

  • Over the previous three-plus seasons, the team has played a combined 56 games decided by 10 points or less, with a 30-26 record)
  • In 2016-17, the Gators are 4-7 in games decided 10 points or less (3-5 SEC).

 Numbers of Note – at a Glance

  • Sunday’s game was the 57th meeting between Florida and Alabama. It is the third-most tenured series in Gator history.
  • Sunday’s game was Florida’s third SEC contest in seven days, having played Monday and Thursday.
  • Seven of UF’s last eight games have been decided by 10 points or less
  • Florida is 4-7 in games decided by 10 points or less this season, including 3-5 in SEC games.
  • The Gators have just four games remaining before the SEC Tournament.

Gator Pronunciations for this Release:

  • DYANDRIA Anderson: dee-ANN-dree-uh
  • DELICIA Washington: duh-LEE-shuh

What’s Next for the Gators

  • Who: Florida hosts Missouri
  • When: Thursday, February 16 * 7 p.m.
  • Where: Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center * Gainesville, Fla.

 

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