Florida women’s basketball was edged by Marshall 91-88 on the road Saturday afternoon. The loss marked Florida’s first road deficit of the 2023-24 season.
Despite the outcome, Florida held the lead for the game’s first three quarters before Marshall scored 28 points in the fourth with a 61.5 shooting percent from the field.
Three Gators reached double figures in scoring for Florida: Aliyah Matharu (27), Leilani Correa (23) and Ra Shaya Kyle (15). Matharu also hit her career milestone of 1,000 points and Kyle grabbed her fourth double-double of the 2023-24 season with 11 rebounds.
ROAD SURGE
Florida is officially now on the back end of a seven-game road stretch, with three victories (Purdue, Columbia, Georgia Tech) and one loss (Marshall).
IN THE FIRST:
- Leilani Correa reached double figures in scoring within the first seven minutes of play, leading UF in the first with 10 points
- Florida finished the quarter with 27 points, garnering a 47.6 shooting percent from the field
- The Gators out-rebounded Marshall 13 to 11
IN THE SECOND:
- Alberte Rimdal recorded her first block of the 2023-24 season (7:23)
- The Gators’ 16 points in the second came from six players
- Defensively, Florida finished the half forcing seven turnovers and grabbing five steals
IN THE THIRD:
- Alexia Dizeko hit her second three pointer of the season
- Aliyah Matharu reached her 1,000 point milestone in the third (6:33)
- The Gators went 10-of-16, garnering a 62.5 shooting percent from the field
- Matharu led Florida in scoring in the third with 11 points, going 4-of-5 from the field and 3-of-4 from the line
IN THE FOURTH:
- Matharu led Florida in scoring once more with eight points in the fourth
- The Gators grabbed another nine rebounds to add to their second half total of 21
- Florida went 5-of-6 (83.3%) from the free throw line in the fourth and was led overall by Matharu’s 8-of-10 (80%) for the game
- Matharu fouled out with one minute left to play and the Gators up by one (88-87)
- The Herd forced six turnovers on the Gators in the fourth and converted on all to grab an additional 12 points
WORTH NOTING:
- Aliyah Matharu hit her collegiate milestone of 1,000 career points
- Matharu tied her career high in scoring with 27 points (set at Texas her sophomore year)
- Leilani Correa set her season high in scoring with 23 points
- The Gators held the lead for a total of 33:53 minutes
- The Gators out-rebounded the Herd 45 to 39
- Florida grabbed 42 points in the paint compared to Marshall’s 28
SERIES RECORD
With the road loss to Marshall, the all-time series is now tied up at 1-1.
NEXT UP:
Florida will reach the back end of their seven-game road stretch, traveling to Tulsa, Okla., to meet on Sunday, Dec. 10. The game is set for a 3 p.m. tip and will be available on ESPNU.Tulsa plays Central Arkansas on Tuesday evening before hosting the Gators next weekend. The Hurricanes have two players averaging in double figures for scoring, Temira Poindexter (22.3 ppg), and Delanie Crawford (18.6).
TULSA (5-3, 0-0 AAC):
Date: Sunday, Dec. 10
Time: 3 p.m. ET
Site: Tulsa, OK.
Stream: ESPNU
Radio: ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM / 850 AM
Stats: StatBroadcast