Gator Backcourt Club

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

Gators Dominate FAMU to Stay Unbeaten

Point guard Aliyah Matharu led all scorers with 22 points and paced three other Florida teammates into double-figure scoring Monday night, as the Gators defeated Florida A&M 92-54 at Exactech Arena to remain unbeaten three games into the 2023-24 season. Matharu, the senior transfer from Texas, hit nine of her 18 field-goal attempts, including a trio of 3-pointers, to go with seven rebounds and three assists. 

UF, which shot 48.6 percent for the game, also got a career-high 20 points on 8-for-11 shooting from heralded freshman forward Laila Reynolds, the 2023 McDonald’s All American, who was making a second consecutive start while junior guard Alberte Rimdal sat out with a lower body injury. Senior center Ra Shaya Kyle had 15 points and nine boards and senior forward Leilani Correa pitched in 14 points, including a 4-for-6 performance from distance.  

GATORS OPENING UP WITH THREE WINS
This is the 10th time Florida has opened with a 3-0 record. The other seasons: 1983-84, 1984-85, 1990-91, 1995-96, 1997-98, 2000-01, 2002-03, 2016-17 and 2019-20.

SERIES RECORD
Florida leads the all-time series with FAMU 12-5. This is UF’s fifth consecutive win versus the Rattlers.

NON-CONFERENCE DOMINANCE
Dating back to the 2019-20 season, Florida is currently on a 25-game home winning streak during non-conference competition. This marks the second-longest streak in school history. The Gators’ last non-conference at home was on Nov. 26, 2019, when Florida State defeated UF 66-55. 

IN THE FIRST:

  • Matharu collected back-to-back driving layups, drawing fouls on both, to give the Gators additional scoring opportunities early in the game.
  • Florida ended the first quarter with 18 field-goal attempts.
  • The only quarter the Rattlers out-rebounded Florida was in the first (14-10).
  • The Gators totaled four steals and forced six turnovers. 
  • Florida held possession for eight of the first 10 minutes. 

IN THE SECOND:

  • Faith Dut hit her first 3-pointer of the season.
  • Matharu tallied seven points and three rebounds in the second quarter to finish the half leading all players with 19 points and five rebounds.
  • Florida forced eight turnovers to convert for 10 points.
  • The Gators’ second-quarter 28 points were spread across seven players:
  • Florida finished the quarter shooting 63 percent from the field going 10-of-16.

IN THE THIRD:

  • The Gators grabbed 15 rebounds. That included five different Gators with two or more rebounds.
  • Kyle led the Gators in the third quarter with seven points.
  • Florida out-rebounded the Rattlers 15-9.  

IN THE FOURTH:

  • Correa started the final quarter with her fourth 3-pointer of the game.
  • Florida finished at 64 percent from the field in the period (9-of-14).
  • Reynolds led the Gators with six points, hitting all three of her shots in the quarter. 

WORTH NOTING.

  • This was the second consecutive game Matharu led UF in scoring with 22 points. She had 25 points on Nov. 9 versus Bethune-Cookman.
  • The Gators scored at least 20 points in every quarter.
  • Tonight’s 92 points is Florida’s season high (previous high was 83 against BCC).

THEY SAID IT
https://floridagators.com/showcase/embed.aspx?Archive=23135&autoplay=false

UF guard Laila Reynolds on her increased confidence on the court:
“I’ve started to get really comfortable on the court and that’s because of my teammates helping me out. Being able to get this type of confidence is something I have been working on at practice and also just being able to push myself to better the team has always been my motivation to work harder.”

UF guard Aliyah Matharu on her performance tonight:
“We’ve been doing a lot of focusing on getting everybody involved in the paint and outside of the paint. With me not playing for a year I’m pretty hungry on both ends of the ball, but I mean, it’s clicking for me. It’s working for me. My teammates are finding me, I’m trying to find them and do my best with that. I’m also in a new position so just getting different looks and getting comfortable with them has made a big difference.”

UF coach Kelly Rae Finley on playing Florida State next:
“We know who we are and we’re very confident in our abilities. I love the team that we have, and we will prepare just as we do with every opponent. There’s not one game that is bigger than another.” 

NEXT UP
The Gators close their season-opening four game home stand Friday versus No. 12 Florida State. It is the opening game of a women’s – men’s UF-FSU doubleheader. The Seminoles come into Friday’s game with a 2-0 record, claiming a 92-91 home win versus then No. 11 Tennessee in their last game on Nov. 9.

No. 12 Florida State