Thursday marks the last road trip of the regular season for the Gators.
#15/21 Florida (20-7, 10-4 SEC) at Vanderbilt (12-16, 3-11 SEC)
Game Information: Feb. 24 | 6:30 p.m. ET
Live Stream: SEC Network<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.espn.com_watch_player_-5F_id_2aa0e7f0-2Dc24a-2D451b-2D888c-2Dbf6e2575510d&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=xiQmcrF4ofo8zKX37gRsbZtsNEQp-hmj2pZ7ebVI-6F9KGfqWhbGloGt2YLlJvTr&s=XxaurEgtN_WGsYjD4qneQdHeDDSsdTOXutYufYXMk1Y&e= >
Radio: 98.1FM/850AM WRUF<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_showcase-3FLive-3D3742&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=xiQmcrF4ofo8zKX37gRsbZtsNEQp-hmj2pZ7ebVI-6F9KGfqWhbGloGt2YLlJvTr&s=U-SqRqpKvmO1v8Zs3bqLd7bvb7YizzelvP-S-Br6ub4&e= >
Live Stats: StatBroadcast<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__stats.statbroadcast.com_statmonitr_-3Fid-3D377184&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=xiQmcrF4ofo8zKX37gRsbZtsNEQp-hmj2pZ7ebVI-6F9KGfqWhbGloGt2YLlJvTr&s=Plgfhdyz-WY6a5GrXTw8KL69PJMy26R42_Qu3cV2C5A&e= >
Game Notes: Florida<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_documents_2022_2_22_2-5F24-5FVanderbilt.pdf&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=xiQmcrF4ofo8zKX37gRsbZtsNEQp-hmj2pZ7ebVI-6F9KGfqWhbGloGt2YLlJvTr&s=C4GLRfvvMbvfAj17PVjUBxxI9gVu1OZG-aYTwtiSGrI&e= > | Vanderbilt<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__vucommodores.com_wp-2Dcontent_uploads_2022_02_vs.-2DFlorida.pdf&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=xiQmcrF4ofo8zKX37gRsbZtsNEQp-hmj2pZ7ebVI-6F9KGfqWhbGloGt2YLlJvTr&s=XbPoYXfhN3Bdrb7999ezyuokgFzq0C9T0CdWTmiEhSA&e= >
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Florida women’s basketball is set to close out the road portion of the 2021-22 season on Thursday evening when they travel to the Music City for a matchup with Vanderbilt at 6:30 p.m. ET.
The game will be streamed live on SEC Network with Eric Frede and Tamika Catchings on the call while Kyle Crooks and Brittany Davis will handle radio responsibilities on 98.1FM/850AM WRUF.
THE SERIES AT A GLANCE
Thursday marks the 60th meeting between the Commodores and Gators, with Vanderbilt holding a 33-26 advantage in the all-time series. The matchup will be the first time since the 2019-2020 season that the two squads have met, as Vanderbilt opted out of the 2020-21 season due to COVID-19. Florida is currently on a five-game winning streak in the series, dating back to Feb. 18, 2016.
LAST TIME OUT
The Gators are coming off of a hard-fought road loss at No. 11 LSU in a sold-out Southeastern Conference game in Baton Rouge. Led by double-figures scoring from Nina Rickards (17), Kiara Smith (13) and Zippy Broughton (10), UF was able to close the gap to just two points late in the fourth quarter, but the Tigers managed to hold on for a 66-61 victory.
NAISMITH WATCHLIST
After a 20-7 (10-4 SEC) start for the Gators to the season, Kelly Rae Finley was named one of 15 finalists for the Naismith Coach of the Year Award. She joins Dawn Staley, Kim Mulkey and Kellie Harper as a representative from the SEC.
MOVIN’ ON UP
After entering the top 25 for the first time since the 2015-16 season two weeks ago, the Gators continue to climb in the rankings, coming in at No. 15 in the AP poll and #21 in the Coaches poll this week. The appearance at No. 15 marks the highest ranking for the Gators since the 2008-09 season.
HISTORY?
The Gators have a chance to earn their seventh victory on the road in SEC play on Thursday evening at Vanderbilt. If the Gators are victorious, it would mark the first time in school history that the Orange & Blue have won seven road conference games.
NUMBER 20
Florida boasts 20 victories for the first time since the 2015-16 campaign when they ended 22-9. It is the fastest UF has reached 20 wins since starting 20-2 during the 2008-09 season.
CONFERENCE FUN
After defeating Arkansas, Florida earned their 10th conference win of the season, marking the earliest the Gators have reached 10 wins in the SEC since the 2000-01 season when they began 10-3 in the league. Florida has also now won 10 SEC games for just the fourth time in program history. The last time UF won 10 conference matchups came during a 10-6 season in 2015-16. Six of Florida’s wins have come on the road in SEC play, the most road-SEC wins for the Gators since the 2000-01 season.
ELITE DEFENDER
Kiara Smith’s defense has risen to an elite level during the 2021-22 season, sitting at 32nd nationally with a total of 63 steals on the year. She is also ranked 55th in the nation in steals per game, averaging 2.33 during each outing. Those numbers are good for third and fifth in the SEC, respectively.
SMITH IN THE RECORD BOOK
Points – 14th, 1,468
Games Started – 6th, 113
Consecutive Starts – 3rd, 103
Minutes – 3rd, 3950
Free Throws Made – 6th, 333
Assists – 6th, 421
Steals – 7th, 211
FACING THE GIANTS
The Gators are now one of just ten teams in the nation to have defeated at least five top 25 teams. They join South Carolina, Michigan, Louisville, North Carolina State, Stanford and Tennessee as the only teams to have accomplished that feat.
STRANGE BUT TRUE
The Orange & Blue’s victory over Mississippi State solidified the first time in school history that Florida has defeated Kentucky, Mississippi State, LSU, Tennessee and Georgia in the same season.
– #GoGators –
