Florida defeats Missouri in the first round of the SEC post-season tournament with a six-point victory, 66-60. The Gators were led by Leilani Correa with a 15-point outing followed by Aliyah Matharu with 14-points, and nine rebounds. Two other Gators found themselves in double-digits: Alberte Rimdal (12), and Jeriah Warren (10).
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Florida defeated the Missouri Tigers 66-60 in their first test of the post-season. The Gators finished out with four players in double-digits for scoring: Leilani Correa<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/leilani-correa/16027> (15), Aliyah Matharu<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/aliyah-matharu/16030> (14), Alberte Rimdal<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/alberte-rimdal/16032> (12), and Jeriah Warren<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/jeriah-warren/16033> (10). Matharu also played a large role defensively, leading on the boards with nine rebounds.
The Gators tallied the first two points of the game against Missouri with a driving Layup from Freshman, Laila Reynolds<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/laila-reynolds/16215>. Reynolds shortly followed up with a jumper from inside the paint to give the Gators a 4-2 lead in the first two minutes of play. The Tigers hit a three-pointer to take a 5-4 lead and never trailed again in the first. The score stood at 16-13 with the Gators down by three going into the second quarter.
Florida came out with a renewed energy to start the second quarter, going on a 16-point run and leaving Missouri scoreless for five minutes and 15 seconds. The Gators were led on offense by Alberte Rimdal<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/alberte-rimdal/16032> with eight points, followed by Aliyah Matharu<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/aliyah-matharu/16030> with six. The Gators totaled 29-points in the second quarter and were shooting 68.4 percent from the field, their highest of the game. At the end of the first half Florida was ahead by a margin of 16-points (42-16).
At the beginning of the third, Florida notched six points increasing the lead to 20 (48-28) before Missouri increased their offensive pressure. The Tigers went on a 17-point run shaving Florida’s lead down and getting the scoring margin to as low as six. The Gators were held to only eight points in the third, their lowest scoring quarter of the game. Leilani Correa<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/leilani-correa/16027> was responsible for half the Gators third quarter points, with a game total of 10 going into the final quarter.
The score stood at 50-43 going into the fourth quarter with Florida ahead by seven. The final ten minutes were a back and forth battle with both SEC teams fighting to see round two in Greenville. With four minutes left on the clock, Florida was in front by three at 60-57, marking their smallest lead of the half. After the Tigers got within one possession, the Gators locked in to avoid Missouri getting any closer to their post-season victory. Ultimately Florida finished out 66-60, scoring on their final three possessions.
IN THE FIRST:
* Florida’s first four points of the contest came from Laila Reynolds<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/laila-reynolds/16215> (4-2)
* This marked the Gators only lead of the first quarter
* The Gators were down (10-4) at the first media time out
* Aliyah Matharu<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/aliyah-matharu/16030> went on a five-point run to bring the score back within one (10-9)
* Missouri had zero second chance points and zero points off rebounds
* Florida totaled 11 rebounds with Jeriah Warren<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/jeriah-warren/16033> snagging five
* Eriny Kindred<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/eriny-kindred/16214> and Jeriah Warren<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/jeriah-warren/16033> each tallied a block
* The Gators forced four turnovers on the Tigers
* Florida was down by three at the end of the first (16-13)
IN THE SECOND:
* Coming out in the second Leilani Correa<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/leilani-correa/16027> hit a jumper in the paint within the first 10 seconds to get the margin back to one (16-15)
* Florida then regained the lead at 9:05 (17-16)
* A key play in the second was a steal from Correa, converting to a driving layup by Aliyah Matharu<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/aliyah-matharu/16030> at 7:36 to give Florida a five-point lead (21-16)
* The Gators forced four turnovers on Missouri within a two-minute window (8:20-6:49)
* Florida’s largest lead of the quarter was at 16 which was hit twice
* 38-22 (2:42)
* 42-26 (00:39)
* Alberte Rimdal<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/alberte-rimdal/16032> held a shooting percentage of 100 going 3-of-3 from the field and 2-of-2 from the three
* Florida finished the quarter with a 68.4 shooting percentage from the field
* The Gators scored 29-points in the second, their highest scoring quarter of the game
IN THE THIRD:
* Florida grabbed their largest lead of the game with a 20-point margin (48-28)
* Leilani Correa<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/leilani-correa/16027> led on offense with four of Florida’s eight points
* This marked the Gators lowest scoring quarter of the game
* Missouri got the margin down to as low as six in the third after a 17-point run
* Florida secured 11 rebounds with Laila Reynolds<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/laila-reynolds/16215>, Jeriah Warren<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/jeriah-warren/16033>, and Faith Dut<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/faith-dut/16028> each grabbing two
* The Gators totaled four points in the paint and two off rebounds
* Heading into the final 10 minutes Florida led 50-43
IN THE FOURTH:
* Jeriah Warren<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/jeriah-warren/16033> knocked down a three at 8:21 to get Florida ahead by double-digits once more (58-46)
* The game was within three (60-57) with less than four minutes to play
* Leilani Correa<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/leilani-correa/16027> and Jeriah Warren<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/jeriah-warren/16033> led the Gators in scoring with five points apiece
* The Gators had four points in the paint, three off turnovers, and three off rebounds
* Aliyah Matharu<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/aliyah-matharu/16030> led on defense with three rebounds
* Florida outrebounded the Tigers 9-8 in the fourth
* The Gators finished the quarter with 16-points over the Tigers
WORTH NOTING:
* After 40 minutes, Florida outrebounded Mizzou 40-36
* The Gators only outscored the Tigers in one of four quarter
* Q2: 29-10
* Florida ended the second quarter shooting 68.4 percent from the field (13-of-19), their highest quarter percentage of the season
* Aliyah Matharu<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/aliyah-matharu/16030> recorded her career high in rebounds with nine
* Matharu recorded her second time this season leading Florida on the boards
* Alberte Rimdal<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/alberte-rimdal/16032> secured her tenth game in double-figures for scoring this season with 12-points
* Leilani Correa<https://floridagators.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/leilani-correa/16027> led the team in scoring for the fourteenth time this season
* With 15-points, Correa has now reached double-digits in 25 contests this season and 38 at UF
* Overall Florida went 27-of-63 from the field, yielding a 43 percent
* Florida outscored Missouri in four different categories:
* Points from turnovers (17-11)
* Points in the paint (32-22)
* Points from fast breaks (10-2)
* Bench points (29-8)
* The Gators had four players in double-figures for scoring:
* Correa (15)
* Matharu (14)
* Rimdal (12)
* Warren (10)
* This mark’s the Gators first post-season win over Missouri since 2019
* The win over Missouri marks the program’s 17th victory in the state South Carolina
TEAM RECORDS:
Florida: 15-14 (6-11 SEC)
Missouri (11-19, 2-15 SEC):
SERIES RECORD:
Despite Florida’s victory the all-time series between the Gators and Missouri is still in favor of the Tigers at 11-5. The Gators trail by six in the series record, but have defeated Mizzou in their last three meetings.
NEXT UP:
Florida will advance to round two of the 2024 SEC Tournament and face Vanderbilt on Thursday evening. Vanderbilt finished out ranked No. 6 in the conference, guaranteeing a first-round bye in Greenville.
Vanderbilt’s last contest was on Mar. 3 against the Georgia Bulldogs. The Commodores hosted Georgia in their last regular season game of 2024 and defeated them 72-55. Vanderbilt was led by Iyana Moore with a 28-point performance and Sacha Washington on the boards, securing 13 rebounds. Washington also checked out with 13-points to claim her seventh double-double of the 2023-24 season.
VANDERBILT (22-8, 9-7 SEC):
* Date: Thursday, Mar. 7
* Time: 8:30 p.m.
* Site: Bon Secours Wellness Arena
* Stream: SECN<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/aa99fa69-d0b5-405e-865b-0ae189f72302#bucketId=3>
* Radio: ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM / 850 AM<https://floridagators.com/watch/?Live=5284>
* Stats: StatBroadcast<https://www.statbroadcast.com/events/central.php?gid=sec>
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