After five straight road games, Florida falls to Tulsa in an afternoon battle 72-64.
TULSA, Ok. – Florida women’s basketball fell 72-64 to Tulsa Sunday afternoon, marking the Gators second road loss of the 2023-24 season.
Florida took a one-point lead at halftime and pushed that to a six-point margin in the start of the fourth. Tulsa fought back in the last ten minutes of play holding the Gators to eight points in the fourth, Florida’s lowest of the game. With four minutes left in the game, Florida and Tulsa were even at 62 apiece and Tulsa never trailed again.
Tulsa’s Delanie Crawford led all with 22 points. Florida played the Hurricanes right to the end with three players reaching double figures in scoring, including Laila Reynolds (14), Leilani Correa (12), and Aliyah Matharu (10).
IN THE FIRST:
* Florida grabbed a collective 14 rebounds and were led on the boards by Faith Dut with four
* Twelve of the Gators 17 first quarter points came from the bench
* The Gators were kept to one turnover while forcing four on the Hurricanes
IN THE SECOND:
* Florida outrebounded Tulsa 12 to 10, with Ra Shaya Kyle securing four to lead the Gators
* Going into the half Florida forced six turnovers on Tulsa, converting them to a total of eight points
* The Gators took the lead six times in the first half and were tied up with Tulsa a total of eight times
IN THE THIRD:
* Florida went 8-of-15 from the field shooting 53.3 percent, their best of the game
* Jeriah Warren dominated on the boards recording six of the Gators 12 rebounds in the third
* The Gators secured their game high of 14 points in the paint
IN THE FOURTH:
* Florida was ahead by six in the fourth, their biggest lead of the game (8:17)
* The Gators grabbed another 11 rebounds, led once more by Ra Shaya Kyle with five
* Six of the Gators eight points in the fourth were second chance points
WORTH NOTING.
* Jeriah Warren secured her season high in rebounding with a total of 12
* Laila Reynolds led the Gators in scoring for the second time in her collegiate career
* Three players hit double digits in scoring:
* Reynolds (14)
* Leilani Correa (12)
* Aliyah Matharu (10)
* The Gators totaled seven steals compared to Tulsa’s four
* Both teams finished with 24 recorded field goals
* Florida outrebounded Tulsa 49 to 45
ROAD STRETCH CLOSING OUT
Florida is currently on the backend of a seven-game road stretch dating back to Nov. 20. The Gators have two games remaining before returning to the O’Dome on Dec. 30 to play Winthrop.
SERIES RECORD
After Sunday’s win, the all-time series is tied up between Florida and Tulsa at 1-1.
NEXT UP
The Gators will get back on the road next week to finish out their seven-game road stretch in North Carolina. Florida will play at Gardner-Webb Sunday afternoon, before heading to Charlotte for the 2023 Jumpman Invitational.
Gardner-Webb (0-8, 0-0 Big South), will be coming off a Friday night matchup against Appalachian State ahead of the Gators visit. Gardner-Webb is currently led on offense by Ashley Hawkins, averaging 14.8 points per game.
Gardner-Webb
* Date: Sunday, Dec. 17
* Time: 3 p.m. ET
* Site: Paul Porter Arena
* Stream: ESPN+<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/3ed7b5f2-8109-4d29-878a-e0f5f7863188>
* Radio: ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM / 850 AM<https://www.wruf.com/listen-live/>
* Stats: StatBroadcast<https://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=490670&vislive=fla>
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