Florida basketball fell to the nearly undefeated Vanderbilt in Nashville, Sunday afternoon. Leilani Correa recorded her second consecutive 20+ point game to lead the Gators on offense with 22.
NASHVILLE, TN. – On Sunday afternoon, the Florida Gators were edged by Vanderbilt 63-57 in their second SEC contest of the year. The road game proved to be a challenge with the Commodores having two players secure a 20+ point game.
The Gators led the way in the initial half, holding the lead over Vanderbilt for a total of 13 minutes and 22 seconds. After trailing in the first quarter, Vanderbilt increased their offensive pressure at the end of the second, tying the game at 26 a piece going into halftime.
Vanderbilt took the initial lead in the second half and led for the entirety of the third, until Matharu hit a three-point jumper to get a 41-40 lead going into the fourth quarter. The final quarter was in favor of Vanderbilt as the team secured 21 points to Florida’s 12.
IN THE FIRST:
* In the first five minutes of play, the Gators forced five turnovers on Vanderbilt
* Adding to their quarter total of nine
* Florida was led on offense by Leilani Correa with eight points
* Shooting 3-of-6 from the field, 2-of-3 from the three
* Ending the first, Florida was shooting 50 percent from the field (8-of-16)
* The Gators outrebounded the Commodores 9 to 8 in the first and were led on the boards by Ra Shaya Kyle with three
* Florida held Vanderbilt to a 25-shooting percent from the field (3-of-12)
* Correa ended the quarter with a three-point buzzer beater to give the Gators an eight-point lead (19-11) going into the second
IN THE SECOND:
* Florida was held to seven points in the second quarter with Correa securing four of the seven
* Jeriah Warren snagged three steals for the Gators, adding to their first half total of 10
* Going into half Florida had 16 bench points and 16 points in the paint
* The Gators recorded 15 rebounds in the first half and was led on the boards by Ra Shaya Kyle with five, followed by Laila Reynolds with four
* After the first 20 minutes of play, the Gators forced a total of 14 turnovers on the Commodores, converting for 13 points
IN THE THIRD:
* The Gators secured 19 points in the third, outscoring the Commodores by three
* Aliyah Matharu led Florida in scoring with a total of 11 points in the third
* Correa followed with eight to give her a total of 20 going into the fourth
* Florida secured 12 rebounds in the third quarter marking their game high
* Matharu led on the boards for the Gators securing three of the teams 12
* Both the Gators and the Commodores were even with four turnovers apiece
* Florida held the lead at 45-42 going into the final quarter of play
IN THE FOURTH:
* Eriny Kindred led the Gators in scoring for the final quarter with six points
* Aliyah Matharu grabbed eight minutes in the fourth and snagged two steals to add to her game total of three
* Florida forced an additional seven turnovers on the Commodores in the fourth
* In the final quarter, Florida had 10 points in the paint and eight bench points
* Both Faith Dut and Aliyah Matharu collected their fifth fouls of the game
WORTH NOTING:
* Florida held the second ranked in NCAA Division I for steals, Jordyn Cambridge to a season low of three steals in today’s contest
* Jeriah Warren secured her career high in steals with a total of five
* Leilani Correa matched her career high in steals with five (was originally set on 2/21/21 against Providence)
* Leilani Correa hit her second consecutive 20+ point game
* 22 (1/7 at Vanderbilt)
* 28 (1/4 vs. South Carolina)
* Florida had four players secure five rebounds to lead the Gators on the boards
* Matharu
* Reynolds
* Kyle
* Warren
* The Gators recorded a total of 38 points in the paint and 32 points from the bench
SERIES RECORD:
The all-time series between Florida and Vanderbilt now stands at 34-28, with the Commodores leading by six.
NEXT UP:
The Gators will stay on the road and head to Knoxville for a Thursday night contest against the Lady Vols. Florida’s third conference game of the season is set for a 7 p.m. tip and will be aired on SECN.
Tennessee most recently defeated Kentucky 87-69 to increase their record to 9-5, (2-0 SEC). The win against the Wildcats marked the Lady Vols fifth straight win and their second consecutive conference victory. Tennessee has five players averaging in double figures for scoring and are led overall by Rickea Jackson (21.2 ppg).
TENNESSEE (8-5, 1-0):
* Date: Thursday, Jan. 11
* Time: 7 p.m.
* Site: Food City Center
* Stream: SECN<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/46339c0c-6e1f-4c15-a19e-58624861cb0d>
* Radio: ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM / 850 AM<https://floridagators.com/watch/?Live=5274&type=Archive>
* Stats: StatBroadcast<https://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=493181&vislive=fla>
* Tickets<https://www.ticketmaster.com/tennessee-volunteers-womens-basketball-tickets/artist/848403?brand=tennessee&CAMEFROM=CFC_TBO_UTKWBB_WEB_UTSPORTS_LVHOOPS-SG>
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