Florida earned their fourth-straight SEC win for the first time since the 2011 season.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – For the first time since the 2010-11 season, Florida women’s basketball has won four-straight Southeastern Conference games following a 77-52 victory over No. 23 Kentucky on Thursday evening.
A key component to Thursday’s victory came from the defensive effort of Nina Rickards, along with Kiara Smith and Zippy Broughton, on Kentucky’s (8-6, 1-3 SEC) Rhyne Howard. The Preseason SEC Player of the Year was held to just 17 points on 7-of-21 shooting and just 2-of-6 from deep.
Florida (14-5, 4-2 SEC) was led by Smith offensively behind an impressive 25-point, eight rebound and six assist performance while Alberte Rimdal chipped-in 15 points with five triples and Zippy Broughton and Jordyn Merritt each added 13 and 10 points, respectively. As a team, UF ended 30-of-58 (51.7%) from the floor and 7-of-15 (46.7%) from deep.
Defensively, the Orange & Blue held Kentucky to 18-of-66 shooting (27.3%) and 4-of-18 (22.2%) from deep. The Gators were also dominant on the glass, ending with a 48-31 advantage. Smith and Rickards led the UF effort with eight while Broughton also pulled-down seven rebounds.
Another key for the Gators, Florida outscored the Wildcats 40-16 in the paint and 25-2 in bench scoring.
Offense was difficult to come by in the early going of the game, despite a high-tempo start. Florida used smothering defense to force two early turnovers to race out to a 6-2 advantage with just over six minutes on the clock. The Gators would keep the pedal down, extending their lead to 10-4 at the first media timeout following a Rimdal pass over-the-top to Merritt for an easy layup.
After opening-up a 12-4 advantage, the Wildcats managed to respond and close the gap to four, but Rimdal, continuing to remain hot from behind the arc, knocked down her first triple of the contest to push the advantage back to seven. Both squads would exchange punches, including another Rimdal three, at the end of the quarter, resulting in a 20-16 UF lead after one.
The Gators opened the second frame with the first six points, partially thanks to a Merritt rejection of Kentucky’s Howard on the defensive end. With the Florida lead sitting at 26-16, the Wildcats would climb back to within seven, but Rimdal immediately responded with back-to-back triples, extending their lead to 32-19.
Florida’s dominant performance continued, extending their lead to 18 at it’s peak, eventually taking a 44-26 lead into halftime. The Gators shot an impressive 16-of-32 from the floor during the first half, getting a spark from Rimdal’s four triples. The Orange & Blue held UK to just 11-of-31 shooting in the first half, including 4-of-18 in the second quarter.
Continuing with the trend of the game, Rickards forced a turnover on the first possession of the second half, leading to a Smith triple on the left wing and giving Florida a 47-26 lead. Remaining relentless on both ends of the floor, UF maxed-out their lead at 29 following back-to-back triples from Rimdal and Broughton, 57-28, before entering the final quarter with a 59-37 lead following a 9-0 run by UK to end the quarter.
The two squads exchanged baskets to start the fourth, but Wyche, with a statement block, fed Smith for a layup to give UF a 65-39 lead, helping to put the final nail in the coffin before earning a 77-52. victory.
Florida will be back in action on Sunday, Jan. 23 when No. 11 LSU visits Exactech Arena for a 2 p.m. ET matchup.
Postgame Bites
– Florida snapped a two-game losing skid to the Wildcats, pulling to within 34-27 in the all-time series.
– The win on Thursday marked the second-consecutive road win in the series for UF.
– Thursday marked six-straight meetings where the Wildcats entered in the top 25.
– UF has now won four-straight SEC games for the first time since the 2010-11 season when they defeated Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, Georgia and Arkansas consecutively. Georgia was ranked 22nd.
– The 25-point win was the worst home defeat for Kentucky since UK lost to Tennessee, 65-40, on Jan. 27, 2008.
– It was the largest victory over Kentucky since an 85-48 win on Jan. 7, 2001 in Lexington.
– Thursday was also the largest win for UF since Dec. 21, 2020 when they defeated North Florida, 89-64.
– It was also the largest SEC win for the Gators since Feb. 25, 2016 when they beat LSU, 82-56.
– Alberte Rimdal matched a career-high with five-triples for the second-straight game.
– Rimdal became the first freshman to hit five threes in back-to-back games in program history.
– She is also one of three freshmen to hit five threes in multiple games, joining Jaterra Bonds and Sha Brooks.
– #GoGators –
