Azania Stewart continued her recent hot scoring streak while Florida scored 42 points off 39 Ohio turnovers and shot 60 percent from the field in the second half of a 78-49 victory over the Bobcats Monday afternoon at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
Stewart, a sophomore center from Wood Green, England, scored 18 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field and the line. She also had four rebounds and three blocked shots for the Gators (6-6), who play host to Jacksonville Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. In her last four home games, Stewart is averaging 15.3 points a game.
The 39 turnovers by Ohio (3-9) were the most by a Florida opponent since Southwest Texas made 41 in a game during the 1998 season. Florida had 20 steals, including a career-high seven by senior guard Lonnika Thompson.
“I was very, very pleased with our effort in every regard,” Florida head coach Amanda Butler said. “Our effort, our intensity, the focus that we had with just two days of preparation and our attitude going into this next phase has just been tremendous. You can see that by the way we played. We had great leadership, tremendous energy and a lot of confidence that has made all the difference in the world.”
Sophomore guard Jordan Jones scored 14 points, with the help of 4-of-5 shooting from beyond the 3-point line. Jones has a 3-pointer in every game this season and 23 straight games dating back to her freshman season at South Carolina in 2006-07.
Freshman forward Jennifer George and Thompson each had nine points, while George and senior guard Steffi Sorensen each had a game-high six rebounds.
Leading 36-22 at halftime, Florida held Ohio scoreless in the first four minutes of the second half and opened up a 44-22 lead. That was part of a 16-4 run by Florida that produced a 52-26 lead with 13:13 remaining. Another 12-2 spurt produced a 64-30 lead with 8:49 remaining.
FLORIDA 78, OHIO 49
At Gainesville, O’Connell Center
OHIO (49) – Kamille Buckner 1-1 2-3 4, Thia Gholson 0-1 0-0 0, Jenny Poff 5-9 0-0 12, Ashley Fowler 2-5 0-0 5, Da’Keisha Mann 1-5 4-4 6, Danielle Woodmore 0-5 1-5 1, Symone Lyles 0-1 2-2 2, Tina Fisher 1-2 1-2 3, Carolyn Barnett 2-7 1-4 5, Jennifer Bushby 3-7 0-0 7, Maxine Ohakim 2-4 0-1 4. TOTALS 17-47 11-21 49.
Shooting: 17-47 for 36.2 percent. 3-point goals: 4-10 for 40 percent (Poff 2-4, Fowler 1-1, Bushby 1-2, Mann 0-1, Barnett 0-2). Rebounds: 32 (Bushby 4, Ohakim 4). Assists: 4. Steals: 13 (Bushby 3, Woodmore 3). Blocked shots: 3. Turnovers: 39 (Fowler 10). Total fouls (fouled out): 20 (none).
FLORIDA (78) – Sharielle Smith 3-7 0-0 7, Azania Stewart 6-7 6-7 18, Lonnika Thompson 4-5 0-0 9, Steffi Sorensen 1-4 0-1 2, Jordan Jones 5-8 0-0 14, Christal Caldwell 1-2 0-0 2, Tessah Holt 0-4 4-4 4, Ndidi Madu 3-4 0-0 6, Susan Yenser 0-3 0-0 0, Trumae Lucas 1-7 1-4 3, Jennifer Mossor 1-4 2-2 4, Jennifer George 4-5 1-4 9, Ebonie Crawford 0-0 0-0 0. TOTALS 29-60 14-22 78.
Shooting: 29-60 for 48.3 percent. 3-point goals: 6-15 for 40 percent (Jones 4-5, Smith 1-2, Thompson 1-1, Sorensen 0-2, Holt 0-2, Mossor 0-2, Yenser 0-1). Rebounds: 36 (George 6, Sorensen 6). Assists: 18 (Thompson 5, Sorensen 5, Lucas 4). Steals: 20 (Thompson 7). Blocked shots: 5 (Stewart 3). Turnovers: 26 (Madu 5). Total fouls (fouled out): 17 (none).
Halftime: Florida 36, Ohio 22.
Officials: Joe Cunningham, Roy Gulbeyan, Rashan Michel. A: 1,430. Records: Ohio 3-9, Florida 6-6.