ORONO, Maine – Azania Stewart, Kayla Lewis and Jordan Jones each scored 10 points and the Florida women’s basketball team overcame a poor shooting night to defeat South Alabama, 61-51, in the first round of the Dead River Company Classic hosted by the University of Maine at Alfond Arena.
The Gators (4-1) used a 20-4 run during a six-minute span midway through the second half to blow open a tight game and then held on as the Jaguars (2-3) made a late rally. All five of Florida’s games this season have been decided by 10 points or less.
“Tonight was definitely the battle we fully expected. Although we expected it, we didn’t play like we did in the first half. We played really soft,” Florida coach Amanda Butler said. “I was proud of the way we responded in the second half. The way we came out of the locker room and played in those first three minutes set the tone for the rest of the game.”
Florida tied a season-low 33.3-percent shooting effort, hitting just 26-of-78 from the floor, including 2-of-11 3-pointers and sank only 7-of-16 free throws, but dominated the boards, with a 57-42 advantage that the Gators turned into 20 points thanks to 29 offensive rebounds. Florida did hit 40 percent during the deciding second half.
“Rebounding is one of the areas that helped sustain us in this game,” Butler said. “South Alabama is a very good rebounding team and to pull down 57 total rebounds against them showed great effort and desire on our part.”
Stewart , who hit 5-of-8 from the field while charting three blocked shots, corralled 10 rebounds to net her second consecutive double-double and third of the year, while point guard Lanita Bartley also grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds.
In addition to her third double-figure scoring effort of the year, Jones dished a team-best four assists and hit 5-of-6 free throws in the final 32 seconds to secure the victory. She also hit one 3-pointer, extending her streak to eight consecutive games dating back to last season of sinking at least one from long range.
Ndidi Madu provided a huge spark off the bench with eight points and nine rebounds, as did the play of senior Ebonie Crawford and Lily Svete. The Gator bench accounted for 25 points.
“The play of Ndidi Madu was significant because she brought great energy to the floor,” Butler said. “Ebonie’s charge in the first half was amazing. She hasn’t taken one since she suffered a concussion in practice three weeks ago. That was a huge, gutsy play and made us confident in the first half because we didn’t have a lot to be confident about in those first 20 minutes.
“Lily had a huge play for us in the second half when our shots weren’t falling and really got our team fired up,” Butler continued.
On a side note, the Gators awoke Friday morning to snow-covered roads and a steady falling of snow, the first ever sighting of it by Jaterra Bonds, Deana Allen and Deaundra Young.
Florida plays Navy at 2 p.m. Saturday. The Mids defeated Maine, 65-43, in their first-round game. The consolation game between South Alabama and Maine will be played at noon.
FLORIDA 61, SOUTH ALABAMA 51
Game 5 / First round, Dead River Company Classic / Friday, Nov. 26, 2010 / Hosted by University of Maine / Orono, Maine
SOUTH ALABAMA (51): Christian Shelter 4-10 0-0 9, Cylenthia Kennon 0-5 2-2 2, Sarda Peterson 1-7 0-0 3, Siedah Banks 3-10 2-2 8, Brittney Rutledge 4-11 0-0 10, Lauren Walker 1-2 2-2 5, Vannessa Simmons 0-2 0-0 0, Ronneka Robertson 0-0 0-0 0, Mary Nixon 2-4 2-2 6, Taylor Ammons 2-3 2-2 6, Veronica Cherizol 0-0 0-0 0, Mansa El 1-6 0-0 2. Totals: 18-60 10-10 51.
Field-goal shooting: 18 of 60 for 30.0 percent. 3-point shooting: 5 of 19 (Rutledge 2-6, Shelter 1-2, Walker 1-2, Peterson 1-3, El 0-2, Banks 0-4) for 26.3 percent. Free-throw shooting: 10 of 10 for 100.0 percent. Rebounds: 42 (Ammons 9, Shelter 5, Kennon 5, Banks 5). Assists: 9 (Banks 5). Blocked shots: 3 (Rutledge 2). Steals: 1 (Kennon 1). Turnovers: 17 (Banks 4). Total fouls (fouled out): 16 (none). Technicals: none.
FLORIDA (61): Jennifer George 0-6 0-0 0, Azania Stewart 5-8 0-1 10, Lanita Bartley 3-8 0-3 6, Kayla Lewis 4-12 2-2 10, Jordan Jones 2-6 5-6 10, Ndidi Madu 4-11 0-0 8, Jaterra Bonds 3-8 0-1 7, Deaundra Young 2-8 0-2 4, Deana Allen 0-2 0-0 0, Brittany Shine 1-3 0-1 2, Lily Svete 1-2 0-0 2, Ebonie Crawford 1-2 0-0 2. Totals: 26-76 7-16 61.
Field-goal shooting: 26 of 76 for 34.2 percent. 3-point shooting: 2 of 11 (Jones 1-3, Bonds 1-4, Shine 0-1, Lewis 0-3) for 18.2 percent. Free-throw shooting: 7 of 16 for 43.8 percent. Rebounds: 57 (Stewart 10, Bartley 10, Madu 9, Young 7). Assists: 18 (Jones 4, Bonds 3, Allen 3). Blocked shots: 6 (Stewart 3, Lewis 2). Steals: 3 (George 2). Turnovers: 12 (Stewart 3). Total fouls (fouled out): 15 (none). Technicals: none.
Halftime: Florida 24, South Alabama 23. Points in the paint: South Alabama 22, Florida 36. Points off turnovers: South Alabama 6, Florida 17. Second-chance points: South Alabama 9, Florida 20. Fast-break points: South Florida 4, Florida 10. Bench points: South Alabama 19, Florida 25. Score tied: 4 times. Lead changed: 7 times. Largest lead: South Alabama 6 at 13:03 of first half; Florida 15 at 6:14 of the second half.
Officials: John Riordan, Rita E. Roach, Maggie Tieman. Attendance: 1,554. Records: South Alabama 2-3, Florida 4-1. Other game: Navy 65, Maine 43. Next games: Florida vs. Navy, Saturday, Nov.27 championship at 2 p.m.; South Alabama beat Maine, 66-55, in Saturday’s consolation game.
Florida 54, North Florida 51: Jennifer George and Azania Stewart each had a double-double and Florida rallied from a late deficit to beat North Florida Tuesday in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
The Gators (3-1) found themselves trailing 47-42 with 6:32 remaining after the Ospreys (1-3) had scored five consecutive points after tying the game at 42-all.
Junior Jordan halted the run with a 3-pointer and freshman Kayla Lewis stepped up with one of her own that sparked a three-minute, eight-point swing, capped by a bucket from Stewart and the Gators took a 50-47 lead, of which they never relinquished.
All four of Florida’s games have been decided by 10 points or less, with three decided by six points or fewer, including Tuesday’s outing that featured five tied scores and eight lead changes.
George had 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Stewart scored 12 points and pulled down 13 rebounds.
FLORIDA 54, NORTH FLORIDA 51
Game 4 / Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2010 / Stephen C. O’Connell Center / Gainesville, Fla.
NORTH FLORIDA (51): Jadhken Kerr 2-7 2-2 8, Larkira Jones 2-10 1-4 5, Juliemay Syquio 5-11 1-1 11, Brittany Kirkland 4-16 6-6 15, Margaret Bell 0-0 0-0 0, Kim Baker 2-5 2-2 6, Wykieria Brown 0-0 0-0 0, Megan Peterson 1-5 0-0 3, Chandler Merkerson 0-2 0-0 0, Raneisha Lamar 1-1 1-3 3. Totals: 17-57 13-18 51.
Field-goal shooting: 17 of 57 for 29.8 percent. 3-point shooting: 4 of 14 (Kerr 2-7, Peterson 1-2, Kirkland 1-4, Syquio 0-1) for 28.6 percent. Free-throw shooting: 13 of 18 for 72.2 percent. Rebounds: 38 (Jones 13, Merkerson 7). Assists: 7 (Kirkland 4). Blocked shots: 2 (Jones 2). Steals: 10 (Kirkland 3). Turnovers: 18 (Syquio 4, Kirkland 4). Total fouls (fouled out): 12 (none). Technicals: none.
FLORIDA (55): Jennifer George 5-7 3-4 13, Azania Stewart 6-9 0-2 12, Lanita Bartley 0-5 6-9 6, Kayla Lewis 2-9 0-0 6, Jordan Jones 3-13 0-0 9, Deana Allen 1-6 0-0 2, Ndidi Madu 2-4 0-0 4, Brittany Shine 0-4 0-0 0, Deaundra Young 1-2 0-0 2, Lily Svete 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 20-60 9-15 54.
Field-goal shooting: 20 of 60 for 33.3 percent. 3-point shooting: 5 of 19 (Jones 3-11, Lewis 2-4, Svete 0-1, Allen 0-1, Shine 0-2) for 26.3 percent. Free-throw shooting: 9 of 15 for 60 percent. Rebounds: Stewart 13, George 10, Bartley 7. Assists: 10 (George 4, Bartley 3). Blocked shots: 7 (George 4, Lewis 3). Steals: 9 (George 2, Bartley 2, Lewis 2, Jones 2). Turnovers: 20 (Stewart 5, Allen 4). Total fouls (fouled out): 16 (none). Technicals: none.
Halftime: North Florida 25, Florida 20. Points in the paint: North Florida 16, Florida 28. Points off turnovers: North Florida 16, Florida 20. Second-chance points: North Florida 11, Florida 15. Fast-break points: North Florida 4, Florida 2. Bench points: North Florida 12, Florida 8. Score tied: 5 times. Lead changed: 8 times (last at 4:04 second half following 3-pointer by Lewis gave Florida a 48-47 lead). Largest lead: North Florida by 9 (16-7 after 3-pointer by Kerr) at 10:10 of first half; Florida by 5 (32-27 after layup by Madu) at 16:00 of second half. Officials: Bob Trammel, Ed Sidlasky, Billy Smith. Attendance: 1,213. Records: North Florida 1-3, Florida 3-1. Next: Friday vs. South Alabama at 4 p.m. in the Dead River Company Classic at the University of Maine, Orono.