Four Florida players scored in double-figures, led by freshman guard Brittany Shine’s (Sacramento, Calif.) career-high 16 points, to get back on the winning track with an 86-65 victory against Harvard on Tuesday evening in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
The Gators (8-2) shot a season-best 49.2 percent from the floor, while holding Harvard to just a 39.3 (22-of-56) percent from the floor in the game. Florida’s 86 points were its most in a game since scoring 92 points against Alabama on Feb. 5, 2009, giving the Gators their biggest win of the 2010-11 season to date.
· WATCH the postgame interview with Coach Butler, Jaterra Bonds, Jennifer George and Brittany Shine – FREE courtesy GatorVision OnLine
“We had such a great response and showed so much resilience in the face of a big, disappointing loss,” Florida head coach Amanda Butler said. “I thought we had a champion’s response yesterday in practice and certainly that carried over into our efforts tonight. We put together a really complete ball game and I thought we played very well at both ends. We certainly did not play perfectly at times, but we played very hard, with a lot of effort and for most of the ball game, with a lot of discipline. I think we saw a lot of growth in a lot of different areas and determination and things that make us a really good ball team. We just have to strive to have that same hunger, that same edge, that same feeling and that same confidence going forward.”
Shine’s 16 points came on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor and included two three-pointers in 22 minutes of action. Sophomore forward Jennifer George (Orlando, Fla.) scored a season-high 13 points and added eight rebounds, while freshman guard Kayla Lewis (Decatur, Ga.) finished with 11 points and three assists in 21 minutes of play.
Freshman guard Jaterra Bonds (Gainesville, Fla.), who made her first career start for the Gators, tallied 11 points and added two rebounds, while freshman forward Deaundra Young (Titusville, Fla.) tied for the game high in rebounds with eight, while also adding six points.
The two teams battled evenly to begin the game until a three-pointer by Shine and a basket by Young gave Florida a 16-12 advantage at the 12:01 mark of the opening period. From there, the two squads again began trading baskets until back-to-back treys by Shine and junior guard Jordan Jones (Suwanee, Ga.) extended Florida’s advantage to seven, 24-17, with 9:01 left in the half.
The Gators kept building their lead up to 11, 31-20, after a pair of free-throws by junior center Azania Stewart (Wood Green, England) at the 5:43 mark of the first period. Florida went ahead by its largest lead of the half at 16, 43-27, with 22 seconds remaining until intermission after three consecutive free throws by George.
The Gators took a 43-27 advantage into the locker room at intermission after shooting an impressive 48.4 (15-of-31) percent from the floor in the opening period. Harvard shot 47.6 (10-of-21) percent from the floor and Florida held a 19-15 rebounding advantage in the first half.
The Gators quickly opened the second half with back-to-back baskets by junior forward Ndidi Madu (Antioch, Tenn.) and Bonds to jump to a 20-point lead at 47-27. Florida kept building and went ahead by 21, 52-31, with 16:27 remaining in the game on a Bartley basket. The Crimson clawed back to cut within 15 points at 54-39 on a three-point play by Brogan Berry, but that would be as close as they would come. Florida led by as many as 33 points, 78-45, with 7:40 left in the game after a pair of Bartley free throws.
Harvard (4-3) was led by Berry’s 15 points as one of four players in double-figure scoring.
