Brittany Shine (Sacramento, Calif.) scored a game-high 19 points and helped Florida defeat Robert Morris 70-50 in the championship game of its own Gator Holiday Classic on Tuesday in the O’Connell Center.
Shine was voted the tournament’s Most Valuable Performer after totaling 47 points and 10 assists during the two games and leading Florida to its 10th consecutive non-conference home win. Shine, who is the third freshman in the Gator Classic’s 20-year history to earn the tournament’s top individual honor, also hit 6-of-14 three-pointers.
Freshman Jaterra Bonds (Gainesville, Fla.) earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team, as she produced 26 points and 12 assists in the two-game event, including 13 points in Tuesday’s title game. Bonds just missed a double-double in the first round when she dished nine assists.
“They are doing what we brought them here to do,” UF head coach Amanda Butler said of the Gator rookies. “We put them on the floor and put them in very important positions early on to win ballgames and be in position to win ballgames and combined with a solid group of returners to complement where we were weak and make us stronger in some areas where we were already strong. Of course I’m proud of them. Top to bottom in these last two games, the freshmen gave us a lot of energy, a lot of spark. There’s a great chemistry and a great blend there that can’t be overlooked.”
Had Shine and Bonds not produced the kind of impressive numbers they did, several other Gators made a case for a spot on the All-Tournament team.
Junior newcomer Lanita Bartley (Jacksonville, Fla.) scored 13 points with a team-high seven rebounds and four assists against Robert Morris, while sophomore Jennifer George (Orlando, Fla.) collected six boards and blocked a shot, one night after swatting nine shots in the victory against Alabama State.
Florida (10-3) led Tuesday’s game wire-to-wire, as the Gators raced out to a 6-1 lead less than two minutes into the game thanks to field goals by junior Ndidi Madu (Antioch, Tenn.), junior Azania Stewart (Wood Green, England) and Shine.
Robert Morris traded scores with Florida for the next two minutes, as Madu added another bucket and Bartley added her name to the score sheet.
With the Gators holding a 10-7 advantage, Madu converted an inside jumper and Stewart sank and started a 9-2 run, as George put back an offensive rebound before Bonds and Shine combine for three free throws to give UF a 19-9 cushion.
The Colonials clawed back with the next five points, but Florida responded with a 12-3 run, as Shine scored seven, Bonds two, freshman Deaundra Young (Titusville, Fla.) two and red-shirt freshman Lily Svete (Granger, Ind.) one point during the spree that extended the Gator lead to 14 points, 31-17, with 5:30 left in the half.
The teams traded buckets for the rest of the way and RMU whittled the margin to nine with 34 seconds remaining, but Bonds nailed a jumper with 11 ticks on the clock and Florida entered intermission with an 11-point lead.
Kristine Silaraja, who represented Robert Morris on the All-Tournament Team, scored the first points of the second half and cut the Gator’s lead to single-digits. Madu answered with a six-foot floater and Bartley put back on offensive rebound for UF which was building momentum. Silaraja struck back with a three-pointer and had the Colonials back within 10 points at 43-33 with less than 17 minutes remaining.
Florida then staged a deciding 17-4 run that spanned the next seven-plus minutes to take a 60-37 lead with 7:46 remaining and never looked back en route to its second straight decisive victory and post the 599th win in the 37-year history of the program.
UF shot 45.8 percent (27-of-59) from the field in the game, marking the fourth consecutive game and the fifth time in the last six contests that the Gators have shot better than 40 percent from the field.
The Gators won the rebound battle 39-33 on Tuesday and have won the battle of the boards in 12 of the team’s 13 contests this season.
“I thought we did a great job. For us to be able to mentally adjust to the way we are playing folks, and we even adjusted at halftime the way we were playing, in particular Yohanna Morton,” Butler said. “We really wanted to pressure her and, any time a point guard of her caliber can be forced into 11 turnovers, that’s significant. Our changes that we made from day one of the tournament to day two and even at halftime, I think it’s an indication that we are getting better and maturing a little bit and that we are wanting to be a really good team.”
Robert Morris, which fell to 4-6 and had its four-game winning streak halted, was led by Silaraja’s 16 points. Mary Duojaye added 11 points and 13 rebounds, while Yohanna Morton tallied 12 points, but committed 11 of RMU’s 20 turnovers.
Florida has won its home tournament 16 times in the 20 years of its existence.
