With the Florida women’s basketball season tipping off in just 12 days, UF finally announced its 2020-21 schedule Friday. It will play an abridged 24-game schedule with 16 conference tilts.
The Gators’ Thanksgiving weekend match up against Florida State should be the most difficult game in a loaded out-of-conference lineup, as UF lost by 11 points at home against the 12th-ranked Seminoles last season. FSU was ranked just outside of the first AP poll this season, meaning that Florida may be in for a difficult trip up I-75.
UF will face a pair of mid-major powers, first hosting a Cincinnati team on Dec. 5 that wrapped up last season ranked 61st in the RPI rankings and is among the favorites to win the American Athletic Conference. Fifteen days later, the Gators will travel to the Buckeye State for a game against Dayton. The Flyers were squarely on the bubble last season, projected to be a 12 seed in the NCAA tournament by ESPN and finishing 42nd in the RPI rankings.
UF concludes its out-of-conference schedule with an interesting match up against North Florida, as UNF actually finished 19 places higher in the RPI rankings than Florida last season. The Ospreys will return three of their top-five scorers from last season for the teams’ Dec. 22 contest.
Fate has blessed the Gators with a relatively tame SEC schedule this season. Florida will play every team in the conference once while playing Georgia, Missouri, and Vanderbilt twice, all teams that had losing records in the SEC last year. Florida will also welcome Kentucky to the O’Connell Center this year after a surprise road victory back in February.
Gator fans will also have the opportunity to check out one of the best teams in the country, as Florida will host the sixth-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs to Gainesville on Jan. 7.
UF has announced that tickets will be available for the upcoming campaign, but it remains unclear how many fans will be allowed into the arena. For reference, attendance for UF volleyball games at Exactech Arena has been capped at 2,500 this fall.
Returning season-ticket holders will be allowed to renew their tickets on Nov. 16 at 8:30 a.m., while season-tickets will be made available to the general public the following day.
A television schedule along with tip-off times for all of Florida’s match ups have yet to be released, but the current 2020-21 schedule can be found here.
Contact Declan Walsh at dwalsh@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @dawalsh_UF.
Sophomore guard Lavender Briggs at the Gators' game versus Presbyterian last season. This year Florida will play an abridged 24-game schedule with 16 conference tilts.
