At the end of the first quarter, the crowd exploded in cheers as Me’Arah O’Neal hit a buzzer-beating triple that put Florida up by three. But to start the second quarter, the Gators allowed Texas to go on a quick 6-0 run that drained the momentum just as fast as it had built.
Florida (13-10, 1-7 SEC) logged another conference loss against No. 4 Texas (20-2, 5-2 SEC) 88-68 in the Exactech Arena in the Stephen O’Connell Center.
A constant theme for Florida was making a highlight play on one end, then giving it back on the other.
In the first quarter, sophomore forward O’Neal met the ball in the sky and stuffed a shot attempt, but she celebrated early, allowing Texas to rebound the ball and score an easy bucket.
Another time, sophomore guard Liv McGill got a block of her own, but while dribbling the ball up the floor, she accidentally bounced the ball off her foot, sending it out of bounds for a turnover.
This 20-point loss for Florida can be attributed to two main things: turnovers and defense. The Gators had 12 turnovers in the second half alone, finishing with 21, while Texas ended with 13. Off of these turnovers, the Longhorns scored 26 points.
Rotation problems also allowed Texas to execute easy buckets in the paint. Texas owned the lane so much its logo might as well have been painted on the court. The Longhorns scored 60 paint points, double the amount the Gators were able to put up.
“60 paint points is just far too many,” said Florida head coach Kelly Rae Finley.
Texas shot an efficient 56.1% from the field and repeatedly attacked the rim, while also winning the rebounding battle 32-28. The Longhorns had five players score at least eight points, showing the kind of balance that has made them one of the top teams in the country.
The Longhorns were led by junior forward Madison Booker, who put up 24 points, six rebounds and four assists.
Reserve freshman guard Aaliyah Crump added 14 points, including three 3-pointers, and senior center Kyla Oldacre chipped in 12 points and six boards off the bench.
Defensively, graduate guard Rori Harmon had the assignment of keeping up with sophomore guard Liv McGill, and she took that responsibility to heart.
“She was one of the hot topics in our scout when it comes to who creates for the team and gets them going,” Harmon said. “I’m always willing to always take that job guarding wherever that is.”
McGill finished with 15 points but turned the ball over nine times while facing constant pressure.
“Liv McGill is a monster and really hard to deal with,” said Texas head coach Vic Schaefer.
The offensive front was instead led by Me’Arah O’Neal and Laila Reynolds.
Whether it was due to her father, Shaquille O’Neal, being in the stands or some other reason, O’Neal had an energetic game. She finished the night with 17 points and three rebounds, but she also got into foul trouble early in the third quarter, limiting her minutes.
Meanwhile, junior guard Laila Reynolds made the last half hers. She put up 15 of her 18 points in those final 20 minutes.
“I think Florida’s really good,” Schaefer said. “Been concerned about this one. I think they’ve been in every game for the most part, especially in conference. They gotta be the best one-and-six conference team in the country.”
Despite flashes on both ends, Florida couldn’t string together enough clean possessions to keep pace with a Texas team that capitalized on nearly every mistake.
Looking ahead, the Gators take on their third consecutive top-six ranked opponent, No. 5 Vanderbilt in Nashville at 4 p.m. Sunday.
“I think Vanderbilt is a good matchup for the Gators,” Finley said. “We’re up for the challenge.”
Contact Isis Snow at isnow@alligator.org. Follow her on X @isis_snoww.
Isis is a senior sports journalism student who is in her fourth semester at The Alligator. She previously has written for the Avenue desk and has covered the Florida volleyball beat. She also has experience in live broadcast reporting with WUFT. Despite hailing from Las Vegas, Nevada, she is a life-long Michigan and Detroit Lions fan. To make up for the emotional toll of being a fan of those teams, you will often find her in the gym weight lifting and playing basketball.
