It was an exciting week for former Gators in the NBA with many holding multiple headlines throughout.
Sunday’s 64-56 loss at the hands of Auburn raises an interesting question about the Florida Gators women’s basketball team: Who can the team turn to when its two leading scorers, Funda Nakkasoglu and Delicia Washington, aren’t at the top of their games?
No one was more disappointed in Florida’s recent loss to South Carolina than coach Mike White.
The Gators men’s basketball team finished its non-conference schedule in a respectable manner. UF squandered an opportunity to upset No. 8 Michigan State, but it took care of business against Mercer and Florida Gulf Coast before manhandling Butler on Dec. 29.
The Florida women’s basketball team needed big performances from its two leading-scorers in Funda Nakkasoglu and Delicia Washington to win on Sunday. They didn’t deliver.
The game looked as if it was going to overtime.
The Gators had finally gotten back in the game. They had blown their early 20-point lead but now had the game tied again with momentum on their side.
Guard Funda Nakkasoglu found her deep shot at the right time. She rose up without hesitation and made back-to-back threes, the ball slicing through the net and giving the Gators the lead late in the third quarter.
Teams rarely have a chance to avenge a non-conference loss in college basketball.
The expression on UF guard Jalen Hudson’s face was one no one has seen in a while.
Florida guard Danielle Rainey’s game-tying three-point attempt at the buzzer came up short as UNLV defeated the Florida women’s basketball team 56-53 for its second loss in as many nights.
Coach Cam Newbauer stressed that defense would be key before the Florida women’s basketball team’s game against Utah. Going against the 25th-best scoring offense in the nation is no simple task, and his young team had its hands full.
It was perhaps a harder-fought victory than the Gators intended. It wasn’t glamorous, and it wasn’t without some obvious shooting deficiencies. But it was a win, regardless.
The return of leading scorer Funda Nakkasoglu wasn’t enough for the Florida women’s basketball team to earn its fourth-consecutive victory.
Forward Zada Williams scored a career-high 16 points at the O’Connell Center to lead the Gators women’s basketball team to their third straight win, a 62-38 thrashing of Florida A&M.
The Gators played from behind all afternoon. They trailed for over 38 minutes of game time after jumping out to a quick 5-0 lead, but they still had a chance at the end.
Bethune-Cookman guard Angel Golden drove to the basket in the second quarter looking to end Florida’s 5-0 run. She, instead, met a sea of orange as all five UF defenders converged on her in the paint, disrupting her shot and sending her to the floor in a heap.
Just five current players were on the roster the last time the Florida women’s basketball team won two games in a row.
It isn’t always pretty.
Former guard Chris Chiozza sank a buzzer-beating, three-point floater the last time the Gators played in Madison Square Garden.
Solutions by The State News
