GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida women’s basketball improved to 4-0 on the season after holding Samford scoreless from the field for more than 12 minutes, including the entire second quarter, on their way to an 87-40 win over the Bulldogs (2-1).
Key Runs
- First Quarter
(Florida 14, Samford 7) Both teams struggled offensively early, combining to hit just 5 of 22 shots before the first media timeout.
Laila Reynolds scored all three of Florida’s baskets during that stretch, giving the Gators an 8-5 edge. Florida added four straight points after the break and closed the quarter strong, marking the fourth time this season they’ve held an opponent under 10 points in a period. Reynolds and Nyadieng Yiech each finished with six points in the frame.
- Second Quarter
(Florida 41, Samford 8) Florida opened the quarter with 17 unanswered points to seize control. Samford’s only scoring came from a Briana Rivera free throw with 2:20 left before halftime, as the Bulldogs went 0-for-10 from the field and committed seven turnovers. Florida shot 11-of-18 in the quarter, led by Liv McGill, who scored 12 after being held scoreless in the first.
- Third Quarter
(Florida 67, Samford 28) Rivera ended Samford’s drought with a corner three-pointer just over a minute into the period. Florida’s lead grew to as many as 42 points, with Me'Arah O'Neal scoring 10 on 4-of-5 shooting, including two makes from beyond the arc.
- Fourth Quarter
(Florida 87, Samford 40) Samford trimmed the margin to 34 early in the quarter, but Florida responded with a 12-1 run to push the lead back to 45. Yiech capped her career night with six points in the final frame, hitting all three of her attempts to finish with 18.
Key Stats
- Florida held Samford without a field goal for 12 minutes and 46 seconds (from 1:39 left in the first quarter until 1:07 into the third).
- Shooting: Florida 54.8% (34-62), Samford 25.0% (13-52).
- Rebounding: Florida 42, Samford 28.
- Turnovers: Florida forced 18, converting them into 27 points; Samford scored eight off nine Florida miscues.
- Points in the paint: Florida 46, Samford 14.
- Second-chance points: Florida 20, Samford 6.
- Florida committed just nine turnovers, their fewest since recording seven against Florida State on Dec. 12, 2021.
Post Game Press Conference: Head Coach Kelly Rae Finley, Nyadieng Yiech and Liv McGill
From the Gators’ Mouths
- Liv McGill on bringing energy to the team: — "I live for the excitement, as you all know. When I have a lot of energy, my team feeds off of it. So most of the time I know when we're feeling down or need a little oomph or a little push, even if I don't score something or somebody else scores I'm going to get hype, I'm going to bring the energy because Gators Women's Basketball feeds off of that."
- Coach Kelly Rae Finley on the team’s overall performance: — "I thought that was a good defensive outing for us. I thought we played with great pace throughout the course of the game. We were able to execute a lot of things that we've been working on in practice from an offensive standpoint. Not our greatest second half defense, which is something we are really looking to improve on, but I would guess holding them to one point in the second quarter has got to be a program or school record. That was pretty low, you can't get too much lower than that."
- Nyadieng Yiech on her offensive success: — "Honestly, just trusted my reads and stayed in the moment. Just stayed in the offense, trusted in what my coaches said and just stayed in the moment."
- Nyadieng Yiech on guidance from Me'Arah O'Neal: — "I think she's helped me just get used to being in college and being a freshman, and she's felt a lot of the same feelings that I'm feeling right now. She's just helping me with my mental transition, my physical transition, whether that's in practice, in games or even outside of basketball."
Gator Bites
- Florida improved to 19-2 at home in November under Head Coach Kelly Rae Finley.
- The Gators opened the season with four straight wins for the first time since 2019-20. The program record for consecutive victories to start a season is nine, achieved in 2000-01, 1995-96, 1984-85, and 1983-84.
- Florida is now 3-0 all-time against Samford.
- Liv McGill reached double figures for the 37th time in her career and scored 20+ points for the 16th time (20 points).
- Florida held Samford to seven points in the first quarter and just one in the second, marking the fourth and fifth times this season the Gators have limited an opponent to fewer than 10 points in a period.
- Me'Arah O'Neal scored in double figures for the fourth consecutive game this season and the sixth time in her career (18 points).
- UAB transfer Jade Weathersby made her season debut, scoring her first Florida basket on a layup with 7:20 left in the fourth quarter.
- Nyadieng Yiech went a perfect 8-for-8 from the field, finishing with a career-high 18 points.
Next Opponent
Florida travels to Annapolis, Md. for a matchup against Navy (2-0) on Sunday, Nov. 16. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. EST at Alumni Hall.
No. 4 Duke survived a furious rally from No. 15 Florida, sealing a 67-66 victory in the ACC/SEC Challenge at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Cameron Boozer starred with 29 points, while Isaiah Evans hit the decisive 3-pointer in the final seconds.
