University of Florida All-American Vanessa Hayden clearly was the focus of the Gator's offense and LSU's defense, but UF's 6-foot-4 center couldn't carry the Gators to the upset, as the 14th-ranked Lady Tigers edged the visiting Gators 74-59.
Hayden ended the game with 14 points and 10 rebounds to post her fifth consecutive double-double and her 11th of the season. Hayden was triple-teamed throughout the game and her performance was just as, if not more, impressive than that of LSU's Seimone Augustus, who scored a career-high 28 points with 13 rebounds.
LSU (14-2, 2-0 SEC) used a 12-0 run over a three-plus minute span midway through the second half that turned a 35-33 Florida lead into a 45-35 Lady Tiger advantage, as the teams traded baskets for virtually every other minute of the game, as the Gators (11-5, 1-2 SEC) fell at the Maravich Assembly Center.
"That (LSU 12-0 run) was the difference because Vanessa (Hayden) also picked up her fourth personal foul during that time and we allowed several offensive rebounds," UF head coach Carolyn Peck said. "We had a chance to win this one, we just let it slip away. We just have to take care of the basketball and we have to box out. Things started to snowball when we didn't do that and we were never able to recover."
Florida showed significant strides and improvements from last year, when LSU ripped the Gators 94-54 in Gainesville.
The Gators next play on Sunday, January 18, when the team travels to Athens, Ga., to face No. 11/9 Georgia in Stegeman Coliseum.
Seimone Augustus hit the first bucket of the second half to give LSU a 33-30 lead, but Tishona Gregory quickly answered for UF with a 3-pointer from the left side to tie the game. Vanessa Hayden then followed with an offensive put-back at the 17:41 mark that gave the Gators a 35-33 lead, their first of the game. But Hayden picked up her third foul with 17:26 left in the game and UF holding a 35-34 lead. Hayden went to the bench and the Gators committed a turnover on their next possession.
The teams traded turnovers before Augustus hit a 4-footer to give LSU a 36-35 lead. The Gators again turned the ball over two more times and missed on their next offensive series, as the Lady Tigers exploded on a 12-0 run that ballooned their lead to 45-35, with 13:40 remaining in the game. Hayden was forced to return to the floor and immediately scored for the Gators to stop the run, but she was whistled for her fourth foul on the next LSU series and had to return to the bench with 13:13 left in the contest.
The teams traded baskets before LSU continued its hot shooting and tallied two quick buckets to extend its lead to 51-39. But Tamia Willaims nailed a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to single digits with just under 11 minutes remaining in the game. Augustus canned two free throws, before Williams hit another jumper from just inside the arc. However, Augustus nailed a deep 3-pointer from the left side to give the Lady Tigers a 56-44 advantage with 7:15 to go.
Both squad exchanged buckets over the next five-plus minutes and UF was unable to make up any ground on the deficit, as LSU continued to milk the clock and not attempt a shot until there were single digits on the shot clock.
The teams exchanged baskets for the first five minutes of the game before LSU's Seimone Augustus hit a short jumper to begin a 8-0 run that gave the Lady Tigers a quick 15-6 lead that forced UF to call a timeout. The Gators responded by connecting on a pair of three-pointers, one from Danielle Santos and the other from Bernice Mosby that cut the deficit to three points, 15-12, with 11:51 left in the first half. Augustus countered at the other end of the floor by converting a three-point play, but Vanessa Hayden answered by hitting a tough bucket, fighting through a triple-team and drawing a foul. Hayden didn't make the free throw, but helped stopped LSU on its next offensive possession and then drew another shooting foul and converted both attempts from the charity stripe to draw UF within two, 18-16, with 8:35 remaining.
The Gator defense denied LSU on its next possession, but then turned the ball over and could not even the score. The Lady Tigers scored next and Hayden answered for UF, but a similar sequence of events happened on the next two possessions and the Gators' miscues prevented them from tying the score. LSU finally made UF pay by recording back-to-back baskets and taking a 24-18 lead with 4:56 left in the opening half, but Santos hit an 8-footer to prevent the Lady Tigers from making a significant run. Scholanda Hoston then nailed a 3-pointer for LSU, but Mosby answered with a long jumper and Sarah Lowe picked Hoston's pocket at the top of the key and raced the length of the court to sink a layup that brought the deficit back to three, 27-24. Augustus scored for the Lady Tigers, but again UF responded as Lowe converted on a give-and-go from Dalila Eshe. Augustus then converted a pair of free throws with 1:42 left in the half, but Mosby responded with another bucket and Brittany Davis sank two from the charity stripe with 26 seconds remaining, as the Gators trailed just 31-30 entering the locker room at halftime.
The one-point deficit was favorable for UF, which shot just 33.3 percent (11-33) from the floor and committed nine turnovers that LSU turned into 15 points. Additionally, Tashia Morehead, UF's third leading scorer, saw just six minutes of action due to foul trouble. Hayden, who played 11 minutes before picking up two fouls, managed to score six points despite being triple-teamed and being the primary focus of LSU's defensive plan.
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