Junior Depree Bowden (Palmetto, Fla.) scored a game and career-high 28 points, but it wasn't enough to carry Florida past No. 14/12 Vanderbilt, as the Gators lost 82-69 Sunday afternoon at Memorial Gym in front of a crowd of 8,511.
The Commodores used a 24-8 run early in the second half to erase the Gators' 33-28 halftime lead and take a 58-48 advantage midway through the second half and Florida just couldn't make up the difference, as Vanderbilt sealed the game hitting 12-of-16 from the free throw line in the final 1:39 to hand the Gators their fifth straight loss.
Florida dropped to 6-12 overall and 0-3 in Southeastern Conference play, while Vanderbilt moved to 16-2 and 3-1 in league action.
“In the first half we did a very good job defensively,” UF head coach Carolyn Peck said. “Our rotations were good and we mixed up how we were guarding the posts. One of our main concerns was not letting Christina Wirth and Caroline Williams get open on the perimeter. Depree Bowden, Sharielle Smith and Jen Mossor did a good job helping with the post players. We also did a good job keeping them off the offensive boards.
“As the game went on, it got extremely physical and that was the difference,” Peck added. “Vanderbilt went to a Villanova-motion offense and we allowed some uncontested layups.”
Bowden, who shot 10-of-16 from the floor and 6-of-6 from the free throw line, also collected a game-high 13 rebounds to record her third career double-double. Sha Brooks (Jackson, Tenn.) added 16 points with five assists, while Marshae Dotson (Columbus, Ohio) battled for 10 points and six rebounds.
“Depree did a great job on both ends of the floor,” Peck said. “Defensively, she guarded Caroline Williams, who is one of the top three-point shooters in the county, and held her 0-for-3 from there. I challenged her at halftime with her offensive rebounding and she came out and got all seven (and 10 of her 13 overall) in the second half. She stuck with our game plan and was a good leader on the floor. The future is very bright and we're glad to have her back next year.”
Christina Wirth led five Vanderbilt players in double-figure scoring with 20 points, as the Commodores shot 46.7 percent (28-60) in the game, including a 56.7 percent mark in the decisive second half when they outscored the Gators, 54-36.
Florida hit 38.7 percent from the floor, but just 31.4 percent (24-62) in the final 20 minutes.
Both teams were steady at the free throw line, where Vanderbilt hit 22-of-28 and the Gators converted 16-of-17.
Vanderbilt scored the first four points of the second half, reducing Florida's halftime lead to two points, 33-31, before Bowden scored the next four points of the game and sparked a 7-2 run, when she also capped the run with a trey, to give the Gators a 37-33 advantage with 16:39 remaining.
But the Commodores' Christina Wirth immediately answered Bowden's trey with one of her own that ignited an 11-0 run to give the hosts a 44-40 lead with just under 14 minutes left in the game. Brooks stopped the run and the teams traded scores for the next two minutes before VU got consecutive buckets that started a 9-2 march and extended the Gator deficit to 10 points, 58-48, with 9:38 remaining.
Kim Dye (Fayetteville, Tenn.) sank a deep three-pointer and Bowden drowned a pair from the charity stripe to get UF within five, 58-53, with 7:19 on the clock. But the Gators went cold from the floor for the next two minutes, when Vandy built its lead to 11, 64-53 with 5:19 remaining.
The teams again traded scores over the next two minutes until Bowden hit a running jumper and Brooks converted a three-point play to get the Gators within six points, 68-62, with just over three minutes left in the game.
Florida played solid defense on its next possession, but VU's Liz Sherwood putback an offensive rebound with the shot clock expiring. The Gators couldn't convert on their trip down the floor and the Commodores made them pay, as they collected multiple offensive boards on their next trip with Florida eventually fouling to stop the clock with 1:39 remaining.
“Offensively, we continued to attack and got good looks, we just weren't able to knock down many from the three-point line,” said Peck of the Gators, who hit 5-of-23 from long range.
UF's first five baskets were scored by five different players, as the Gators used smothering defense and unselfish passing to jump out to a 15-7 lead in the first eight-plus minutes of the game.
Depree Bowden and Marshae Dotson each had two buckets, while Sha Brooks, Kim Dye and Sharielle Smith (Bradenton, Fla.) all contributed during the game-opening stretch.
Vanderbilt chipped away using a 7-2 run to reduce UF's lead to three, 17-14, with 8:14 remaining in the opening half. Florida kept its pressure on and regrouped with a 7-2 run of its own, as Jennifer Mossor (Orlando, Fla.) hit two free throws and Bowden tallied the other five points that included a trey, lifting the Gator lead back to eight points, 24-16, with five minutes remaining in the half.
The Commodores then countered with a 10-2 run and tied the score at 26-all with 1:52 on the clock, but Florida settled and ended the half on a 7-2 spree thanks to a deep three-pointer from Brooks with two seconds remaining, as the Gators took a 33-28 halftime lead.
Florida shot an impressive 48.1 percent (13-27) from the field during the opening 20 minutes, while holding the Commodores, one of the nation's top shooting teams, to a 36.7 percent (11-30) mark.
Brooks and Bowden each tallied nine points for the Gators, who had six players score and help force 10 Vanderbilt turnovers in the opening half.
The Gators return to Gainesville where they next play host to a two-game SEC homestand, beginning on Thursday when Florida welcomes Auburn to the O'Connell Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET and the radio broadcast of the game can be heard on WRUF 850AM and on the internet thru www.GatorZone.com
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