Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The University of Florida women's basketball team will play its 2018-19 regular season finale Sunday, March 3 when it travels to Vanderbilt for a matchup with the Commodores at Memorial Gymnasium. Tipoff is slated for 3 p.m. ET as the teams square off  for the 58^th time.

The contest will air live on the SEC Network with Melissa Lee and Steffi Sorensen on the call while Kyle Crooks and Brittany Davis will handle the radio broadcast on ESPN 98.1 FM/850 AM.

Game Notes UF  | Game Notes VU

Florida returns to the court after falling to Georgia 69-57 this past Thursday night in its home finale. Funda Nakkasoglu, playing in her final game at the O'Dome, and Zada Williams both finished in double figures but the Gators were unable to overcome an early 20-8 deficit after the first quarter. The squads played to an even 49-49 tally from the second quarter on. The Gators struggled to shoot it from distance, but instead took their game inside, and did so with great efficiency, as they converted 19 of 32 two-point field goals.

Williams put together her best all-around game pouring in 21 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the floor. The Miami transfer established new career highs in both points and field goals made.

Vanderbilt enters the matchup off the heels of a momentous 76-69 win at Tennessee Thursday night. It was the Commodores' first-ever victory in Knoxville. The Commodores' win snapped an eight game slide as they have played to a 7-21 overall record which includes a 2-13 mark in SEC action. VU, which has registered five of its seven wins at home this season, is paced offensively by Boston College transfer Mariella Fasoula. The 6'5 forward leads the team in scoring at 16.5 per game and rebounding at 7.2. Florida native Chelsie Hall is tops on the team in assists, averaging 3.4. Vanderbilt shoots .433 as a team, fifth in the SEC, and dishes out 13.9 assists, third in the conference. The Commodores much like the Gators have played a challenging schedule as they rank 30th in strength of schedule entering the weekend. Vanderbilt is under the direction of third-year head coach Stephanie White. White won a National Championship as a player for Purdue in 1999 and played and coached in the WNBA before taking the reins in Nashville. 

Vanderbilt holds a 33-24 edge in terms of the all-time series which includes a 16-9 mark in contests played in Nashville. The Gators have claimed the last three matchups, winning by an average of 16.3 points and have won five of the last six overall. 

Florida's three game winning streak vs. the Commodores is its longest active streak against any SEC foe. 

In the last meeting between the programs, Florida knocked down 12 of its 30 three-point attempts in en route to an 88-71 victory in Gainesville when the teams met last February. In what was senior night at the O'Dome, the then junior Nakkasoglu was the story as she drained a career-high seven 3-pointers and finished with 25 points.

Sunday's matchup looms large in terms of conference tournament seeding as the Gators could finish either No. 13 or No. 14 depending on the result. With a win, Florida would secure the No. 13 seed and with a loss it would be assigned the No. 14 seed. Regardless Florida's next game action will occur Wednesday, March 6. 

Notables

• Nakkasoglu enters the matchup with 1,993 career points, just seven away from 2,000 (1,149 with Utah State and 844 with Florida). Her total is the second highest mark among active players in the SEC (trailing just Sophie Cunningham, 2,060) and is 19th among all active NCAA Division I players.
• Nakkasoglu has made 75 three-pointers this season, just one shy of her total from the 2017-18 campaign. Brandi McCain (2000-01) holds the single season record with 101 but the redshirt-senior is within striking distance of second place all time which is 83 held by Steffi Sorensen (2009-10) who will be calling the game Sunday for SEC Network.
• Through 28 games, Florida has drained 218 three-pointers which is the fourth-most in program history. The Gators have knocked down 200 or more three-pointers in consecutive seasons for just the second time in program history joining the 2008-09 and 2009-10 squads. UF set the program record with 249 a season ago.
• Cam Newbauer returns to the Music City, a place where he spent four seasons as the head coach of nearby Belmont. Newbauer elevated the Belmont program to new heights, posting a 79-50 record including a 50-16 mark in conference play and back-to-back NCAA Tournament berths in 2015-16 and 2016-17. BU and Vandy met just once during his tenure as the Bruins fell 65-58 at Memorial Gymnasium in their 2014-15 season opener.
• Vanderbilt's director of offensive analytics, Mickie DeMoss, spent four seasons as the head coach at Florida from 1979-83. DeMoss is a 40-year veteran and has coached at six different SEC institutions.
• Nakkasoglu and Fasoula, both transfer students and both international players, lead their respective teams in scoring and rank within the top seven of the SEC.
• Against Texas A&M, Florida tied its season best with 13 made three-pointers. After struggling to shoot it in the first half, the Gators drained 8-of-13 in the final 20 minutes of play. UF has finished with at least 10 three-pointers in six conference tilts. UF knocked down double-digit three-pointers just three times in a total of 13 non-conference contests, but in SEC play the Gators have found their stroke, leading the SEC with 8.0 treys per game.
• 2019 signee Brylee Bartram and Vanderbilt's Chelsie Hall were teammates at Seffner Christian in Tampa.
• Since joining the Gators at Ohio State (Dec. 16), Danielle Rainey has provided a spark. She has finished with 15 or more points in six league bouts and her 9.7 points per game average in league play is second on the team.
• As of Feb. 28, Florida ranks 41st nationally in Strength of Schedule and has taken on eight teams ranked in the RPI's top 50. UF has battled 17 teams that qualified for the postseason a season ago. NCAA Tournament (FSU, Mercer, Ohio State, South Carolina, Missouri, Mississippi State, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, LSU, Texas A&M), WNIT (Indiana, Bethune-Cookman, Utah, UNLV, Alabama) WBI (Northeastern). Through 28 games, six of UF's opponents are either ranked in the AP Top 25 or receiving votes. 
• UF's eight newcomers have accounted for 71% of its minutes and 60% of its scoring this season.
• Florida ranks 15th nationally in three-pointers attempted (725) while ranking 44th in three-pointers made (213).

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