Florida head coach Kelly Rae Finley led the Gators to 21 wins and the program's first trip to the NCAA Tournament in six years during her first season. (Photo: Matt Pendleton/UAA Communications)
Hope Is High For Gators Following A Most Unexpected Season
Monday, March 21, 2022 | Women's Basketball, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — When it was over, they gathered on the plaza outside Gampel Pavilion for last-minute goodbyes with family and friends. The scene was ordinary and peaceful, far from the frenzy of March Madness.
The wait to get to the NCAA Tournament had been long for the Gators, but their stay was short and not-so-sweet. One and done. Florida was sent packing after Saturday's loss to UCF in the first round.
As the players and coaches gathered by the team buses, it was difficult not to speculate about what might have been.
What if do-everything guard Kiara Smith did not suffer that season-ending knee injury?
What if forward Jordyn Merritt had been available to help against the Knights?
What if the Gators hit their early shots and built a lead rather than fall behind?
What if Faith Dut had not left the game with an injury?
What if Zippy Broughton drained that 3-pointer in the second half that she regretted taking?
The what-if game is played without a clock or definitive answers. It's a way to soothe and theorize as we unpack the facts.
The most crucial detail about the Gators women's basketball team during the 2021-22 season is that it made people pay attention to the program again on the court. The Gators made headlines before the season but for all the wrong reasons following the exit of former coach Cam Newbauer.
When Kelly Rae Finley was named interim coach to replace Newbauer as the season approached, expectations resided near rock bottom. They had been for several years, considering Florida's last trip to the NCAA Tournament was 2016.
Zippy Broughton is expected to move to point guard next season as the Gators seek to replace standout Kiki Smith. (Photo: Matt Pendleton/UAA Communications)
And then the unexpected happened.
The Gators started to win games they usually lost. They played hard and smiled as they did it. When standout guard Lavender Briggs, the team's leading scorer a season ago, transferred in the middle of the season, the Gators didn't blink. They got better, defeating five ranked teams on the way to a return to the national rankings for the first time in more than five years.
How does that happen?
In the wake of Florida's 69-52 loss to UCF, reporters parachuting for the first time into the Gators' unlikely story peppered Finley with those questions.
"A lot of the narrative has been centered and focused around adversity,'' Finley said. "I think it's a narrative that should be centered around a group of young women and a staff, [a] group of people who are inspiring and uplifting. Because of that, we achieved far, far more than a lot of people thought. We never doubted ourselves."
Finley undoubtedly deserves a lot of the credit, pulling a group of players and coaches together when they could have easily drifted apart. Assistant coaches Julie Plank, Erika Lang-Montgomery and Julian Assibey, teamed with Finley to right the ship.
The players bought in, led by Smith.
Smith served as a coach on the floor, leading the team in scoring, rebounding and assists. She did whatever she had to do to win and make her teammates better.
"She's impacted me in so many ways,'' said guard Nina Rickards said. "You rarely find players like Kiki that embrace their position and do whatever it takes to see their teammates successful, and we're definitely going to miss her a lot."
Of all the what-ifs that lingered at the end, the most disappointing was that Smith could not play in the tournament after suffering a season-ending knee injury in the Southeastern Conference Tournament. A sixth-year graduate transfer, Smith overcame multiple knee injuries in high school to become a first-team All-SEC selection. She started her college career at ASA (N.Y.) College and originally committed to Syracuse. However, she changed her mind and signed with Florida after never visiting the campus.
Finley's voice cracked Saturday when asked about Smith's impact.
"It was easy to coach Kiki,'' Finley said. "She was a joy every single day. She never had a bad day. You don't find people like that very much anymore with a resiliency, a work ethic, belief, to do whatever it takes to uplift the people around her." Kiki Smith, hand raised, remained involved during the NCAA Tournament.
Smith's departure leaves a sizable void, but the Gators have talented pieces for Finley to build around with Rickards, Broughton and Merritt coming back.
The loss to UCF spotlighted Florida's need to develop more in the post. Knights forward Brittney Smith scored a game-high 26 and hit 11 of 15 shots. The Gators can dip into the transfer portal for potential help while young players on the roster gain more experience for the future.
Florida's season ended at 21-11, with five losses in their last six games, taking some of the shine off a 20-6 start. Still, the season was a smashing success compared to the struggles of late.
"We had to go through a lot of adversity this season from literally before we even started all the way up to this game,'' Broughton said. "We learned from those. We got better. We are about to recruit to be able to compete in the SEC."
Finley was named head coach on Feb. 28 and signed a five-year, $3.7 million contract. She enters the offseason full of optimism after entering the season full of uncertainty.
She won't forget her first team.
"This is a team that has started to leave a legacy,'' Finley said. "It's building blocks for the future of our program. I'm just very proud."
Rickards said there is more to come.
"All I have to say is that this is just the beginning," she said.
