Gators Welcome Florida Atlantic in Game No. 1 of 2024-25 Season
Florida's excitement to start a new campaign was contagious on Wednesday evening during an exhibition matchup against Flagler College. Now it's the real deal with game one of the 2024-25 season set for Monday at 7 p.m. versus Florida Atlantic.
Photo By: Bryce Mitchell
Sunday, November 3, 2024

Gators Welcome Florida Atlantic in Game No. 1 of 2024-25 Season

Meg Christenson
Head coach Kelly Rae Finley and the Gators will take the hardwood Monday evening in the first official contest of 2024-25. Florida's talented squad features seven returners and five newcomers.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. —The Gators will host Florida Atlantic Monday evening to initiate the 2024-25 season. The instate matchup will be played inside the Exactech Arena with tipoff set for 7 p.m.

Florida will take on the Owls in game one of this year's campaign that includes a roster of seven returners and five newcomers. Although it's the first game of the new season, the Gators got a rep in last week with an exhibition matchup against Flagler College. Florida defeated the Saints 85-46 with veteran's Ra Shaya Kyle and Jeriah Warren both securing double-doubles.

FLORIDA ATLANTIC (0-0, 0-0 AAC):

BY THE 2023-24 NUMBERS:
Florida 2023-24 statistics Florida Atlantic
74.7 PPG 61.0
71.3 OPP PPG 65.6
+ 3.3 SCORING MARGIN -4.6
43.0 FG % 39.7
41.0 OPP FG% 39.9
32.3 3 FG% 33.1
71.7 FT % 63.2
36.7 REBOUNDS PG 36.4
11.9 ASSISTS PG 10.9
15.0 TURNOVERS PG 17.2
9.2 STEALS PG 6.3
3.4 BLOCKS PG 2.5

 
  














THE SERIES:
The current series between Florida and Florida Atlantic is in favor of the Gators at 7-1. Florida will look to extend the current win margin over the Owls to seven after Monday's contest.

HISTORY:
The two Florida based teams have met for a combined eight outings with the first recorded matchup dating back to 1988. The Gators and Owls last met in December of 2020, with Florida taking a 12-point victory (88-76) at home. Before that, Florida won three other matchups against Florida Atlantic spanning from 1994-1999. The Gators currently hold a four-game win streak over the Owls and have only fallen to the Boca based team once, 84-63 (Feb. 16, 1993).

PREDICTED FLORIDA STARTERS:
Florida No. Height  Position Class Hometown/Previous School
Me'Arah O'Neal 8 6-4 G/F Fr. Houston, TX
 Laila Reynolds 13 6-1 G So. PG County, MD
Jeriah Warren 20 6-0 G Sr. Lake Charles, LA
Liv McGill 23 5-9 G Fr. Minneapolis, MN
Ra Shaya Kyle 24 6-6 C Sr. Marion, Ind. / Purdue






 
 



FLORIDA'S LAST TIME OUT:
Florida's last time out was an exhibition contest against Flagler College on Oct. 30, 2024. The Gators won 85-46, garnering a 45.7 field goal percentage with 40 points in the paint and 29 second chance points. On the defensive end Florida secured 63 rebounds, snagged seven steals, and tallied seven blocks.

Individually, Florida was led by veteran players Ra Shaya Kyle with 21 points, followed by Jeriah Warren with 14. Warren also led the way defensively with 11 rebounds and three steals.

CATCH UP WITH THE GATORS:
  • Florida made a run in the 2024 SEC Tournament defeating Missouri and Vanderbilt to earn a spot in the quarterfinals
  • The Gators faced 12 NCAA tournament teams in the 2023-24 season and posted wins over four of them: (Vanderbilt, Columbia, Texas A&M, and Michigan)
  • Coach Finley signed the 10th-ranked recruiting class in the nation for 2024
  • Florida landed the highest-ranked recruit in program history for 2024, No. 7 Liv McGill
  • Florida defeated three Power Five teams on the road in 2023 non-conference play: (Purdue, Georgia Tech, and Michigan)
  • During the 2023 regular season, Florida was undefeated in neutral territory going 3-0
  • Florida recorded 12 total outings with 80+ points and won 10 (83%) of those matchups
  • The 115-37 victory over Gardner-Webb marked the Gators' second-highest-scoring game in program history (Dec. 17, 2023)
  • Florida set a program record with the largest point margin after defeating Gardner-Webb by 78 points (prev. 69)
  • The Gators made its third consecutive post-season appearance under Coach FInley with a bid to the inaugural WBIT
  • Florida was selected as the No. 3 seed in the post-season Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament
  • UF Alum Leilani Correa, was drafted by the Indiana Fever in the 2024 WNBA draft as the No. 27 overall pick
  • Liv McGill is the first player in program history to come to campus with a gold medal (earned on Jun. 23, 2024, at the FIBA U18 women's AmeriCup)
  • Assistant Coach Rhyne Howard was selected to the USA Olympic 3x3 roster for the 2024 games in Paris and won the Bronze medal
  • The Gators hired Assistant Coach Susie Gardner in the summer of 2024
    • Coach Gardner was at Florida from 2007-2010 under Amanda Butler
    • Gardner came from Mercer where she served as the head coach for 14 years

ABOUT THE OWLS:
  • The 2024-25 season will be Florida Atlantic's fourth campaign under head coach Jennifer Sullivan
  • The Owls are coming off an 111-29 exhibition win over Fort Lauderdale (Oct. 29)
  • Florida Atlantic returns five players from the 2023-24 roster
    •  Jada Moore, Mya Perry, Maria Myklebust, Kristina Godfrey, and Evie Van Der Woude
  • The Owls welcomed eight new players ahead of the 2024-25 season
    • Transfers: Stefanie Ingram, Ta'Ziah Jenks, and Zahira Arizmendi
    • Freshmen: Erin Rodgers, Alana Rouser, Lovisa Asbrink Hose, Sydney Mains, and Emaya Lewis
  • In the Oct. 29 exhibition, the Owls were led in scoring by Perry and Moore both putting up 17-points
  • Transfer Jenks posted a double-double in the exhibition garnering 15-points and 11 rebounds
  • The Owls closed out 2023-24 with an overall 11-19, 6-12 AAC record
  • UF's Susie Gardner defeated Florida Atlantic 70-62 last season when she was the head coach of Mercer College

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