GREENVILLE, S.C. — The Florida Gators defeated Vanderbilt 62-59 in a fourth-quarter thriller to advance to the SEC quarterfinals. UF was led by senior guard Aliyah Matharu, who poured in a career-high 35 points on 14-for-25 shooting to go with eight rebounds.
 
In the first quarter Florida had a six-point lead at 13-7 before Vanderbilt when on a seven-point run to reclaim go in front 14-13. The Gators didn't let the Commodores score again in the first and closed out 17-14.
 
Senior guard Zippy Broughton started the second with a pull-up jumper, securing the basket and forcing a foul to get the Gators lead up to six (20-14) in the first 20 seconds of play. Vanderbilt started to chip away at Florida's lead getting the game even at 20 before Florida went on another offensive run. The Gators put up an additional 12 in the final four minutes to hold the lead at 32-22 at halftime.  
 
The Gators increased their lead to as high as 15 (40-25) in the third quarter. Matharu secured eight points in under five minutes and led the team with 10 in the period. It was a nine-point game at 49-40 going into the final 10 minutes of play.
 
Vanderbilt tested Florida in the fourth and made it a tall task for the Gators to close out in round two of the SEC post-season tournament. The Commodores cut the margin as low as one with 28 seconds on the game clock. Florida held strong on defense denying Vanderbilt in their final two possessions to close out the game 62-59.

 
IN THE FIRST:

• Faith Dut secured the first basket of the game to put Florida up 2-0 and initiate the Gators offense  
• Vanderbilt took their first lead of the game at 7-6 off a three-point jumper from Jordyn Cambridge (7:07)
• Matharu snagged 11 consecutive points for Florida in less than five minutes
• Broughton distributed two assists for the Gators
• Florida forced seven turnovers on the Commodores and converted for nine points
• The Gators closed out the quarter shooting 53.3 percent (8-of-15)
• 14 of Florida's first quarter points came from the paint
• Florida snagged eight rebounds with Laila Reynolds and Matharu leading on the boards with two apiece

IN THE SECOND:

• The Gators were led in scoring by Broughton and Matharu with five points each
• Vanderbilt reclaimed the lead off a fast break with 6:30 on the clock (22-20)
• Florida secured another eight rebounds to bring their half total to 16
• Eriny Kindred and Leilani Correa both distributed an assist for Florida
• The Gators forced seven turnovers on the Commodores  
• Florida recorded eight points in the paint, and eight off Vanderbilt turnovers
• Matharu concluded the first half with 16-points going seven of nine from the field

 
IN THE THIRD:

• Matharu went on another offensive run, securing eight points in four minutes and 27 seconds
• The Gators led over the Commodores for the entirety of the third quarter
• Florida finished out the quarter with eight points in the paint and four from opponent turnovers
• Florida totaled nine rebounds, their best of the game
• Jeriah Warren snagged two steals for the Gators
• The Gators forced four turnovers on Vanderbilt and were only held to three
• The score was 49-40 at the end of the third

IN THE FOURTH:

• The Gators held the lead for the entirety of the fourth quarter
• Matharu added an additional nine points to her running total of 35
• Dut led on the boards with three of the Gators' seven rebounds
• Eight of Florida's points were inside the paint
• The Gators forced an additional four turnovers on the Commodores
• Florida was shooting 45.5 percent from the field to close out the game
• The fourth quarter was Florida's lowest scoring period of the game, only notching 13-points

 
WORTH NOTING:

• Matharu secured her career high in scoring with 35 points
• Matharu now holds the highest amount of single-game points on the 2023-24 roster
• The Gators held the sixth ranked scorer in the SEC, Iyana Moore, to only eight points in the first half of play
• Vanderbilt was held scoreless in the final 6:30 of the first half
• Florida held the lead for a total of 35 minutes
  • Vanderbilt was only ahead for a total of three minutes and 20 seconds
• Florida outscored the Commodores with 38 points in the paint compared to their 36, and 2 -points from turnovers compared to Vanderbilt's 20
• Florida forced a total of 22 turnovers on Vanderbilt
• The Gators tallied their fifth SEC Tournament win over Vanderbilt in program history
• This marks only Florida's third time in program history securing two consecutive wins at the SEC Tournament
  • 1995-96 (2-1)
  • 1996-97 (2-1)
• Florida now moves to an all-time record of 24-41 in SEC tournament play
• With the win over Vanderbilt, the program now has 18 victories in the state South Carolina

 
TEAM RECORDS:
Florida: 16-14 (7-11 SEC)
Vanderbilt (22-9, 9-8 SEC):
 
SERIES RECORD:
Despite Florida's victory over Vanderbilt, the all-time series still favors the Commodores at 34-29.
 
NEXT UP:
The Gators will move to the SEC post-season tournament quarterfinals and face off against Ole Miss on Friday night. The contest will tip off 25 minutes after game nine concludes.
 
Ole Miss comes into the post-season tournament with a double bye after concluding conference play ranked third. The Rebels last time out was against Arkansas on Mar. 3, defeating the Razorbacks 87-43.
 
Overall the Rebels have been led this season in scoring by Marquesha Davis. Davis is averaging 13.8 points a game and 4.8 rebounds. The only other player for Ole Miss that is averaging in double-digits is Madison Scott (12 ppg). Scott also leads the Rebels defensively with an average of 6.1 rebounds per game. As a whole, Ole Miss is shooting 41.6 percent from the field and 26 percent from the three. The Rebels hold a plus-10.4 scoring margin over their opponents and average 68.5 points per game this season.
 
OLE MISS (22-7, 12-4 SEC):

• Date: Friday, Mar. 8
• Time: 8:30 p.m.
• Site: Bon Secours Wellness Arena
• Stream: SECN
• Radio: ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM / 850 AM
• Stats: StatBroadcast

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