Coach Kelly Rae Finley and the Gators have returned to Gainesville and are set to matchup against Mississippi State on Sunday afternoon in hopes of securing SEC win No. 4.
Photo By: Lorenzo Vasquez
GAINESVILLE, Fla.— The Gators are back home on Sunday, Feb. 16, for a contest against the Mississippi State Bulldogs. The game is slated to tip at 2 p.m. and will be aired on SECN+.
Mississippi State comes to Gainesville after defeating Vanderbilt 85-77 in double overtime on Thursday evening. The Gators are coming off a loss to No. 4 South Carolina and both teams are searching to tally another win to their respective conference record before entering March.
Mississippi State (18-8, 5-7 SEC)
A FLORIDA WIN WOULD:
- Be UF's first home win of February
- Initiate a two-game win streak over Mississippi State
- Tally Florida's tenth home victory in the 2024-25 season
- Put Florida's SEC record at 4-8
- Make Florida's all-time SEC record 230-333
- Give Coach Finley her 24th SEC win of her career
TALE OF THE TAPE:
| Florida |
|
Mississippi State |
| 77.2 |
PPG |
76.9 |
| 71.0 |
OPP PPG |
63.1 |
| +6.2 |
SCORING MARGIN |
+13.8 |
| 46.5 |
FG % |
46.3 |
| 40.8 |
OPP FG% |
37.5 |
| 33.6 |
3 FG% |
31.8 |
| 72.1 |
FT % |
70.5 |
| 40.6 |
REBOUNDS PG |
42.0 |
| 14.6 |
ASSISTS PG |
15.8 |
| 16.8 |
TURNOVERS PG |
16.6 |
| 7.2 |
STEALS PG |
8.6 |
| 3.9 |
BLOCKS PG |
4.2 |
THE SERIES:
The all-time series between Florida and Mississippi State stands in favor of the Bulldogs at 28-27.
GATORS x BULLDOGS HISTORY:
Florida has met Mississippi State a recorded 55 times and their first contest dates back to 1978. The Gators and the Bulldogs have matched up every year with 25 games being tipped in Gainesville, 24 being played in Starkville, and six at neutral sites.
Sunday's contest will be Mississippi State's first time back in the O'Dome since Feb. 11, 2024, which marked Florida's first win over the Bulldogs in two years. The Gators' last win over Mississippi State was a 20-point victory in Starkville with UF defeating the Bulldogs 90-70 on Feb. 11, 2024.
PROJECTED FLORIDA STARTERS:
FLORIDA'S LAST TIME OUT:
UF's most recent contest was Thurs, Feb. 13, in an 101-63 road loss to No. 4 South Carolina. The Gators were led by
Liv McGill and
Ra Shaya Kyle with 15 points apiece.
Laila Reynolds chipped in with nine and UF was led by
Alexia Gassett on defense, snagging 8 of UF's 37 total rebounds.
GATOR QUICK HITS:
- McGill is the only freshman in the country with a triple-double this season
- McGill has tallied 10 games with 20+ points
- Florida is ranked No. 6 in the SEC and No. 25 in the NCAA with a 46.5 field goal percentage
- UF has four players averaging in double digits: McGill (16.3) Kyle (15.1), Jeriah Warren (12.2), and Laila Reynolds (10.7)
- McGill and Kyle are in the SEC's top 20 for scoring: McGill at No. 14 (16.3), and Kyle at No. 19 (15.0)
- Florida is No. 6 in the SEC through all games for 3-point FG percentage with 33.6
- Kyle is No. 17 in the country and No. 2 in the SEC for double-doubles with 12
- McGill is the No. 1 freshman in the NCAA for total assists (133), and average assists per game (5.3)
- Kyle is No. 5 in the SEC for rebounds per game (9.1)
- Florida is undefeated this season when their opponent is held to 69 points or less
- The Gators have secured 20+ points in 46 of 102 quarters played this season
- Kyle is No. 9 in the NCAA and No. 3 in the SEC with a field goal percentage of 61.7
- Kyle is No. 35 in the nation for total rebounds with 229
- Alexia Gassett leads Florida in total blocks with 21 on the season
- Liv McGill has hit double figures in 23 of her 25 outings at UF
PROJECTED MISSISSIPPI STATE STARTERS:
| Mississippi State |
No. |
Height |
Position |
Class |
Hometown/Previous School |
| Jerkaila Jordan |
2 |
5-10 |
G |
Gr. |
New Orleans, La./ Tulane |
| Madina Okot |
15 |
6-6 |
C |
Jr. |
Mumias, Kenya/ Zetech University |
| Denim DeShields |
00 |
5-5 |
G |
Jr. |
Atlanta, Ga./McEachern HS |
| Eniya Russell |
4 |
6-0 |
G/F |
Gr. |
Baltimore, Md./ South Carolina |
| Debreasha Powe |
21 |
6-1 |
G/F |
Jr. |
Meridian, Miss./ Meridian HS |
MISSISSIPPI STATE QUICK HITS:
- Mississippi State is No. 7 in the SEC and No. 28 in the nation for field goal percentage (46.3)
- Mississippi State is No. 5 in the SEC for defensive rebounds per game with 28.62
- Jordan leads Mississippi State in field goal percentage with 58.0
- Okot is No. 16 in the NCAA with 253 rebounds on the season
- Three Bulldogs are averaging double figures for scoring
- Jordan (16.3), Russell (12.0), and Okot (11.6)
- Okot is No. 3 in the SEC for rebounding averaging 9.7 per game
- Powe sits at No. 5 in the SEC for 3-point field percentage with 41.3
- Okot leads the SEC and is No.2 in the country in field goal percentage with 68.0
- DeShields is No. 14 in the SEC for assists with 93 on the season (3.6 per game)
- The Bulldogs are No. 17 in the nation for rebounds per game averaging 41.9
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