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The Florida women’s basketball team finished 11th in the SEC last season, losing five of its last six regular-season games and the only WNIT matchup. You wouldn’t have known that Monday night.
Opening the 2024-25 season in the O’Connell Center, the Gators leveled FAU 82-54, setting a precedent for a possible change in the program’s trajectory.
An Offensive Flury
Last season, the Florida women’s basketball program wasn’t a scoring machine. Averaging 74.7 points per game while allowing 71.3, the Gators found themselves in a plethora of close games. That wasn’t the case at the beginning of this season.
Florida was efficient, scoring 82 points on 37.5% from 3 and 42.4% from the field. The Gators’ lineup featured four double-digit scorers: senior guard Jeriah Warren (21 points), senior center Ra Shaya Kyle (17), freshman guard Liv McGill (14) and senior guard Kenza Salgues (11).
McGill from downhill
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— Gators Women’s Basketball (@GatorsWBK) November 5, 2024
Entering the contest, Warren had scored five points in four games throughout her three-year career. She eclipsed that total with her 21 points, looking like a candidate to step into the void created by Aliyah Matharu’s untimely transfer. Warren credits her jump in offensive productivity to offseason training and a different mindset.
“Just be more aggressive on offense,” junior forward Jeriah Warren said was her focus.
The freshman starter, McGill, also provided hope for Florida fans as she looked composed in her first game. The Minnesota native finished with six assists and zero turnovers.
The Adjustments
Florida quickly jumped on FAU, taking a 26-15 lead. That’s something the Gators couldn’t do last year, when Florida often got out of the gate slowly.
rejected by @jeriahhhh ➡️ @SalguesKenza 3️⃣
https://t.co/8lgUhMHsZa #GoGators#GoGators pic.twitter.com/2QtG9dIBoH
— Gators Women’s Basketball (@GatorsWBK) November 5, 2024
The Gators believe they’re more equipped to start fast this season, leaning on their post players early in games. That was evident in Kyle’s nine first-quarter points. Florida coach Kelly Rae Finley explained Florida focused on getting the ball to their players in the paint throughout fall practices.
“I’ve been really impressed with our guards… learning how to feed the post,” Finely said.
FAU finished the game with 15 turnovers, while the Gators only had eight— something Finely credited to working on communication throughout the offseason.
“The composure in different positions,” Finely said. “Our communication… that’s huge for us.”
Florida looked like a different team against FAU than the one that occupied the O’ Dome last season, a testament to the adjustments of Finely and her staff.
What’s Next
Finely entered the postgame news conference still energized.
“Welcome back to the O’ Dome for the basketball season,” Finley opened her news conference. “Who’s happy to be here?”
The Gators will host Florida A&M at 5 p.m. Thursday. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network+ and have radio coverage on ESPN 98.1-FM/850-AM WRUF.
