GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Women’s Basketball Team (11-2) hosts Tulsa (7-4) this Sunday afternoon in the Gators final game before breaking for the December holidays. It is the second game of a men’s-women’s doubleheader at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center, and tips at 2:45 p.m. EST.

The Gators have won 10 straight home games heading into the weekend following Wednesday’s 75-51 victory over Florida A&M. Liv McGill scored 29 points in the win, while Me’Arah O’Neal added her sixth double-double of the season with 14 points and a career-high tying 11 rebounds.

 

Through games of Thursday, Dec. 18, McGill ranks second in the nation in scoring (26.1), fifth in steals per game (4.09), and tied for 20th in assists per game (5.8). She narrowly missed out on recording her fourth 30+ point game of the season Wednesday which would have tied her with Iowa State’s Audi Crooks for the most 30+ point games among Division I women’s basketball players this season.

 

Me’Arah O’Neal is averaging 14.3 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, and is tied for ninth in the nation with six double-doubles on the year. Leila Reynolds (12.8 ppg) gives the Gators three double figure scorers on the season.

 

The Golden Hurricane began the season with wins in each of its first five games, but dropped four of their next five. Tulsa righted the ship Thursday night with a 67-43 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

 

Offensively, the Golden Hurricane are one of the better three-point shooting (.339, 82nd), and free throw shooting (.754, 53rd) teams in the nation. They are susceptible to turnovers however, as they average 20.7 miscues per game which is the 32nd highest figure in the country.

 

Preseason All-American Conference selection Mady Cartwright leads the Golden Hurricane offense averaging 16.1 points per game. She also connects on 36.4 percent of her three-point field goal attempts and 87.0 percent of her free throw attempts. Hannah Riddick is Tulsa’s other double-figure scorers (12.1 ppg), and the team’s leading rebounder at 7.4 boards per game.

 

The Gators are 1-1 all-time against the Golden Hurricane. The teams first met in the 1983-84 season with Florida picking up a 70-52 road win. Two seasons ago, the Gators and Tulsa renewed their rivalry on December 10, 2023. The Golden Hurricane evened the series with a 72-64 victory. Laila Reynolds paced the Gators with 14 points, and Florida led at the end of each of the first three quarters. Tulsa scored 18 of the final 22 points of the game, however, to secure the win.

 

Tulsa (7-4)

A FLORIDA WIN WOULD …

• Improve the Gators record to 12-2 on the year. Only seven teams in program history have won 12 of their first 14 games in a season.
• Improve Florida’s record to 10-0 at home on the year.
• Improve the Gators’ record to 34-3 at home during the months of November and December in the Kelly Rae Finley era, including 9-0 this season.
• Run the Gators’ streak of consecutive non-conference home wins to 16, which would be the sixth longest such streak in program history.
• Run the Gators’ streak of consecutive home wins to 11, which is the sixth longest such streak in program history.

TALE OF THE TAPE

Florida		Tulsa
78.3	PPG	72.5
56.4	OPP PPG	64.7
+21.9	SCORING MARGIN	+8.2
45.9	FG %	41.7
35.1	OPP FG%	38.4
26.2	3 FG%	33.9
25.8	OPP 3 FG%	31.1
4.7	3FG/G	7.6
70.1	FT %	75.4
42.5	REBOUNDS/G	39.7
35.2	OPP REBOUNDS/G	32.4
+7.3	REB MARGIN	+7.3
13.8	ASSISTS/G	14.3
15.9	TURNOVER/G	20.7
+0.86	A/TO RATIO	+0.69
11.5	STEALS/G	9.1
4.54	BLOCKS/G	4.18

 

PROJECTED FLORIDA STARTERS

 
GATOR BITES

• Through games of Thursday, Dec. 18, Florida is …

12th in the SEC this season in points per game (78.3),

11th in scoring defense (56.4),

12th in scoring margin (+21.9),

11th in field goal percentage (.459),

eighth in field goal percentage defense (.351),

16th in three-point field goal percentage (.262),

third in three-point field goal percentage defense (.258),

10th in offensive rebound percentage (.374),

13th in defensive rebound percentage (.705),

13th in assists (13.8),

seventh in steals (11.5),

10th in blocked shots (4.54),

And 10th (T) in turnover margin (+4.85).

• The Gators have held 15 straight opponents below 70 points.
• Florida is ranked 16th in the nation in free throw attempts per game (23.4)
• Florida’s NET rating, which helps determine which teams make the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship, is No. 51 through games of Thursday, Dec. 18.
• Liv McGill became the first player in Gators women’s basketball history to be named a US Basketball Writers Association National Player of the Week on Tuesday, Nov. 11. She averaged 27.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, 7.3 assists, and 5.00 steals while connecting on 40.9 percent of her three-point field goal attempts in Florida’s three wins. She also was named the SEC Player of the Week for her performance during that same stretch of games.
• Liv McGill was named the most outstanding player of the Grand Cayman Classic over Thanksgiving weekend when she averaged 27.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.00 steals and 1.00 blocked shots.
• Liv McGill has three games this season of at least 25 points, five rebounds, five assists and five steals. The other 4,500-+ players competing in women’s basketball at the Division I level have four 25-5-5-5 games … combined.

PROJECTED TULSA STARTERS

	No.	Ht.	Pos.	Class	Hometown / Previous Schools
Abby Jegede	4	5-10	G	RS Jr.	Toronto, Ontario / Villanova, Northeastern
Jade Clark	15	6-1	G	Jr.	Buda, Texas / TCU
Hannah Riddick	17	6-1	F	RS Sr.	Calgary, Alberta / Memphis
Mady Cartwright	22	5-10	G	Jr.	Greenwood, Ark. /
Dora Toman	33	6-0	G	Fr.	Budapest, Hungary /

GOLDEN HURRICANE QUICK HITS

• The Golden Hurricane were picked to finish eighth out of 13 teams in the American Conference preseason coaches’ poll.
• Tulsa is the second best three-point shooting team in the American Conference (.339).
• The Golden Hurricane have finished with a winning record in each of the last four seasons under Angie Nelp, including a 25-10 mark in the 2023-24 season.
• Tulsa ranks 33rd in the nation in free throw attempts per game (22.2)
• Tulsa is 6-0 at home this season, but 1-2 on the road, and 0-2 in neutral site games.
• Junior guard Mady Cartwright was named to the Preseason All-American Conference Second Team.
• Cartwright, the team’s leading scorer this year (16.1 ppg) has scored in double figures in nine of 11 games this season.
• Freshman Dora Toman has been named the American Conference Freshman of the Week on two occasions this year.

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