GAINESVILLE, Fla. – For the fourth time this season and the sixth consecutive game overall, senior forward
Molly Coleman scored in double-figures as she led a pair of double-figure scorers for USC Upstate women's basketball on the road Monday night at Florida.
Coleman, who dropped 12 points against the Gators on 5-of-7 shooting from the floor, was joined in double-figures by freshman guard
Terah Harness who added 10 points, scoring in double-figures for the third consecutive game. Junior guard
Chellia Watson nearly joined Coleman and Harness in double-figures, adding nine points in 16 minutes of action.
Shooting 12-of-25 from the field during the first half while holding the Gators to 4-of-21 from the floor during the second quarter, Upstate and Florida were separated by two points at the half. Using a large third-quarter scoring output, Florida pulled away during the second half, winning 76-54 Monday night.
Game Information
Score: Florida 76; USC Upstate 54
Records: USC Upstate (2-2; 0-0 Big South); Florida (4-2; 0-0 SEC)
Location: Exactech Arena | Gainesville, Fla.
How It Happened
First Quarter
- Seeing the game tied at four into the first media timeout, Florida used a 9-0 run to claim a lead heading into the final two minutes of the half.
- With the Gator lead at nine, Upstate began to chip away during the final minute-and-a-half of the quarter, starting with Molly Coleman taking a nifty pass from Dakota McCaughan into the wide-open lane for an easy two.
- Chellia Watson added two points of her own via a driving layup before McCaughan fed a pass through a pair of Gator defenders for Takia Davis who earned the and-one opportunity in the quarter's final seconds to trim the Florida lead to six.
Second Quarter
- Holding Florida to 0-of-7 shooting out of the quarter break, Upstate used a 7-0 run spanning the first four minutes of the quarter to take its first lead of the game.
- McCaughan jumpstarted the run as she sent her defender scurrying down the lane to defend a drive as McCaughan hit a step-back three to trim the Gator advantage to three. Being rewarded after stepping in to take a charge earlier in the quarter, Coleman converted back-to-back layup opportunities, the second coming as McCaughan craftily snuck a no-look pass through a pair of Florida defenders for Coleman to finish at the rim.
- With Florida extending its lead back to five, Coleman scored her seventh and eighth points of the half with a layup before Jada Logan amidst four Florida defenders sucked into the paint sent the ball back behind the arc for Harness to tie the game at 26 with a dagger from the right wing.
Third Quarter
- Upping its pressure out of the halftime locker room, Florida opened the second half on a 13-0 run to stretch its lead to double figures.
- Finishing a runner at the rim, Watson ended the Gator run by starting a 10-point stretch for the Spartans that saw Upstate shoot 4-of-6 from the floor during a four-minute span during the quarter.
- During the 10-point stretch for the Spartans, Coleman found Rachael Rose on a backdoor cut for her two points in the sequence as Watson, Rose, Coleman, Harness, and Logan all scored during the stretch.
Fourth Quarter
- Looking to trim into the Gator lead late in the quarter, Upstate again turned to some good ball movement working things from inside out against a sagging Florida defense. Feeding a pass from the paint to the right wing, Davis picked up an assist as she found Harness for her second three-ball of the night.
Notable
- Pouring in 12 points Monday night, Molly Coleman has scored in double-figures in each of Upstate's four games this season. Dating back to last year, she's scored in double-figures in six consecutive games—the longest such streak of her carer.
- Adding 10 points, including six from beyond the arc, Harness has secured a double figure scoring output in each of her last three games.
- Forcing 17 Gator turnovers Monday night, Upstate has forced 17 or more opponent miscues in each of its four games this season.
- Corralling 10 offensive boards against Florida, the Spartans have grabbed 10 or more rebounds off the offensive glass in each of their past two games.
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