Hot shooting Gators down Tigers in Super 16

Clemson women's basketball fell in the Super 16 round of the WNIT to Florida at Littlejohn Coliseum. (Clemson athletics photo)

by Nikki Hood - Staff Writer - Thu Mar 23 21:02:22 GMT-04:00 2023

CLEMSON – A big Gators' third quarter was too much for Clemson to overcome as the Tigers fell 73-63 in the Super 16 of the WNIT at Littlejohn Coliseum Thursday night.

Three Florida three-pointers fueled a third quarter where they outscored Clemson 22-10 to take a 58-45, a lead Clemson could never recover from.

Florida improved to 19-14, while Clemson's season ended with a 19-16 record.

This was the fifth meeting between the Tigers and Gators, with Clemson leading the series 3-2. The two teams last met in Boise, Idaho; in 1996, in a top-25 matchup, the Tigers won 52-50.

Brie Perpignan, Amari Robinson, and Eno Inyang led Clemson in scoring with 17, 13 and 10 points, respectively. Florida had four players in double digits. The Gators made 13 three-pointers, while Clemson managed just three in the game.

Kirsten Deans came out firing for Florida, hitting three of its first five three-point attempts to jump out to a quick 6-0 lead, while Clemson didn't make its first basket until Perpignan hit a fastbreak layup at the 7:56 mark to make it 6-2 Gators.

Clemson cut Florida's to 9-6 on a pair of Bradford free throws and a layup by Amari Robinson, but the Gators scored the next five opening a 14-6 advantage with 5:56 to play in the opening quarter.

After trimming the lead to 14-9, the Tigers went over two minutes without a bucket before Daish Bradford nailed a trey from the top of the key to make it a 16-12 Gator lead with 3:50 to go in the first quarter. Deans hit her fourth three of the game for Florida at the 3:41 mark, but that would be the Gators' final bucket of the quarter as the Tigers forced four turnovers during that span.

Clemson finished the first stanza with a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to just one at 19-18 at the end of the first quarter.

The teams traded baskets over the first two-plus minutes of the second quarter before Alberte Rimald hit her second three of the game to open the Gators' lead back up to four at 26-22 with 7:27 to play before halftime.

Makayla Elmore hit a three to start a 7-0 Clemson run, giving the Tigers their first lead of the game at 29-26 at the 5:53 mark of the second quarter. Correa answered with a three to end the Florida drought and tie the game at 29-29.

Neither team made much headway over the next two minutes, but Leilani Correa's second three of the quarter gave Florida a three-point lead at 36-33. Inyang hit a pair of free throws with just under two minutes to play for the final points of the half to cut the Gators' lead to 36-35 at halftime.

The Tigers were in a 43-37 hole to begin the third quarter as Florida opened the third quarter with a 7-2 in the first two-plus minutes forcing Clemson to call a timeout.

Clemson only made three field goals in the third quarter, while Florida shot 50 percent from the field, including three threes, to take a commanding 58-45 lead heading to the fourth quarter.

Freshman Ruby Whitehorn didn't score her first points of the game until the 5:16 mark in the fourth quarter, but she still finished with five points.