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The Florida women’s basketball team (16-7, 6-4 SEC) takes a 55-49 road loss at Arkansas (16-7, 3-7 SEC) Thursday night in SEC action as the teams split two games against each other this season.
Florida had trouble taking care of the ball all night, committing 25 turnovers and head coach Amanda Butler talked about her team’s lack of ball handling in the loss.
“A great deal of composure was lacking. You’ve got to give Arkansas the credit for the way that they played and the turnovers that they forced us into,” Butler said. “I was really really disappointed that we didn’t handle the ball better, that we didn’t value our possessions. They got out in the passing lanes and really took advantage of all those turnovers we made.”
The team also had to deal with a bit of foul trouble. The Gators committed 20 fouls as a team, and forward Ronni Williams fouled out in the game. Senior guard Jaterra Bonds and forward Kayla Lewis both had four in the game.
Butler was disappointed with her team’s accumulation of fouls but still did not see that as the team’s biggest issue.
“The fouls were a bit of an issue, but we’ve got to adjust to the way the game is being called,” Butler said. “But the fouls were not as big of a hurdle as the turnovers.”
Despite the loss, the Gators saw strong performances come from their two most consistent players this season: guard Jaterra Bonds and forward Kayla Lewis.
Bonds was a rebound shy of a double double, as she pulled down nine boards to go along with 14 points. Kayla Lewis recorded a double double for the Gators, matching Bonds with 14 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.
The Gators did not get much help from anyone else, as the team shot just 37.5 percent from the field.
Freshman guard Kelsey Brooks was big for the Razorbacks. Brooks poured in 15 points on the Gators and was huge on the defensive end of the floor, recording seven steals.
The Gators will try to turn things back around when they go for the sweep against nationally ranked Kentucky on Sunday.
For sound from the game, click below.
