University of Georgia
10-7,1-3SEC
Florida
10-6,1-3SEC
Georgia Comeback Falls Short to Florida, 78-69
January 14, 2024 | Women's Basketball
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Georgia women's basketball team clawed back from a 22-point deficit to get within four points in the fourth quarter, but fell to the Florida Gators, 78-69, Sunday at Exactech Arena.
After falling behind 56-34 in the second half, Georgia outscored the Gators 26-17 in the fourth quarter to nearly pull off the comeback. The Lady Bulldogs drop to 10-7 overall and 1-3 against Southeastern Conference foes.
Asia Avinger paced Georgia with 22 points off 6-of-11 shooting and an 8-of-10 mark at the free-throw line. Taniyah Thompson scored in double figures for the second-straight game, while Javyn Nicholson added 14 points. Nicholson's double-double streak came to and end at nine games — the fourth-longest streak in program history.
Georgia shot 25 percent in the first quarter and fell behind 19-9 in the early going. The Lady Bulldogs closed the gap to just seven points thanks to a scoring spurt in the second frame, but found themselves down by as many as 18 points at 37-19.
Avinger knocked in a 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer to close the gap to 38-26. She paced Georgia with nine points in the first half, while Thompson added eight.
Nicholson scored Georgia's first eight points in the second half, but Georgia could not stop Florida on the defensive end. The Gators hit six of their first 10 shots and outscored the Lady Bulldogs 16-8 in the first five minutes of the third quarter to take a commanding 54-34 advantage with 4:41 on the clock.
The fourth quarter was all Georgia, as the Lady Bulldogs outscored the Gators, 26-17.
Next up, Georgia travels to Missouri on Thursday for an 8 p.m. ET tip.
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