GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Alyssia Faye and Sharita Godfrey powered the Charleston Southern women's basketball team to an early lead in the Wednesday evening contest, but a key second-quarter run by the host Gators led the University of Florida past the Buccaneers, 67-52.
 
Faye and Godfrey combined to score 19 of CSU's (1-1) first 20 points in the contest and sparked the Bucs to a 20-19 lead with 7:07 remaining in the second quarter. The Gators (2-1) took over from there behind a balanced offensive attack as Florida went on a 27-4 run spanning the remainder of the first half to pull away in the contest.
 
Faye scored a game-high 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting and recorded eight rebounds for the second consecutive game in the loss. Godfrey was 5-of-8 from the floor, including 2-of-4 from the three-point line, in chipping in 12 points. 
 
Kiara Smith paced the Gators with 15 points and six of UF's eight steals, while Nina Rickards added 12 points and seven boards in the win. The Gators held the 38-22 rebounding edge and 17-0 margin in second-chance points in their fifth win all-time over the Bucs.
 
First Quarter
Sharita Godfrey opened the scoring with a three-pointer at the 8:37 mark as the Buccaneers jumped out to the early lead. The Gators responded with an 8-0 run behind baskets from Kiara Smith (two), Floor Toonders, and Lavender Briggs to take their first lead of the contest. CSU responded with a 9-2 run to retake the lead at the 3:38 mark on Faye's layup, before a pair of late UF free throws swung the advantage back to the home team at the break.
 
Second Quarter
Janaia Fargo ended Faye and Godfrey's monopoly on CSU's points at the 9:14 mark in the second quarter with a free throw to cut the UF lead back down to 16-14. Faye knocked down her first three-pointer of the season two minutes later to tie the game up 19-19, before the Valence, France native converted the second of two free throw attempts to put the Bucs back ahead by one. Following a Tori Gittens pull-up jumper, the Gators went on a 27-4 run spanning the final 5:48 of the first half to take the 20-point lead into the half. 
 
Third Quarter
Jamya Rogers scored seven of CSU's 13 points in the third quarter as the junior attempted to help the Bucs keep pace with the Gators in the third stanza. UF led by as many as 25 points in the frame following a pair of Faith Dut free throws at the 5:56 mark, putting the Gators up 53-28. Rogers and Carmella Walker combined to score seven of the final 11 points of the quarter to put the margin back at 57-37 heading into the final quarter.
 
Fourth Quarter
Faye and Walker combined to score nine of CSU's 13 points in the fourth quarter as the Bucs outscored the Gators 13-8 over the final 10 minutes of the contest. CSU cut the lead down to 17 twice in the fourth quarter before a Godfrey layup at the 1:07 mark capped the scoring in the contest as the Bucs fell to the Gators, 67-52.
 
CSU Key Players

• Alyssia Faye – 17 points, 7-of-13 shooting, eight rebounds
• Sharita Godfrey – 12 points, 5-of-8 shooting, 2-of-4 3PT, four rebounds
• Janaia Fargo – Three points, six assists
• Carmella Walker – Nine points, 4-of-7 shooting, one steal
• Jamya Rogers – Seven points, 3-of-4 shooting, one rebound

Team Statistics of Note

• Charleston Southern shot 50.0% (22-of-44) from the floor in the contest and 30.0% (3-of-10) from the three-point line.
• Over the final three quarters of the game, the Bucs were an impressive 18-of-33 (54.5%) shooting from the floor as a team.
• 21 of CSU's 22 rebounds in the contest came on the defensive end of the floor.
• The Gators scored 23 points off 21 CSU turnovers and held the 12-2 edge on fast-break points.
• The Gators held the 38-26 edge on points in the paint and 17-0 advantage on second-chance points.
• The Bucs forced 15 Florida turnovers, but only recorded two steals in the contest (one each by Godfrey and Walker).
• Godfrey recorded the Bucs' lone block in the contest.
• CSU limited Florida to just 10-of-35 (28.6%) shooting in the second half and 39.7% (25-of-63) from the floor overall in the contest.
• The Gators were 5-of-26 (19.2%) from the three-point line as a team.

News & Notes

• Wednesday marked the second consecutive game the Bucs ran out the starting lineup of Godfrey, Faye, Walker, Sha'Mya Leigh, and Fargo.
• Faye eclipsed her career-high scoring mark with 17 points in the game, surpassing her previous high of 15 established twice in her collegiate career.
• The Bucs fell to 0-5 all-time against the Gators in the series dating back to the inaugural contest in 1987-88.
• CSU remained winless against SEC competition in program history as the Bucs fell to 0-22 all-time against the conference.
• Faye is the lone Buccaneers to score double-digits in both contests in the 2020-21 season.

Up Next
Charleston Southern remains on the road next week as the Buccaneers travel to Davidson, N.C. and Davidson University for a Wednesday afternoon matchup against the Wildcats on December 9. Tipoff inside Belk Arena is set for 4 p.m.