December 21, 1998
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) - The Florida Gators got exactly what they expected from Purdue's Stephanie White-McCarty.
And maybe even a little more.
White-McCarty set a school record by making seven of eight 3-points tries while scoring a career-high 33 points as third-ranked Purdue beat No. 20 Florida 84-76 Monday night.
White-McCarty was 11-for-17 overall as the Boilermakers (8-1) ended the Gators' 21-game home winning streak.
"White-McCarty was as good in person as she was on tape," said Florida coach Carol Ross. "She's consistently one of the best guards in the country. She's been shooting like that for four years ... The reason she's so good shooting the ball is because she can also penetrate to the basket."
Ukari Figgs added 21 points, including 11-of-12 from the free-throw line, giving Purdue's backcourt a combined 54 points.
Brandi McCain had 16 points, nine rebounds and nine assists for the Gators (9-4), who fell to 9-28 under coach Carol Ross against top-10 teams.
The Gators led by as many as eight points at 33-25 with 3:31 remaining in the first half, but Purdue cut the halftime lead to 37-36 with an 11-4 run.
UF extended its lead to 45-40 early in the second half, but Tamara Stocks, who finished with 13 points, picked up her third and fourth fouls on back-to-back plays and sat out the next 11 minutes.
Though the Gators led 54-46 with Stocks on the bench, the Boilermakers used a 12-0 spurt to take a commanding lead. Tiffany Travis led UF with 21 points, but fouled out with 7:07 remaining.
"She was really hurting us in the first half. She was hitting that baseline jumper and she was hurting us on the boards," said Purdue coach Carolyn Peck. "She was definitely a factor in the game, so (her fouling out) did help."
Figgs and White-McCarty combined to hit 9-of-10 free throws in the final two minutes to thwart any attempt the Gators had at a comeback.
"In the second half, we were prepared for Figgs and White-McCarty to take over the game because that's what they've done throughout their careers," Ross said. "And certainly as seniors, they know what to do in crunch time and they've got the ability to do it."