Cooper scores 18 points and No. 15 Tennessee women rally to defeat Florida 86-78

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- — Talaysia Cooper scored 18 points, Zee Spearman had 16 points including a key three-point play, and No. 15 Tennessee rallied in the second half to defeat Florida 86-78 on Sunday.

The Lady Vols scored 21 points in the first five minutes of the third quarter, erasing a nine-point halftime deficit and going ahead 49-45. Jewel Spear had one 3-pointer and two three-point plays in the surge.

By the end of the quarter, Tennessee had scored 37 points, including 17 points following nine Florida turnovers. The Lady Vols led 65-57 heading to the final period.

A 3-pointer by Cooper gave Tennessee an 11-point lead to open the fourth, but Ra Shaya Kyle and Laila Reynolds combined for 16 points and Florida got within four points several times, the last at 82-78 with 56 seconds remaining.

Spearman then completed a three-point play with 44 seconds left and grabbed the defensive rebound after a missed 3-pointer by Florida. Tennessee’s Samara Spencer made one free throw with 13 seconds left and Florida missed a 3-pointer as time expired.

Spencer had 11 points and 11 rebounds for Tennessee (21-6, 8-6 SEC). Spear and Ruby Whitehorn scored 10 points each.

Kyle had 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Florida (14-14, 5-9). Reynolds and Liv McGill scored 17 each and Jeriah Warren finished with 11 points.

Florida led 16-12 after one quarter and the Gators' lead was 27-26 with 4 1/2 minutes left in the first half. A 10-0 run helped Florida lead 37-28 at halftime.

With two games left in the regular season, Tennessee travels to face No. 14 Kentucky on Thursday and hosts Georgia on Sunday.

Florida hosts No. 16 Oklahoma on Thursday and visits No. 2 Texas on Sunday.

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