Florida
LSU women win big over Florida, setting up likely top-five clash with South Carolina
The LSU women’s basketball team will be undefeated when it meets No. 2 South Carolina.
On Sunday, the 80-63 road win that the No. 5 Tigers (20-0, 5-0) picked up o over Florida assured them of that fact.
Mikaylah Williams, Flau’jae Johnson and Aneesah Morrow teamed up to build a 17-0 fourth-quarter run that propelled LSU to its lopsided win. Johnson kicked off the scoring spree by hitting an open jumper, and Morrow punctuated it by converting an easy layup. In the time between, the Tigers shot 5 of 6 from the field, while forcing Florida to miss its first six shots of the quarter.
“Listen, when you can empty (the bench) and play everybody on your team with five minutes to go in the game and you’re up 28,” coach Kim Mulkey said, “knowing what we face next, that’s a good day.”
LSU played two tight Southeastern Conference games before they traveled to Gainesville, Florida, to face the Gators (11-9, 2-4). A last-second shot lifted the Tigers to a two-point road win over No. 15 Tennessee on Jan. 9, then a late surge of offense propelled them to a six-point home victory over Vanderbilt on Monday.
On Sunday, LSU won by a more comfortable margin.
And this time, its defense keyed the win.
Florida converted just 9 of the 28 field goals it attempted across the second and third quarters, a stretch of play that LSU won 44-27. The Tigers forced the Gators into 24 turnovers, and converted them into 35 points. Overall, Florida shot just 38% from the field, becoming the second SEC team this season to hit less than 40% of its shots against LSU.
In the third quarter, the Tigers played most of their offense through Williams, the star sophomore who finished with 22 points on 8-of-18 shooting and eight rebounds. Morrow chipped in 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting and 10 rebounds, and Johnson added 19 points on 8-of-17 shooting, but the LSU bench notched only 11 points, finishing with fewer than 12 for the second game in a row.
Freshman guard Liv McGill led Florida with 21 points and six assists. Freshman Me’Arah O’Neal, the daughter of LSU great Shaquille O’Neal, grabbed seven rebounds in 15 minutes.
“One thing that we did do good, and we’ve improved today was turnovers,” Mulkey said. “We only had nine for the entire game and for a while, there it was only six, so that’s a big part of why you extended the lead like we did. You’re getting yourself a shot every time.”
LSU started the game with a quick 7-0 run. But then Florida called a timeout, started to dribble penetrate, hit shots and slow down the Tigers’ halfcourt offense with a zone defense. In the first half, LSU trailed by as many as six points and entered halftime with just a 37-33 lead.
Then the Tigers played sharper defense that was a building block that ignited their transition offense, fueled their dominant second half and added another victory atop their now 20-game win streak — already the second-best start in program history. LSU attempted 14 more field goals than Florida, while also scoring 40 points in the paint and 26 on the fast break.
Mulkey has now led her team to at least 20 wins in each of her 25 seasons as a head coach.
Meanwhile, Morrow posted her 92nd career double-double, tying her with former Oregon forward Jillian Alleyne for the second-most in NCAA Division I history. LSU’s win over Florida was the 123rd game of her career.
Next, the Tigers will hit the road to play the most-anticipated game of their regular season.
That matchup, a likely top-five showdown with No. 2 South Carolina, will tip off at 7 p.m. Thursday on ESPN.
Ohio State lost 62-59 to Penn State on Sunday, which means that LSU and No. 1 UCLA are the last two undefeated Division I teams left. The Bruins are one of only two squads that have defeated the Gamecocks over the past three seasons.
LSU is 0-4 against South Carolina under Mulkey.
“We’re gonna enjoy this victory today,” Mulkey said. “Any victory on the road in our league is an accomplishment, but we know what we face next, a tremendous challenge to play the defending champions and do it at their place.”
Plans for a new Wawa to open in Port St. Lucie were approved.
A new Wawa fuel station and convenience store will open in Port St. Lucie now that the plans have been approved.
The Wawa will be at the corner of Village Parkway and Becker Road in front of the Lowe’s which is expected to open in the summer of 2026, according to the city’s website.
The plans for a Wawa convenience store and eight fuel pumps were submitted to the city Dec. 3, 2025.
What will go in Port St. Lucie’s Southern Grove?
The plans for the Shoppes at Southern Grove show there will be a new Lowe’s store and six additional outparcels.
The six additional outparcels include the following:
- Gas station: 5,915 square feet
- Outparcel A: 1.2 acres
- Outparcel B: 1.14 acres
- Outparcel C: 1.83 acres
- Outparcel D: 1.04 acres
- Outparcel E: 1.02 acres
Olivia Franklin is TCPalm’s trending reporter. You can contact her at olivia.franklin@tcpalm.com, 317-627-8048 or follow her on X @Livvvvv_5.
SUNRISE, Fla. – Five Florida Panthers players and five staff members will represent their home countries at the upcoming 2026 IIHF World Championship, taking place May 15 through May 31 in Zurich and Fribourg, Switzerland. Games will be broadcast on NHL Network in the United States.
Marek Alscher, 22, will represent Czechia at the IIHF World Championship for the first time. He previously played for his home country at the 2024 IIHF U20 World Junior Championship, skating in seven games to help the Czechs capture the bronze medal over Finland. Alscher made his NHL debut with the Panthers in 2025-26, notching three assists over four games played. He also skated in 52 American Hockey League (AHL) games with Florida’s affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers, recording 11 points (3-8-11).
Aleksander Barkov, 30, missed the 2026 Winter Olympic Games due to injury but had been named to Finland’s preliminary roster in June of 2025. He previously earned a bronze medal at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games alongside current Panthers assistant coach Tuomo Ruutu, and earned a silver medal representing his home country at the 2016 IIHF Men’s World Championship. At the 2025 NHL 4 Nations Face-Off, Barkov served as captain of Finland.
Anton Lundell, 24, will be participating in his second IIHF World Championship after earning a silver medal with Finland in 2021, where he posted seven points (4-3-7) in 10 games as a 19-year-old. He helped Finland capture the bronze medal at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games this season and previously earned gold at the 2019 IIHF U20 WJC and 2018 IIHF U18 WJC, as well as a bronze medal at the 2021 U20 WJC.
Sandis Vilmanis, 22, will represent Latvia at the IIHF World Championship for the first time in his career. He played for Latvia at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in February as well as at the 2022, 2023 and 2024 IIHF U20 World Junior Championships, serving as an alternate captain in 2024 where he produced four points (2-2-4) over five games. Vilmanis made his NHL debut with the Panthers in 2025-26, logging five points (3-2-5) in 19 games with Florida while compiling 38 points (17-21-38) in 48 American Hockey League (AHL) contests with the Panthers affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers.
Matthew Tkachuk, 28, will attempt to become the first American to join the Triple Gold Club (Stanley Cup, World Championship Gold Medal and Olympic Gold Medal), as well as the first player in NHL history to win all three parts of the Triple Gold Club within a 12-month span. This will be Tkachuk’s first time participating in the IIHF World Championship.
In addition to his 2026 Olympic gold medal, Tkachuk also earned gold representing the United States at the 2015 IIHF U18 World Junior Championship and the 2014 U17 World Hockey Challenge, as well as a bronze medal at the 2016 IIHF U20 WJC. He served as alternate captain for the U.S. at the 2026 Olympics and 2025 4 Nations Face-Off.
Florida will have four staff members representing the United States. Panthers Assistant General Manager Brett Peterson is serving as General Manager for the second time after holding the position in 2024. Panthers Head Equipment Manager Teddy Richards will serve as equipment manager and Florida’s Head Athletic Trainer Dave DiNapoli will work as athletic trainer. Panthers President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Bill Zito will serve on the Advisory Group.
Panthers Assistant General Manager Gregory Campbell will assist with evaluating and selecting players for Canada.
Panthers fans can stay up to date on all the Cats’ representatives at the 2026 IIHF World Championships at FloridaPanthers.com/WorldChampionship.
2026-27 Florida Panthers Territory Memberships are available now! Click here to learn more. For all the latest in Panthers news, concerts and events at Amerant Bank Arena & FTL War Memorial, sign up for ’93 Society newsletter and receive information straight to your inbox. Visit FloridaPanthers.com or SeatGeek.com for all ticketing needs.
A Martin County slaughterhouse near Lake Okeechobee could increase toxic algal blooms in the C-44 Canal, St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon.
There have been 81 algal blooms in the past two years within 2 miles of a proposed slaughterhouse in western Martin County, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection Algal Bloom Dashboard.
The slaughterhouse will increase pollution and bring more potentially toxic algal blooms to Lake Okeechobee, whose waters sometimes are released into the C-44 Canal and flow into the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon in Stuart, opponents say.
Chancey Bay Ranch owner Tuny Mizrachi has proposed building a 56,784-square-foot slaughterhouse on 26 acres of his 2,046-acre-property at 8401 SW Connors Highway, abutting Lake O.
5 ways a slaughterhouse can increase Lake Okeechobee pollution
The Guardians of Martin County have raised at least five concerns with the Martin County Commission:
- Meat processing facilities, though necessary, have the potential to be noisy nuisances and significant sources of disease and pollution for air and water.
- The facility would be a new source of pollution in a watershed that’s designated as “impaired” because of elevated concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus.
- The facility would be a potential new source of pollutants near one of Martin County’s lowest income and most ethnically diverse communities.
- There’s no evidence the facility has a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit, or plans to follow effluent limitation guidelines or conduct water-quality monitoring.
- The South Florida Water Management District has permitted the facility to withdraw 6.7 million gallons of water per year for 20 years from Florida’s surficial aquifer, despite it being subject to varying levels of saltwater intrusion, especially in Martin County. The SFWMD has designated all of Martin County a Water Resource Caution Area.
Blood, feces, oil, grease, ammonia and antibiotic residue from the proposed slaughterhouse would contribute to harmful algal blooms, including toxic cyanobacteria, Martin County Administrator Don Donaldson wrote to the DEP and SFWMD.
Tim O’Hara is TCPalm’s environment reporter. Contact him at tim.ohara@tcpalm.com.
-
Colorado1 minute ago
Families, care providers navigate cuts to Colorado’s Community Connector program | Rocky Mountain PBS
-
Connecticut7 minutes agoARREST WARRANT: Georgia man accused of laundering nearly $63K from dead person’s account in Connecticut
-
Delaware13 minutes agoKent, Sussex Counties see rising share of Delaware roadway deaths in 2026
-
Florida19 minutes agoFlorida Wawa gas station plans approved for new Treasure Coast store
-
Georgia25 minutes agoGeorgia sample ballot for the 2026 primary elections shows every race to vote on this year
-
Hawaii31 minutes ago20 years in the making: County purchases Honolulu Landing property – West Hawaii Today
-
Idaho37 minutes agoMeet the candidates in Idaho’s biggest legislative primaries
-
Indiana49 minutes agoIndiana law enforcement takes up donations for Special Olympics