Gators Play Giveaway in Tough Loss at A&M

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- The glut of turnovers proved too much to overcome, yet it was one that went in Florida's favor that gave the Gators a faint glimmer of hope in the final seconds Tuesday night at Texas A&M.

Down three and on defense with seven seconds to play, UF forward Dorian Finney-Smith tipped an inbounds pass that bounced off the knee of an Aggie and turned into a live-ball breakaway for point guard Chris Chiozza.

Into the A&M halfcourt Chiozza went, stopping at the 3-point line and letting the potential game-tying shot fly. Front of the rim. Horn. The No. 21 Aggies prevailed 71-68 in front of 9,766 at Reed Arena, as the Gators fell to a fourth ranked opponent in as many tries this season.

"I wish he'd made it," Finney-Smith said. "But we didn't lose the game because of that shot."

No, they didn't. And they didn't lose because the team lacked the energy it needs to overcome its offensive deficiencies, either. The Gators (10-6, 2-2) fell to the Aggies (14-2, 4-0) because of 16 turnovers that were converted into 21 points. They lost because they turned the game into a foul fest that put A&M into the first-half bonus less than eight minutes into the game. And they lost because of -- brace for it -- another atrocious display at the free-throw line (4-for-12).

"Our effort was good," junior forward Justin Leon said. "There were just a couple possessions we could have been better."

The Aggie duo of forwards Jalen Jones and Danuel House did most of the damage. Jones scored 26 points and grabbed six rebounds, while House went for 22 points and five rebounds. Together, they converted more free throws than Florida attempted, going 13 of 17 from the line.

But UF, which trailed for all but 3:30 of the game, drew within one with 25.6 seconds left when Finney-Smith buried a 3-point shot to make the score 67-66. Out of a timeout, Florida fouled A&M guard Anthony Collins, who knocked down a pair of free throws to push the lead back to three.

At UF's end, Chiozza made a driving jumper to again make it a one-point game. Again, Collins answered with two more free throws with 8.5 left. Timeout, Gators.

On Florida's ensuing possession, center John Egbunu was called for setting an illegal screen in the backcourt to try and free Chiozza into the open floor. Turnover. The Aggies got the ball at mid-court, but their play out of the timeout ended with Chiozza's steal and an open look from 3.

Not surprisingly, the way this UF team has shot this season, it missed.

"I'm a little down," Gators coach Mike White said. "Offensively, we didn't give ourselves a chance."

This is getting frustrating for everybody. On a night when Finney-Smith carded his third double-double of the season (17 points, 12 rebounds), when Leon posted a third straight career-high in scoring (16 points on 7-for-8 from the floor) when Chiozza (11 points, 8 assists) ran the offense well and when UF held A&M to just 36 percent from the floor, the Gators played give-away with the basketball and one of their hottest scorers of late, freshman guard KeVaughn Allen, went scoreless (0-for-4 from the floor in 18 minutes) after averaging 17 points the previous six games.

And then there were those free throws.

"I'm at a loss. ... Maybe we'll just stop shooting them in practice altogether," White said. "To come on the road and beat a good team in the [Southeastern Conference], you've got to shoot a higher percentage than that."

Probably have to foul less, too.

The Gators were called for 11 fouls in the first half, compared to five for the Aggies, and had three starters seated and saddled with two fouls a nice chunk of the opening period. UF did not shoot its first free throw until 17:15 remained in the game. By then, A&M had shot 11. Yet Florida managed to tie the game twice early after intermission, then fell behind by as many as nine, only to scrape back in the game behind some key buckets from Finney-Smith and Leon.

"We couldn't put them away," Aggies coach Billy Kennedy said. "They were active. They were aggressive. They're hard to score against."

But eight turnovers in the first half helped dig a hole. Eight more in the second kept the Gators there.

"We figured out the intensity and level of competitiveness we have to play with to even be in the game," Finney-Smith said. "Now, we have to start executing down the stretch."

Preferably, before that, also.

Gators Calendar

Gators Play Giveaway in Tough Loss at A&M

Players Mentioned

KeVaughn Allen

Chris Chiozza

John Egbunu

Dorian Finney-Smith

Justin Leon

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