At the Buzzer: Florida 65, Miami 56 (Instant Analysis)
Sunday, November 27, 2016 | Chris Harry
The Gators played in the third-place game of the AdvoCare Invitational on Sunday at Disney.
AT THE BUZZER
FLORIDA 65, MIAMI 56
WHAT HAPPENED: The Gators woke up from an early second-half slumber to race past the Hurricanes Sunday and capture third place in the AdvoCare Invitational Tournament at HP Fieldhouse. Senior point guard Kasey Hill led UF with 16 points, including an 8-for-10 effort from the free-throw line, but it was redshirt freshman forward Keith Stone who sparked his team with 15 points, including a couple 3-pointers, and eight rebounds off the bench. Florida led by four at the break, then got hit with a 9-0 blitz by the Hurricanes. The Gators, on the strength of their defense, slowly worked their way back, tying the score at 41 on a stickback by Stone, then using a 14-4 run inside the 10-minute mark to open up a cushion.
WHAT IT MEANS: A second quality win on a neutral site against an opponent from an excellent conference. Plus, Miami, which figures to be a middle-of-the-pack team in the Atlantic Coast Conference, had beaten the Gators each of the last two seasons, so an element of revenge and state bragging rights were there too. Florida also prevented the first three-game winning streak for Miami in the series since the Hurricanes won four straight over '62-63 when their star player was Rick Barry (aka Canyon Barry's father).
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Stone, the 6-8, 240-pound rookie from Deerfield Beach, Fla., announced himself in this game. He came in with just six points this season and was just 2-for-15 from the floor and 0-for-6 from the 3-point line. He nearly tripled his output to date. He finished 5-for-8 from the floor, with those two 3-pointers that both came at opportune times. It was Coach Mike White's idea for Stone to red-shirt last season to work on his game and body while Dorian Finney-Smith was playing 30 minutes a game at the "4" spot. Pretty good call.
STAGGERING STATISTICS: The Gators went 2-for-19 from the 3-point line in Friday night's loss to No. 11 Gonzaga. Stone had that many by himself Sunday. UF also blocked a season-high 11 shots, including four from center John Egbunu and three by forward Devin Robinson.
UP NEXT: Florida (6-1) is back on the road Thursday night for a true road date on the campus of North Florida (3-4), where the Gators opened the NIT last March and out-bombed the 3-point crazy Ospreys for a 99-68 win. It'll mark the Gators' third game in Jacksonville (albeit on the UNF campus), but the fifth different venue they'll play in their eight games. UNF will be facing its third Southeastern Conference team, having dropped games against Auburn by 17 and LSU by 8. The Ospreys also lost by 38 at UNF Arena to Miami.
FLORIDA 65, MIAMI 56
WHAT HAPPENED: The Gators woke up from an early second-half slumber to race past the Hurricanes Sunday and capture third place in the AdvoCare Invitational Tournament at HP Fieldhouse. Senior point guard Kasey Hill led UF with 16 points, including an 8-for-10 effort from the free-throw line, but it was redshirt freshman forward Keith Stone who sparked his team with 15 points, including a couple 3-pointers, and eight rebounds off the bench. Florida led by four at the break, then got hit with a 9-0 blitz by the Hurricanes. The Gators, on the strength of their defense, slowly worked their way back, tying the score at 41 on a stickback by Stone, then using a 14-4 run inside the 10-minute mark to open up a cushion.
WHAT IT MEANS: A second quality win on a neutral site against an opponent from an excellent conference. Plus, Miami, which figures to be a middle-of-the-pack team in the Atlantic Coast Conference, had beaten the Gators each of the last two seasons, so an element of revenge and state bragging rights were there too. Florida also prevented the first three-game winning streak for Miami in the series since the Hurricanes won four straight over '62-63 when their star player was Rick Barry (aka Canyon Barry's father).
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Stone, the 6-8, 240-pound rookie from Deerfield Beach, Fla., announced himself in this game. He came in with just six points this season and was just 2-for-15 from the floor and 0-for-6 from the 3-point line. He nearly tripled his output to date. He finished 5-for-8 from the floor, with those two 3-pointers that both came at opportune times. It was Coach Mike White's idea for Stone to red-shirt last season to work on his game and body while Dorian Finney-Smith was playing 30 minutes a game at the "4" spot. Pretty good call.
STAGGERING STATISTICS: The Gators went 2-for-19 from the 3-point line in Friday night's loss to No. 11 Gonzaga. Stone had that many by himself Sunday. UF also blocked a season-high 11 shots, including four from center John Egbunu and three by forward Devin Robinson.
UP NEXT: Florida (6-1) is back on the road Thursday night for a true road date on the campus of North Florida (3-4), where the Gators opened the NIT last March and out-bombed the 3-point crazy Ospreys for a 99-68 win. It'll mark the Gators' third game in Jacksonville (albeit on the UNF campus), but the fifth different venue they'll play in their eight games. UNF will be facing its third Southeastern Conference team, having dropped games against Auburn by 17 and LSU by 8. The Ospreys also lost by 38 at UNF Arena to Miami.
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