At the Buzzer: Florida 80, Georgia 76 (OT)

AT THE BUZZER
No. 23 FLORIDA 80, GEORGIA 76 (OT)

WHAT HAPPENED: Backup forward Canyon Barry came off the bench to tally season highs of 27 points and seven rebounds to lead to the No. 23 Gators from an eight-point second-half deficit to a huge home win Saturday over the Bulldogs at sold-out Exactech Arena, a victory that kept UF undefeated in the Southeastern Conference. Barry went 7-for-13 from the floor, 5-for-8 from the 3-point line (including two 4-point plays) and made all eight of his free throws (underhanded, of course), including a pair with 16.7 seconds left in the extra period to give the Gators a three-point lead. After a defensive stop, center John Egbunu (11 rebounds) hit one of two free throws for the two-possession cushion and UF had a huge victory. Redshirt freshman forward Keith Stone also had a career afternoon, finishing with a career-best 17 points, making five of his six shots, three of his four 3s and four of five free throws. Georgia basically controlled the game from the start, opening that eight-point cushion early in the second half. The lead was five with just over four minutes left and two inside a minute, but UF closed strong, including a pair of free throws from Kasey Hill in the final 25 seconds, before the home crowd.

WHAT IT MEANS: The Gators are one of just three teams still unbeaten in SEC play, with the other two, Kentucky and South Carolina, playing later Saturday. The Bulldogs came in at No. 32 in the Ratings Percentage Index, so chalk some more good RPI points for Florida, which started the day No. 3 overall. .

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: For the second straight game, the Florida bench rescued a difficult offensive night for the UF starters. Backup Gators, led by Barry and Stone, outscored the first unit 43-22. The Gators starting frontcourt of Devin Robinson, Justin Leon and Kevarrius Hayes scored just nine points on 3-for-12 from the floor, while leading scorer KeVaughn Allen struggled to a 2-for-7 afternoon from the floor on his way to just nine points.

STAGGERING STATISTIC: Back to that bench, folks. The Gators bench outscored Bulldogs 51-5. Seriously. Staggering, indeed.

UP NEXT: Florida (14-3, 5-0) is back on the road for a Wednesday night game at South Carolina. The Gamecocks (13-3, 3-0), who play Ole Miss at home Saturday night, not only are unbeaten at home and in SEC play, but have not lost when guard and former McDonald's All-American Sindarius Thornwell has been in the lineup. Thornwell was suspended for six games in December for violation of school policy. USC went 3-3 without him, but defeat Michigan and Syracuse on neutral floors and won at Georgia with him.

Gators Calendar

At the Buzzer: Florida 80, Georgia 76 (OT)

Players Mentioned

KeVaughn Allen

Canyon Barry

John Egbunu

Kevarrius Hayes

Kasey Hill

Justin Leon

Devin Robinson

Keith Stone

Footer

Upcoming Events