At the Buzzer : No. 8 Florida 108, North Florida 68 (Instant Analysis)
Thursday, November 16, 2017 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
UF improved to 2-0 with another lopsided defeat, this one over UNF.
FLORIDA 108, NORTH FLORIDA 68
WHAT HAPPENED: Another offensive onslaught for the home team -- and more numbers for the history books. Junior shooting guard KeVaughn Allen, held to nine points in Monday's season-opening blowout win over Gardner-Webb, scored 18 to lead six of his teammates into double figures, as the Gators demolished the Ospreys and tallied their first back-to-back 100-point games since 2003. Third-year sophomore forward Keith Stone scored 14 points on 6-for-7 shooting and made both his 3-point attempts. Graduate transfer forward Egor Koulechov stuffed the box with 13 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Ditto senior point guard Chris Chiozza, who was good for nine points, five rebounds and seven assists. Even both UF walk-ons, Andrew Fava and Mak Krause, got in the scoring column. Florida, which built a 45-23 lead at halftime, shot 55 percent from the floor and 44 from the 3-point line.
WHAT IT MEANS: A second easy win in as many outings to start the season. They'll have a chance for a third on Sunday (see below).
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Sophomore center Gorjok Gak got his first career start, replacing junior Kevarrius Hayes in the lineup, and responded with the best all-around game of his career. The 6-foot-11, 240-pounder scored a career-high 12 points, two assists and blocked a shot. He also went 4-for-4 from the free-throw line. Not impressed? Gak was 1-for-10 on free throws his freshman season. The kid has worked really hard to improve from the stripe.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: Florida has been playing basketball since 1915 and had never had two straight 100-point games to start a season. The last time UF hit the century mark in consecutive games was early in the 2003-04 season, when the Gators beat Northeastern 101-84 on Dec. 22, 2003, and two nights later clubbed Eastern Kentucky 109-63.
UP NEXT: Florida (2-0) is back home Sunday at 6 p.m. against New Hampshire (1-1). The Wildcats opened the season last week with a 95-39 win over Division III Wheelock College, then Tuesday night were beaten at Texas 78-60. The Gators will face UNH for the first time since 2001. That's when UF went to Durham, N.H., for an appreciation road game for senior forward Matt Bonner, a native of Concord, N.H.
