At the Buzzer: Florida 71, Mississippi State 54 (Instant Breakdown)
Wednesday, January 10, 2018 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
The Gators got a big night from Egor Koulechov to stay unbeaten in SEC play.
FLORIDA 71, MISSISSIPPI STATE 54
WHAT HAPPENED: Egor Koulechov scored 23 points, including his team's first 13 of the game, as the Gators took an early lead on the Bulldogs, clung to it at intermission, and built on it in the second half on the way to a season-high sixth straight victory Wednesday night at Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center. Koulechov hit four of his five 3-point attempts, including three straight early, to help lead an otherwise lackluster UF offensive performance through the first 20 minutes. Florida led just 33-28 at the half, with Koulechov accounting for 17 of those points. Junior guard Jalen Hudson finished with 12 points, sophomore forward Keith Stone put in 10 points and eight rebounds, and senior point guard Chris Chiozza, who missed the last two days of practice with strep throat, came off the bench to tally 10 points, seven assists and three steals. MSU came into the game averaging 76.7 points and shooting 47.3 as a team, but UF limited the Bulldogs to nearly 17 points under its season average of 40 percent for the game.
WHAT IT MEANS: An unblemished record through four Southeastern Conference games and a half-game lead over Auburn for the top of the league standings. The Gators showed a level of maturity in coming home -- where they've not played particularly well this season -- and doing what they're supposed to do, especially after such a great week in winning two on the road.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Koulechov wasted no time continuing on his SEC roll. The Gators trailed 7-2 out of the gate, but Koulechov hit a turn-around jumper, then did his "3gor" thing by hitting three straight 3-balls to put UF in front 13-12. The Gators never trailed again. Koulechov finished 9-for-13 from the floor, and has made 13-for-20 from distance and averaged 19.7 points in conference play.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: Thirteen straight to start the game? Yeah, we'll go with that.
UP NEXT: Florida (12-4, 4-0) is back on the SEC road Saturday night to face Ole Miss (9-7, 2-2). The Rebels have won both their home games in league play, defeating South Carolina and Mississippi State, and are 8-3 at the Pavilion this season.
