Florida Gators
Eckerd (Exh.)
Men's Basketball Dispatches Eckerd, 90-70
Wednesday, November 10, 2004 | Men's Basketball
The University of Florida men's basketball team completed its exhibition season on Tuesday night with a 90-70 triumph over Eckerd College at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center in front of 7,822 fans. Leading 46-41 at the half, the Gators out-scored the Tritons, 44-29, over the final 20 minutes to seal the victory. Senior David Lee was 7-of-12 from the field and 12-of-14 from the free-throw line to lead all scorers with 26 points, while junior Matt Walsh added 19 points for UF.
Florida was rusty offensively the first half, shooting only 39.5 percent from the field. UF had eight turnovers and notched only 27.3 percent from the three-point line. Eckerd stayed in the game by connecting on 50 percent of its three-point shots and connecting on 44.8 percent of its attempts from the field in the first half.
"It was a tale of two halves," head coach Billy Donovan said. "If you look at the talent level between the two teams, the fact that we didn't shoot the ball well and didn't defend is why it was a five-point game at the half."
The Gators were able to turn things around in the second half, reversing the shooting percentages from the first half. UF connected on 52.2 percent to the Tritons' 36 percent from the field. UF forced 17 second-half turnovers and converted those steals into easy points on the Orange and Blue board. The Gators out-scored Eckerd, 12-5, in the first 4:30 to open up an 11-point lead which they never surrendered. Eckerd was also 0-for-7 from the three-point mark in the second half of the game.
"We forced 17 turnovers and took two or three three-point shots," Donovan said. "The only thing I was disappointed with in the second half was that we turned the ball over too many times."
Both teams entered the second half with eight turnovers. However, Eckerd left the game with 25 turnovers, while the Tritons forced 19 away from Florida at the end of 40 minutes.
Notching the only double-double of the game was true freshman Al Horford, who grabbed 12 rebounds and notched 12 points for the Gators. Horford also ended the game with six blocks on the Eckerd offense, four of which were garnered in the first half. The forward completed six of six shots from the charity stripe and had one steal for the Gators.
Leading UF on the scoresheet for the second-straight game was forward Lee, who also added five rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Walsh collected four steals and totaled three assists and three rebounds.
The star of the three-point line tonight was Lee Humphrey, a sophomore guard out of Maryville, Tenn. Humphrey nailed three of four treys taken in the first half and ended the game with 11 points. For the Tritons, junior Steve Berg scored a team-high 22 points, including four three-pointers, and was a perfect 10-for-10 from the free-throw line.
The Gator basketball team will begin its 2004-05 regular season on Nov. 19, traveling to Jacksonville to face the host Dolphins at the Jacksonville Memorial Arena. Tip-off time is scheduled for 8 p.m.
-UF-
