Florida Gators
West Florida (Exh.)
Men's Hoops Defeats West Florida, 84-41, In Exhibition
Saturday, November 5, 2005 | Men's Basketball
Five Gators scored in double figures to lead the Florida men's basketball team to an 84-41 exhibition win over West Florida on Friday night at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. UF, which led by as many as 45 points in the second half, improved its all-time exhibition record to 47-13-1 in its final tune-up before the regular season begins next Wednesday night against St. Peter's College in the first round of the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic.
Sophomore guard Taurean Green (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) and junior guard Lee Humphrey (Maryville, Tenn.) led the Orange and Blue scoring attack with 14 points each, while junior Chris Richard (Lakeland, Fla.) chipped in with 13 points and grabbed six rebounds. Sophomore forward Joakim Noah (New York, N.Y.) finished the contest with 12 points and a team high-two blocks.
Sophomore center Al Horford (Puerto Plata, D.R.) contributed 10 points to UF's balanced scoring attack and pulled down a game-high nine rebounds. Horford also dished a game-high five assists, and tied Noah in the blocks category with two denials. Freshman Walter Hodge (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) led the team in steals with three.
The Gators jumped out to a 58-22 lead at halftime due in part to three substantial scoring runs in the first half. Florida posted unanswered attacks of 8-0 and 14-0, before mounting a 17-4 clip that ended just before the break.
The Orange and Blue started the second half with a 36-point cushion, which increased to 45 points with 15:51 left in the game. The Argonauts matched the Gators nearly point for point until the 8:45 mark, when both teams went into an extended scoring drought. West Florida managed just two points on a couple of free throws, and held the Gators scoreless until there was 3:37 remaining in the game.
UF finished the contest with a 53.7 field goal percentage, making 29 of 54 shots from the field. Florida also notched a 42.1 percent mark from behind the arc, shot 75 percent from the free throw line and capitalized to score 37 points off West Florida turnovers. The Gators' stifling defense held the Argonauts to 32.7 percent shooting from the field and just 7.1 percent from the three-point line on 1-for-14 shooting. West Florida was paced offensively by Maurice Thomas, who finished the game with 16 points to lead all scorers.
-UF-
