Florida Gators
Vanderbilt
Gator Men's Hoops Picks Up Key Win Over Vanderbilt, 69-61
Thursday, February 24, 2005 | Men's Basketball
The Gator men's basketball team defeated the Vanderbilt Commodores on Wednesday night by a score of 69-61 in front of 10,814 fans in the O'Connell Center. Senior David Lee had his sixth double-double in SEC play and eighth on the year, scoring 13 points and pulling down 14 rebounds. Junior Anthony Roberson led all scorers with 23 points and junior Matt Walsh had 16 points.
With 2:30 left in the second half, Roberson hit a three-point shot from the top of the arc to cap an 11-0 Gator run to put the game away.
The Gator defense had a strong showing, with seven blocks, including three by Freshman Al Horford. Florida held Vanderbilt, the SEC's leading three-point shooting team, to 36.5 percent shooting and 26.9 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
Florida started the game with back-to-back threes by Roberson, but Vandy would not go away. Although the Commodores never led in the first half, the Gator lead was only three points at halftime.
After the break, the teams went back and forth with four lead changes. Vanderbilt took a 49-48 lead with 6:35 remaining in the game. The Commodores tried to scrap their way back, but Florida sealed the game, shooting 10-of-14 from the free throw line in the final three minutes.
The Gators take their momentum on the road to face the South Carolina Gamecocks on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. in Columbia. The Gators can reach 10 wins in SEC play for the sixth time in seven years. The game will be televised on CBS.
