Florida Gators
LSU
No. 6 Gators Defeat LSU in SEC Men?s Basketball Action
Saturday, February 11, 2006 | Men's Basketball
The No. 6/7 Florida men's basketball team had three players reach double figures on its way to its 21st win of the season, a 71-62 triumph over SEC West-leading foe LSU at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center Saturday afternoon. With the win Billy Donovan's Gators snapped a three-game losing streak against the Tigers and improved to 21-3 overall and 7-3 in the Southeastern Conference, while LSU dropped to 16-7 overall and 8-2 in league play.
Sophomores Joakim Noah (New York, N.Y.) and Al Horford (Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic) led the team with 16 points apiece, while Noah added nine rebounds, two blocks and one assist as well. Horford contributed four boards and led the game with four blocks. Junior Lee Humphrey (Maryville, Tenn.) came off the bench to put up 13 for the Gators, making 5-of-7 shots from the field, including three treys.
Freshman Walter Hodge (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) chipped in seven points for the Orange and Blue with a perfect 3-for-3 shooting effort, and also grabbed two steals. Sophomore Corey Brewer (Portland, Tenn.) and junior Chris Richard (Lakeland, Fla.) notched six points apiece against the Tigers, and Brewer also contributed four rebounds, two assists and one steal. Sophomore Taurean Green (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) dished seven assists to lead the game, and also grabbed five rebounds, added three points and had one steal.
In the first half of the game, the two teams matched shot-for-shot until the 14:46 mark when LSU went on a quick 5-0 run. The Gators played catch-up with the Tigers, eventually tying up the score at 22 all with 5:59 remaining in the half. The teams traded baskets for the remainder of the first half and went into the break locked at 37 points each.
A dunk by Horford followed by back-to-back jumpers in the paint from Noah opened up the second half and gave the Orange and Blue a quick 43-37 lead. A 9-0 run followed for LSU, which put the Tigers on top 51-45 at the 12:03 mark. Florida didn't stay down for long as it chipped away at the LSU lead to put the game back at a 53-all tie with 9:51 to play. At that point a 10-0 Gator run put the home team on top for the duration of the game, as they went on to win it 71-62.
Florida outscored LSU 40-30 in the paint and took advantage of 15 Tiger turnovers to score 19 points. The Gators recorded a 48.3 percent shooting effort from the field, compared to LSU who finished at 40.0 percent. Glen Davis paced the Tigers with a 16-point, 15-rebound double-double effort. With the victory over the Tigers Florida moves within one home win of tying the 1986-87 squad's record of 16 home triumphs in a season.
The Gators return to the court Wednesday, Feb. 15 when they travel to Nashville, Tenn. to face Vanderbilt in a pay-per-view televised contest. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m.at Vanderbilt's Memorial Gymnasium.
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