Florida Gators
Temple
Hot Shooting Propels Men's Basketball by Temple, 86-69
Sunday, December 30, 2007 | Men's Basketball
Florida improved to 12-2, tying the school record for victories before New Year's set in 2005 and tied last year. The Gators have won nine consecutive games in the Orange Bowl Classic. Winthrop won the first game, beating the 19th-ranked Miami Hurricanes, 76-70.
The Gators took the lead for good five minutes into the game and sustained it by shooting 63 percent from the floor in the second half, when they scored 49 points.
Sophomore forward Jonathan Mitchell (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) went 6- for-6 from the field and 3-for-3 from the free-throw line for a career- high 15 points to lead a strong effort by the Florida bench, which contributed 29 points.
UF freshman guard Nick Calathes (Winter Park, Fla.) scored 14 points and junior guard Walter Hodge (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) and freshman forward Chandler Parsons (Winter Park, Fla.) had 12 apiece. Parsons added eight rebounds for the Gators, who had a 37-21 advantage on the boards.
Speights played only 24 minutes but shot 7-for-10 and made all six of his free throws. He previously scored a career-high 20 points earlier this season against North Florida in November.
The Gators scored nine consecutive points in the first half for a 22-12 lead. Temple cut the margin to 37-34 at the half.
Two three-pointers by Mitchell and one by Calathes helped the Gators score 10 consecutive points to put them ahead 61-45, and they led by at least 10 the rest of the way. The Gators went 11-for-20 from 3-point range.
Dionte Christmas scored 32 points but was the only player in double figures for Temple, which fell to 6-6.
Florida returns to action on January 2, 2008, when it takes on High Point at 8 p.m. for the second game of a doubleheader that day with the Gator women's team. The game will be televised on Fox Sports Net Florida.
