Florida Gators
Tennessee
Men's Basketball Falls To Tennessee, 79-63
Sunday, February 1, 2009 | Men's Basketball
Despite a second-half rally, the University of Florida men's basketball team (18-4, 5-2) fell short to Tennessee (13-7, 4-2), 79-63, on Saturday night at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn.
Tennessee jumped out to an early lead, scoring the first six points and owned a 16-6 lead with 10:22 left before halftime. The Volunteers, who owned a 30.6 percent shooting average from behind the arc, hit a flurry of 3-pointers to take a 39-22 halftime lead. Six Volunteers combined for eight treys in the first half, shooting 42 percent.
Although sophomore guard Nick Calathes (Casselberry, Fla.) picked up two fouls early in the game, he made an impact for the Gators while on the court. In nine minutes in the first half, he had six points and one rebound. Calathes had a productive second half, leading the Gators on their second-half rally. He finished the game with 21 points, including seven baskets from the field and three from behind the arc.
Sophomore forward Chandler Parsons (Casselberry, Fla.) finished second in scoring for the Gators, notching 15 points. Parsons, who led the squad with nine rebounds, was six-of-10 from the field and notched three offensive boards.
Forwards Dan Werner (Middletown, N.J.) and Alex Tyus (St. Louis, Mo.) each tallied seven points for UF, with Werner grabbing seven rebounds and Tyus collecting four. Freshman guard Ray Shipman (Miramar, Fla.) led the Gators with four points off the bench and had three rebounds and one assist.
The Gators shot 42.3 percent from the field compared to the Vols' 49.2 percent.
Florida returns to action on Tuesday when it hosts South Carolina at the O'Connell Center at 9 p.m. The game will be aired live on ESPN.
-UF-
