At the Buzzer: Florida 52, Alabama 50 (Instant Analysis)
Wednesday, January 28, 2015 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
AT THE BUZZER
FLORIDA 52, ALABAMA 50
WHAT HAPPENED: At Tuscaloosa, Ala., junior forward Dorian Finney-Smith's only points of the game came on a drive and wicked one-handed throw-down dunk with 21 seconds left that broke a 50-50 tie. At the other end, Finney-Smith stymied a drive and shot attempt from Crimson Tide leading scorer Levi Randolph. The ball bounced way off the mark and Finney-Smith cleared the rebound as time expired, allowing the Gators to hold on for a key Southeastern Conference road win at Coleman Coliseum. UF prevailed despite scoring just 17 second-half points and allowing the Tide to come back from a 13-point halftime deficit to tie the game late. Junior guard Eli Carter led the Gators with 13 points.
WHAT IT MEANS: A much-needed victory, that's what. After consecutive losses at Georgia, home against LSU and Saturday at Ole Miss, the Gators were teetering. They can breathe a little easier after stopping the bleeding, albeit temporarily. It wasn't pretty, but the result was one the team needed.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: UF sophomore center Chris Walker's game flashed at key times for the Gators on his way to scoring 12 points on 6-for-8 shooting and grabbing four rebounds. Walker played within himself, floating along the baseline and in and out of the paint, allowing the ball to find him. His point total represented his first double-digit effort since Dec. 5 at Kansas and the most of Walker's career in an SEC game.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: Junior guard Michael Frazier II came in with a school-record 41-game streak of hitting at least one 3-point shot and just three days earlier went trey-ball crazy in scoring a season-high 27 points in a loss at Ole Miss. The 3-point streak ended against the Tide, as Frazier was 0-for-4 from the floor and scored all five of his points from the free-throw line, where he was perfect. In his defense, Frazier suffered hip pointer in Monday's practice and hobbled through the Tuesday morning shoot-around.
UP NEXT: After two games on the road, Florida (11-9, 4-3) is home Saturday for a 1 p.m. nationally televised game against Arkansas (16-4, 5-2). The Razorbacks beat Tennessee 69-64 Tuesday night at home.
