Florida Gators
Miami
At the Buzzer: Miami 66, Florida 55 (Instant Analysis)
Tuesday, December 8, 2015 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
The Gators fell for the second year in a row to the Hurricanes, this time on the road.
AT THE BUZZER
MIAMI 66, FLORIDA 55
WHAT HAPPENED: Guard play and long-distance shooting proved the difference in the 21st-ranked Hurricanes' second win in as many seasons against the Gators. The backcourt combo of Sheldon McClellan and Angel Rodriguez put up 41 points, including 6-for-9 from 3-point range to the delight of the crowd at BankUnited Center that witnessed Florida's second visit to UM campus in the last 25 years. Once again, UF had to lean on its frontcourt, with forward Dorian Finney-Smith (14 points, 6 rebounds), center John Egbunu (12 points, 6 rebounds) and forward Devin Robinson (14 points, 5 rebounds) accounting for 40 of the team's 55 points.
WHAT IT MEANS: Florida has faced two ranked opponents -- Purdue and Miami -- so far in this young season and lost by a combined 26 points. With so much imbalance in the scoring, it's clear the Gators are nowhere near ready to compete with the nation's elite ... which is unfortunate (see below).
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Miami came into the game ranked third in the nation in offensive efficiency, while Florida came in fourth in defensive efficiency. The Gators held the high-powered Hurricanes to a season-low in points (66) and shooting percentage (39.2), both by a wide margin, but those numbers were offset by a UF offense that also scored a season-low in points and will continue to be in trouble when falling behind because of its inability to make 3-pointers -- just 1-for-12 for the game -- and cut into leads.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: At the forefront of those offensive woes are the UF guards, whose struggles to hit outside shots have become an epidemic. The combination of point guards Kasey Hill and Chris Chiozza, plus wings KeVaughn Allen, DeVon Walker and Brandone Francis Ramirez missed 10 of their first 11 shots against the hot-handed McClellan and Rodriguez and finished just 6-for-24 from the floor (25 percent) and 0-for-8 from deep for just 14 points.
UP NEXT: It only gets tougher for the Gators (6-2), who this weekend head north to take on No. 1 Michigan State (9-0) at the Breslin Center. The Spartans moved to the top of the polls this week after losses by Kentucky and Maryland. On Wednesday, they'll take on Maryland-Eastern Shore and Saturday will have a celebration -- at Florida's expense -- when MSU welcomes back Mateen Cleaves and the 2000 NCAA championship team to mark the 15-year anniversary of beating Billy Donovan and the Gators in the national title game.
