COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The numbers Tuesday night were flat-out jaw-dropping.
Not in a good way.
The Florida Gators shot less than 40 percent from the floor for the third straight game. They made just 22 percent of their 3-point shots, giving them four straight games at 26 or below. And they went -- get this -- 9-for-23 from the free-throw line. That's 39 percent.
With those digits, it's no surprise the Gators lost on the road to a Missouri team with a 13-game losing streak and resting in the last place in the Southeastern Conference. Try going the last 13-plus minutes of a Division I basketball game with just two field goals and see what happens.
But for Billy Donovan, it wasn't the loss that had him befuddled in the aftermath of the Tigers' 64-52 victory at Mizzou Arena. The UF coach has seen plenty of losses this year and plenty of bad offensive nights.
It was some of the moments that unfolded along the way.
“I thought we really made a lot of poor choices,” Donovan said after being denied his 500th career win for the second straight game. “We did things, to be quite honest, that left me scratching my head.”
Like 6-foot-11 center Chris Walker hoisting and missing a 3-pointer early in the shot clock with his team up seven. Like junior guard Eli Carter fouling during an inbound play in the final minutes of a one-possession game. Like sophomore point guard Kasey Hill slapping the ball on an out-of-bounds defensive play and drawing a technical foul with about two minutes to go in a six-point game.
“We just didn't make enough smart basketball plays during the game,” Donovan said.
So the slide continues for the Gators (13-15, 6-9), who are facing the very real possibility of their first losing record since the 1997-98 season. At this point, with just three regular-season games to play (one against top-ranked Kentucky), plus the SEC Tournament, avoiding a sub-.500 mark would be a shock.
Missouri freshman guard Namon Wright torched the visitors for 28 points, making 10 of his 13 shots and dropping six 3-pointers on eight attempts to nearly quintuple his average of 5.4 points per game. Freshman forward Johnathan Williams III had nine points, seven rebounds and three assists to help the Tigers (8-20, 2-13) to their first win since defeating LSU on Jan. 8.
“I'd never lost 13 in a row ... not even in pickup,” relieved Mizzou coach Kim Anderson said.
In delivering the Tigers a get-well card, the Gators got another solid effort from freshman forward Devin Robinson (14 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks), his fourth game scoring in double-figures in his last five outings. Senior center Jon Horford (10 points, 8 rebounds) was productive also. The UF backcourt of Carter and Hill, however, combined to go 3-for-14 from the floor and 1-for-10 from the free-throw line and scored just seven points. Hill went one of eight from the line, missing his first seven.
“It's just something going on here,” Horford said of Hill's struggles at the stripe (now 44.4 percent in SEC play), pointing to his head.
The totality of such an abject meltdown led to Donovan scratching his.
Senior center Jon Horford stuffs an early basket for two of his 10 points Tuesday night. (Photo: Tim Casey)
Despite another game without leading scorers Michael Frazier II (ankle injury) and Dorian Finney-Smith (suspended), the Gators managed to build a seven-point lead, 44-37, with just over 13 minutes left after senior forward Jake Kurtz hit a couple free throws. To that point, UF was moving the ball well enough to shake off a 1-for-10 start from the 3-point line and scratch some offense out.Defensively, the Gators weren't bad, but Wright kept the Tigers in the game from long range.
Defensively, the Gators weren't bad, but Wright kept the Tigers in the game from long range.
"We didn't have anyone who could stop him," Donovan said.
And yet the lead was seven and UF had the ball at the 12:19 mark when Walker popped out to set a screen at the top of the key. His defender stepped back giving Walker an open look from the 3-point line. Only twice had Walker attempted 3-point shots this season, both desperation heaves when the ball was stuck in his hands at the end of the shot clock.
This time, Walker squared and jacked the 3-ball, which was rebounded by the Tigers, who raced down the court, where forward Keanau Post got post position on Walker and threw in a jump hook to cut the lead to five.
Donovan called timeout and took Walker out of the game.
“We were in good shape ... and out of nowhere Chris Walker decides he's a 3-point shooter,” Donovan said. “Is that shot for you? Or because it really helps our team win?”
Post's basket kick-started a 20-3 blitz by the Tigers, during which the lone Florida field goal was a driving jumper by Walker at the 6:27 mark. The next shot the Gators made was a meaningless bucket by freshman guard Chris Chiozza with 35 seconds left in the game and the Gators down by 14.
Missouri finished the game on a 27-8 run. Of UF's last 22 possessions, it went 2-for-13 with five turnovers, 12 missed free throws.
The Tigers' student section celebrated the final seconds by doing the “Gator Chomp,” while Mizzou players bounced around the court hugging and high-fiving.
“This has been miserable,” Anderson said of his team's seven weeks of losing. “This has been hard for me and it's been hard for them. Let's see if we can win another game.”
Those words, just as easily, could have come from the other coach.
