At the Buzzer : No. 8 Florida 70, New Hampshire 63 (Instant Analysis)
Sunday, November 19, 2017 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
It was a struggle, but the Gators improved to 3-0 for the third time in as many seasons under Coach Mike White.
No. 8 FLORIDA 70, NEW HAMPSHIRE 63
WHAT HAPPENED: Junior swingman Jalen Hudson scored 26 points, including 22 after halftime, and the eighth-ranked Gators survived a frightening visit from the Wildcats, out of the America East Conference, to escape Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center with a harrowing, hard-fought victory. UF, which shot a woeful 32 percent against the Wildcats after scoring 100-plus points in its first two games, actually trailed 49-48 with 9:21 to play, but a Hudson drive and slam mere second later gave the Gators back their lead. It was back and forth, however, down the stretch, including a one-possession count, at 66-63, game inside of two minutes. Of course, it was Hudson, the transfer from Virginia Tech, who drove for a layup and made it a five-point cushion. Two Keith Stone free throws with 46.3 seconds to go pushed the margin to seven. Grad-transfer forward Egor Koulechov had 14 points and 10 rebounds, while senior point guard Chris Chiozza had 12 points and six rebounds.
WHAT IT MEANS: The Gators have beaten three teams they were expected to beat, but this one (outside of Hudson) was an offensive eyesore. Given the final outcome, however, it might actually work to UF's advantage in the next few days, as far as Coach Mike White getting his players' attention as they prepare for a significant uptick in the competition (see below).
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: If not for Hudson's hot hand midway through the second half, Florida may have been in big, big trouble. No one else was putting the ball in the basket. Hudson, at one point, had nine straight points, all the while the Wildcats were within two, four and six points. Hudson finished 7-for-12 from the floor, 11-for-12 from the free-throw line, and grabbed a team-best seven rebounds.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: After hitting 26 3-point shots through two games -- 15 against Gardner-Webb, then 11 against North Florida -- at a rate of 48.1 percent, the Gators went justl three of 18 from deep (16.7 percent). They were cold from the outset, missing seven of eight in the first half. Even Hudson was 1-for-4.
STAGGERING STATISTIC, PART 2: How 'bout just two points in transition for the Gators?
STAGGERING STATISTIC, PART 3: Florida had just three assists (and Chiozza had none), which says everything that needs to be said about how cold and out of sync the offense was.
UP NEXT: Two days of a classes, one day of practice, then the Gators will hop a cross-country flight to Portland for the PK80, a two-tournament, 16-team basketball, Nike-sponsored extravaganza to celebrate the 80th birthday of Nike founder Phil Knight. First up for Florida (3-0) will be a Thanksgiving night game against Stanford (3-1), which lost last week to Eastern Washington at home and hosts No. 9 North Carolina Monday night. Should UF get by the Cardinal, it'll get either 17th-ranked Gonzaga or Ohio State on Friday, and end the three-game event Sunday against either Portland State, Butler, Texas or -- yes -- No. 1-ranked Duke.
