Florida Gators

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — A post-game question was put to Alabama guard John Petty about the career-high 21-point performance turned in Saturday by Florida point guard Andrew Nembhard. Specifically, about Nembhard, not exactly known for his shooting prowess, going a red-hot 9-for-9 from the floor in leading the Gators to a lopsided 71-53 blowout victory at Coleman Coliseum. 

Petty began his answer, then stopped. 

"I didn't know he went 9-for-9?" Petty said, pulling a stat sheet his way and taking a second look. "Wow!"

Wow, indeed. 

Nembhard, the 6-foot-5 freshman playmaker hitting just under 37 percent for the season, hit the first shot of the game and every one he took afterward, including a pair of 3-pointers and a lone free throw after a driving layup that halted a threatening run by the Crimson Tide. The play re-routed the Gators toward a road route that represented — by far — their best all-around game of the Southeastern Conference season. Nembhard, the league's No. 5 assist man didn't register his first "dime" until less than two minutes remained. No matter. By that time, the bulk of the Bama faithful had exited the building having watched the visitors hit 54 percent of their shots while holding the home team to its fewest points in conference play this season. 
 
"Big win for us," said Nembhard, who three days after going 4-for-5 in a home win over Vanderbilt became the first SEC player in 20 years (since Tennessee's Isiah Victor in 1999) to make at least nine field goals without a miss in a league game. "This is a tough Alabama team. We came out with energy and focus from the start. This is going to be good for our overall confidence and mentality, for sure."

Good for their postseason hopes. Though still with a lot of work to do, the Gators (14-11, 6-6), in winning a second straight, picked up a much-needed Quadrant-1 victory — just the second against nine losses — in the NET rankings that ultimately will seed the NCAA Tournament's field of 68 teams. The Tide (15-10, 6-6) began the day ranked 45th in the NET. Florida, which has played one of the toughest schedules in the country, is 40th in those rankings. 

"That's as well as we've played all year," Coach Mike White said. 

UF scored the game's first six points and never trailed, as the Tide failed to convert a field goal until nearly eight minutes into the game. The Gators opened a 17-point lead midway through the second half, and after Bama cut the margin to eight, staved off any further drama with a 14-3 run that Nembhard started with an old-fashion 3-point play and ended with a conventional 3-pointer.

"Florida took it to us from the start," Alabama coach Avery Johnson said. "They threw the first punch and we stumbled for the rest of the game. We may have cut it to eight, but they were always in control."

Nembhard, whose previous high game was 13 points, wasn't the only one who did damage. 

Forward and 6-foot-5 freshman classmate Keyontae Johnson turned in another fabulous game, scoring 14 points and grabbing a career-high 13 rebounds over 36 minutes. Senior guard KeVaughn Allen added 13 points, four rebounds, three assists and a steal. The Gators out-rebounded one of the league's better teams on the glass, 31-23, connected on 11 of 14 free throws (78.6 percent) and won by 18 points with shooting guard Noah Locke, the team's No. 2 scorer, going scoreless for the first time in his career. 

"We all communicated and stayed together," said UF's Johnson, who now has double-figure rebounds in three of the team's last five games (plus nine-board effort in a fourth). "Everybody did their job. It was rolling."

On both ends.

Yes, even the offense. 

The Gators totaled 27 field goals, but only six were 3-pointers. UF was 21-for-31 inside the arc (67.7 percent). When the Tide ran shooters off the long-distance line, the UF players attacked the paint with mostly positive results. 

White said his team is making progress. Good timing, too. 

"It speaks to the character of each individual in our locker room. The resilience," White said. "We've had a ton of adversity. We've lost some close games. We've had injuries, like everyone. We're playing three freshmen a ton of minutes. We're banged up. … All that said, guys keep fighting. We've found little ways to get better. We've made a big jump, in my opinion, the past two or three weeks with our ability to be a little more productive and efficient scoring 2s, putting pressure on a defense, drawing more fouls and posting it better. Our interior passing has gotten better. And defensively, we haven't given up. Our guys have not given in. We've had games where we've shot it horrifically and our guys continue to step up defensively."
 
Alabama, one of two SEC teams to defeat Kentucky this season, shot 44.2 percent, with freshman guard Kira Lewis Jr. (14 points) and power forward Donta Hall (10 points, 7 rebounds) topping the Tide. The two combined to make nine of 14 shots, while the rest went 10-for-29. The Tide were also a woeful 10 of 22 from the free-throw line (45.5 percent). 

Makes that 9-for-9 (100 percent) all the more impressive. 

"Andrew is always in the gym, staying after practice, getting his shots up," UF's Johnson said. "Coach White has been staying with him, helping with his jumper. He's been consistent with it. As long as he keeps this up, he needs to keep shooting."

Especially, if it keeps the Gators winning.

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