At the Buzzer: Florida 71, Ole Miss 55 (Instant Breakdown)
Tuesday, January 14, 2020 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
AT THE BUZZER
FLORIDA 71, OLE MISS 55
FLORIDA 71, OLE MISS 55
WHAT HAPPENED: Grad-transfer forward Kerry Blackshear Jr. fell a rebound shy of a double-double with 13 points and nine boards, while sophomore forward Keyontae Johnson added 15 points, grabbed six rebounds and kicked a trio of assists, as the Gators bounced back from the weekend's blowout loss at Missouri with a rout Tuesday night of the Rebels in their Southeastern Conference game at Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center. The victory gave UF coach Mike White his 100th victory in his five season with the Gators, making him the fifth coach in program history to hit the milestone. Sophomore point guard Andrew Nembhard tallied 10 points and six assists, engineering the UF offense to 54-percent shooting for the game, including 62 percent in the first half when the home team used a late-period push to open a 12-lead at the break. With Ole Miss missing its top player, guard and No. 5 SEC scorer Breein Tyree (17.8 points per game; late scratch due to a back bruise), UF had an 11-point lead six minutes into the game, but the Rebels commenced a 16-2 run to go up by three, 22-19, at the 8:44 mark, with guard Blake Hinson on his way 13 first-half points. The Gators, though, returned the favor by hitting nine consecutive field-goal attempts, including 3s from sophomore guard Noah Locke and freshman guard Ques Glover, to take a 40-28 lead into the locker room, thanks to 62-percent shooting from the floor. Florida started the second half by scoring the period's first seven points, five from Locke, to go up 19. The closest Ole Miss closed the rest of the way was 14, as the Rebels shot 29 percent in the second half.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Kudos to White for hitting the century mark and doing so against the school for which he started as a point guard from 1995-99. Former UF coach and icon Billy Donovan needed 154 games to get there, doing it with the last win in his fifth season. White needed 158. Now, 16 games into his fifth season, White's winning percentage with the Gators stands at .633. Donovan's winning percentage 16 games into his fifth UF season was .629.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: UF hit just two 3s in the first half and, instead, worked the Rebels for 30 points in the paint on the way to that 62 percent through the first 20 minutes. The Gators also began the day ranked last in the SEC in scoring defense, allowing 85.7 in league play. No, the Rebels didn't have Tyree, who'd averaged 26.5 in their first two conference games. Still, Florida won going away and will shave a few points off that defensive scoring average.
UP NEXT: Florida (11-5, 3-1) starts a three-game paddlewheel of big-time opponents with Saturday afternoon's home and nationally televised showdown against fourth-ranked Auburn (15-0, 3-0). Whether the Tigers will still be one of just two unbeaten teams in the nation (along with San Diego State) when they get here will this weekend depends on their Wednesday night visit to rival Alabama. After that, the Gators play at defending league champion LSU (11-4, 3-0) next Tuesday night, then are back home the following Saturday, Jan. 25, for a showdown against No. 2 Baylor (13-1) in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
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