FINAL: Texas A&M 83, Florida 80 (OT)
Thursday, March 10, 2022 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
SEC TOURNAMENT
AT THE BUZZER
TEXAS A&M 83, FLORIDA 80 (OT)
AT THE BUZZER
TEXAS A&M 83, FLORIDA 80 (OT)
WHAT HAPPENED: Reserve guard Hassan Diarra buried a contested 3-point shot with 0.4 seconds left in overtime and the seventh-seeded Aggies shocked the No. 9-seed Gators in second-round play of the Southeastern Conference Tournament at Amalie Arena, effectively ending UF's chances at a fifth straight NCAA Tournament berth. Diarra's dagger came after a jumpshot attempt by Florida guard Phlandrous Fleming Jr., with a chance to break a tie at 80-all, wedged between the rim and backboard with 16.2 seconds to go. The possession arrow favored the Aggies, who after a timeout worked the ball until it got to Diarra, who dribbled at the top of the key, pulled up and, in essence, ended UF's season and ruined what would have been an epic comeback. The Gators trailed by 13 with just over five minutes to play in regulation after Diarra hit a 30-foot, late-shock clock 3-pointer to push the Aggies ahead 62-49. That's when UF came alive and took the partisan crowd on a wild ride by taking off on a 21-8 tear fueled by freshman guard Kowacie Reeves, who scored all of his career-high 21 points in the second half and also grabbed six rebounds. Reeves bombed a pair of 3-pointers with 36.6 seconds left, the first actually becoming four-point play that cut the Aggies' lead to a point with 36.6 seconds left. At A&M's end, Wade Taylor IV made two free throws to push his team in front by three, but Reeves dropped his second and tying 3-ball with 17.5 to play to knot the game at 70. The Aggies missed a shot as regulation time expired to send things into overtime. Reeves started the extra period with a driving, old-fashion three-point play for the lead, but A&M surged back in front and things see-sawed over the final three minutes, with UF's last lead coming on a Fleming jumper in the paint with 48.6 seconds left for an 80-78 advantage. UF appeared to have forced a turnover with 38.4 seconds left, but an official's call was overruled by another, who called Fleming for a foul on the play, instead, taking possession away from the Gators. Tyrece Radford's two free throws tied the game and set up the gut-punch finish. A&M shot 45.3 percent for the game and made nine of 17 from deep, compared to UF's 43.8 and just five of 24. In addition to Reeves, the Gators were led by backup guard Niels Lane, who came off the bench to tally career highs of a career-high 16 points and nine rebounds, with senior forward Colin Castleton adding 15 points and six rebounds. Fleming had 17 points, three rebounds, four assists, but also six of the team's 18 turnovers.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: This just may have been a coming-out party, of sorts, for Reeves. Good for him and what he could represent for the UF future. As for the present: Was this the final game for Castleton? If so, imagine what the Gators would have been like without him the last two seasons.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: Texas A&M attempted no free throws in the first half and Florida was called for zero fouls. Seriously. The Aggies took 36 free throws over the last 25 minutes (and made 26). The two teams combined for 46 fouls and 61 free throws after halftime (compared to six and five, respectively, in the first half).
UP NEXT: The Gators (19-13), for the first time in six years, will watch the NCAA Tournament reveal show Sunday night with no expectation of seeing their name appear in the field of 68. That leaves the NIT bracket for later Sunday night, which would be the program's first trip to the not-much-consolation event since 2016, which was White's first season in Gainesville. Assuming UF accepts the bid, the Gators are expected to play the first round at home Wednesday, but don't be surprised if some players opt out.
Players Mentioned
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