FINAL: No. 19 Florida 98, No. 10 Vanderbilt 94

Saturday, January 17

Nashville, TN

2 PM

Florida Gators

Vanderbilt

Chris Harry’s At the Buzzer presented by Ticketmaster

FINAL: No. 19 Florida 98, No. 10 Vanderbilt 94

Saturday, January 17, 2026 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry

By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer

What Happened

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Florida senior guard Xaivian Lee buried a go-ahead 3-pointer with 44 seconds to go and junior forward Alex Condon sank two pressure-packed free throws with 6.1 seconds left to seal a 98-94 road victory Saturday afternoon for the 19th-ranked Gators over 10th-ranked Vanderbilt in a wild Southeastern Conference affair at an even wilder Memorial Gymnasium.

Lee, the transfer from Princeton, equaled his season-high of 20 points, while junior center Rueben Chinyelu posted his ninth double-double of the season with a career-high 20 points, 10 rebounds, plus three assists and three blocks. Junior wing Thomas Haugh had 18 points and eight boards, with Condon throwing in 16 points and adding eight rebounds. Backup guard Isaiah Brown had the finest game of his UF career with 14 points and four rebounds in 20 minutes off the bench; on his 20th birthday, no less.

The win, UF's fourth straight and eighth of the last nine, moved the Gators into first place in the SEC standings.

It was a crazy, back-and-forth battle that featured 17 lead changes and 14 ties, with both teams hitting timely shot after shot. The Gators blew an 11-point first half lead and nine-point edge in the second. They trailed 94-92 with a minute to go when Lee, a 25% shooter from distance on the season, nailed a late-clock step-back 3 for a 95-94 lead with 43.9 to go. The Commodores, who had just three turnovers through the first 39-plus minutes, coughed it up a fourth time in the halfcourt when AK Okereke dribbled into traffic and lost the ball out of bounds with 19 seconds to go.

Vandy immediately fouled Lee on the inbound. He made just one of two free throws, keeping the lead at just two points, but the Commodores failed to convert a game-tying attempt, with Condon -- who was harassed mercilessly after two first-half air balls -- coolly went to the line and gave the Gators a four-point lead.

UF shot 52.5% for the game and a season-best 37.5 from distance in going 9-for-24. They also sank 25 of 30 free throws (83.3%). Vandy shot 50.8%, made eight of 22 from deep and went 20-for-22 from the line. The Gators won the battle of the glass 40-26, including with a 13-6 advantage on the offensive end that led to a 22-8 edge in second-chance points.

UF point guard **Boogie Fland** (33) during Saturday's game in Nashville.

Turning Point

The clutch stop, with that precarious two-point lead, inside 20 seconds to go.

Staggering Statistic

UF now has nine all-time road wins over top-10 opponents. Todd Golden has four of them, each coming in the last three seasons.

Up Next

Florida (13-5, 4-1) will play three of the next four games at home, including two next week, starting Tuesday night against LSU (13-5, 1-4), which upset Missouri at home later Saturday. The Gators get Auburn at home next weekend. Vanderbilt (16-2, 3-2) is at No. 17 Arkansas.

Email senior writer Chris Harry at chrish@gators.ufl.edu. Find his story archives here.