Florida Falls Short of Upset Victory Over Kentucky, 82-74
A career-high 24-point night by Riley Kugel — continuing a sensational run by the elite true freshman over his last five outings — proved not enough for the Gators to produce a monumental upset over the Wildcats at home on Wednesday night.
Despite a promising performance from a Florida squad attempting to reinvent itself on the fly, UK escaped out of Gainesville with an 82-74 victory in the 150th meeting between the two programs.
The game lived up to the mantra of college basketball: A game of runs.
Kentucky dominated the start of the contest, shooting over 60% from the floor, particularly from the midrange, for the greater portion of the first half as UF failed to eclipse the 40% mark.
It allowed the Wildcats to take a 30-15 lead with 8:17 remaining. Oscar Tshiebwe posted 15 points to lead Kentucky after an uncharacteristic four-point outing in the previous matchup in Lexington.
But, Florida wouldn't be held down.
The Gators produced two massive scoring runs of 13-0 and 9-0 in the final eight minutes of the first half to quickly trim the 15-point Kentucky lead.
Getting it down to two initially before the Wildcats extended it back to six, Golden's squad continued to surge as the half ended. Kugel's 14 first-half points, which included a late go-ahead triple, sent Florida into the halftime break with a one-point lead.
The 16-point first-half swing was supported by Kugel's hot hand from beyond the arc — knocking down three of his four downtown attempts. Kowacie Reeeves Jr. added nine points to the 37-point total.
The Gators collectively shot 53.6% from the floor through the first 20 minutes (50% overall) connecting on the looks UK granted them. That elevated the unit to produce at an unexpectedly high level without Colin Castleton in the fold.
Returning from the break, following a brief back and forth with both teams exploiting the low post, Kentucky started to turn defense into offense. Two blocks at the bucket resulted in easy rim twos on the other end, resulting in a 6-0 run to re-assume a multiple-possession lead.
However, an opportune timeout by Golden allowed Florida to regroup. Kugel connected with a triple from the right wing to cut the lead back to four, 50-46.
UF fed into that spark by earning two back-to-back steals, one of which resulted in a foul on Reeves on a dunk attempt at the rim. He knocked down both free throws to cut the lead to two.
An ensuing fastbreak layup through contact by Niels Lane — who received an increase in playing time despite serving just 5.9 minutes per game this season tied the game at 50. He finished the three-point play from the charity stripe.
Lane was an integral piece to Florida's attack on both ends, showcasing his elite defensive prowess, crashing the boards and making tough shots inside to post eight points on the night.
His production, supplementing Florida's consistent presence from downtown by Reeves and Kugel, helped the Gators stick around despite multiple attempts for Kentucky to pull away in the second half.
It looked as if the underdogs began to run out of steam in the final eight minutes, conceding five of seven field goals just prior to a timeout with 4:06 remaining. However, one last-ditch effort by Florida, including a 9-0 spurt highlighted by Will Richard's triple in trail with 1:56 remaining, attempted to close the gap in the final two minutes.
Florida cut the lead to two with just over a minute left, but a late And-1 bucket by Chris Livingston put the nail in UF's coffin with 46 seconds remaining.
Tshiebwe finished with 25 points. Forward Jacob Toppin and guard Antonio Reeves added 16 a piece to give Kentucky the edge late. The Cats shot 53% from the floor as a squad, taking advantage of added looks received by the 40-21 advantage on the boards.
The Wildcats continue on pace for a comfortable at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament while Florida drops its fifth game in the last six appearances.
Next on the schedule for the Gators is a rematch from their lone Quad III loss of the year as they travel to Vanderbilt on Saturday.
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