Big guys dominate the paint as Gators hammer Oklahoma, 96-79
- Franz Beard
- Jan 14
- 5 min read
What happened Tuesday night at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman was the equivalent of a Florida warning shot across the bow of the other 15 teams in the Southeastern Conference. As if 19th-ranked Florida needed to prove that last week’s blowout wins over Georgia and Tennessee weren’t simply O-Dome home cooking, the Gators (12-5, 3-1 SEC) showed that this newfound intensity plays quite well on the road.
It was 45-24 after the first half and 60-31 five minutes into the second half when the Gators let off the intensity pedal just enough to allow Oklahoma (11-6, 1-3 SEC) to heat up from the 3-point line to at least make the final score respectable. The Sooners went 8-12 from the 3-point line in the second half. That never got them closer than 15 and it all but ensured Todd Golden will be riding the Gators hard in practice as they prep for Saturday’s showdown in Nashville with unbeaten Vanderbilt.
“I thought we played really well the first 25 minutes of the game, an extension of our effort on Saturday against Tennessee,” Golden said after the Gators won their third straight SEC game, 96-79. “I thought we defended incredibly well in the first half, did a great job being on Oklahoma's tendencies, taking away the 3-point line, not allowing second chances after the first four minutes of the game. And offensively, we just played with great purpose, didn't turn the ball over, got the ball inside, did a really good job of imposing our will in there.”
The Gators played the first 25 minutes like a team on a search and destroy mission and that should bother the rest of the SEC. This is not the team that lost four preseason games, nor is it the one that dropped the SEC opener at Missouri. If there is such a thing as a good loss, the Missouri game was a good one because it served the purpose of a wakeup call.
In the three games since the Missouri loss, the Gators have dictated the pace of the game with their defense, forcing bad shots, grabbing rebounds and then beating opponents down the court where the first priority is getting the ball inside to the foursome of Tommy Haugh, Rueben Chinyelu, Alex Condon and Micah Handlogten.
The Gators outscored Oklahoma 60-22 in the paint with the four big guys combining to go 23-38 from the field with 33 rebounds (16 on the offensive end).
“They can score one-on-one in the block and they can go get it,” Oklahoma coach Porter Moser said. “I don’t think we had answers for those bigs. You can’t simulate that. They’re physical, they’re skilled, but I thought their one-on-one post scoring and the elite passing … Condon six assists. That big-to-big passing is just so hard to guard. If you come to rotate, they just drop the other one over. They’re throwing up by the rim. Just really had no answers … “
Haugh finished the game with 21 points, seven rebounds and two steals. Chinyelu had another double-double, scoring 19 while grabbing 12 rebounds and blocking a shot. Condon had 10 points, six rebounds, six assists, two blocked shots and two steals. Coming off the bench Handlogten had six points, eight rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots.
Outside shooting was once again erratic – just 6-22 from the 3-point line – but even though they didn’t shoot all that well, Boogie Fland, Xaivian Lee and Urban Klavzar played extremely well. Fland followed up his breakout game against Tennessee by going off for 15 points to go with five rebounds, seven assists and two steals. Lee had four points, two rebounds, three assists and two steals. Klavzar had 13 points, one rebound, one assist and one steal.
Golden said Fland is “playing with a lot of confidence out there. Made a big 3 in the first half, and other than that didn't shoot the three great, but I thought he played a really good floor game inside the three – seven assists, one turnover, two steals, just a lot of winning plays out there – and he’s definitely playing freer, playing with more confidence, and taking advantage of what the defense gives him. When him and X (Xaivian Lee) are playing well, we're going to be good.”
It was a 3-pointer by Fland with 9:10 remaining in the first half that put the Gators ahead 23-15, jump starting the Florida offense. Over the next five minutes the Gators stretched the lead to 20 (37-17) on a three by Haugh with 4:37 left. It was pure carnage the rest of the half and the first five of the second. In the first five minutes of the second half, the Gators pounded the ball inside with Chinyelu scoring eight while stretching the lead to 60-31.
From that point onward, the Sooners caught fire from the 3-point line. The Gators ran them off the line consistently in the first half when they attempted only four threes, but down 29, they started bombing in shots. Kirill Elatontsev scored all 17 of his second half points in the final 15 minutes, hitting all four of his 3-pointers.
Golden said Elatontsev “just made a lot of shots and kind of stretched us out. I thought they shot the ball well in the second half. I wasn't super pleased with our effort defensively and in the way we finished the game, but overall, very happy with this win. Go on the road and beat a good Oklahoma team by 17, it's hard to do. And, as I've talked about our team over this past week, I really feel like we're making a jump and we're getting better at the right time.”
The Gators held Oklahoma to 29 percent shooting in the first half. Against Florida’s less than intense second half defense, they hit 58.6 percent overall and 67 percent from the 3-point line.
SEC BASKETBALL
No. 18 Alabama (12-5, 2-2 SEC) 97, Mississippi State (10-7, 2-2 SEC) 82: Alabama lit up Mississippi State for 61 second half points, turning a 2-point halftime advantage into a blowout win. Labaron Philon Jr. scored 32 and Aiden Sherrell 22 to lead the Crimson Tide, which ended a 2-game losing streak. Josh Hubbard led Mississippi State with 23.
No. 24 Tennessee (12-5, 2-2 SEC) 87, Texas A&M (13-4, 3-1 SEC) 82, 2 OT: The Vols began the game hitting just three of their first 17 shots, but they rallied and had chances to win the game in regulation and at the end of the first overtime before outscoring the Aggies 12-7 in the second extra period. Nate Ament led Tennessee with 23 points, 10 of which were scored in the two overtime periods. The Aggies, who had a 6-game winning streak broken, were led by Jacari Lane with 20 points.
Tonight’s games
No. 10 Vanderbilt (16-0, 3-0 SEC) at Texas (10-6, 1-2 SEC)
South Carolina (10-6, 1-2 SEC) at No. 17 Arkansas (12-4, 2-1 SEC)
Ole Miss (9-7, 1-2 SEC) at No. 21 Georgia (14-2, 2-1 SEC)
Auburn (10-6, 1-2 SEC) at Missouri (12-4, 2-1 SEC)
Kentucky (10-6, 1-2 SEC) at LSU (12-4, 0-3 SEC)
Another stellar win for the Gators....when they are clicking together it is a beautiful thing to watch. Every game improvement means we will peak at the right time! Tough games ahead. The bigs know how to really light the Gator crowd up.
“On the road” is a key to the Gators’ easing up after building that 29-point lead. By then Florida was toying with the Sooners, could have kept up the intensity and pushed ahead by 40. Except for the intensity on Thomas Haugh’s face the Gators on the court started smiling at one another. They had proven a third time in a row what they are capable of doing when they’re fully engaged. Road trips have their own challenges apart from 40 minutes on the court and the guys saved something for this next trip. Can’t wait for Saturday’s match-up in Nashville against those high-flying ‘Dores.
We got a little sloppy at the end but we totally dominated them most of the game