Gators go survival mode late for 87-73 win over Florida State

Alijah Martin banks in a shot in the second half against FSU (UAA Photo)

It could have been a pillage and plunder road trip for the 20th-ranked Florida Gators. They could have departed Tallahassee leaving a swath of destruction in their path but the no-doubter blowout it could have been went white knuckles when Florida State scored six straight points, trimming a one-time 18-point first half deficit into a very manageable 77-73 with 2:23 to go.

That late run had the bulk of the crowd of 9,727 borderline apoplectic but it turned out to be nothing more than a wake-up call for the Gators. The 13-inch stiletto to the hearts of Seminole fans began with the look of a wild desperation, shot-clock beating SCUD when it left Alijah Martin’s hands just to the left of the key.

It couldn't go in, could it?

The shot was certainly off the mark and it slammed into the backboard, but instead of a miss that would have been like a 40-gallon can of gasoline thrown on a raging fire, it caromed through the net. Most of the air was sucked out of the Donald Tucker Center and there was still 1:35 to go.

By the time to clock flatlined at 0:00 the Gators had finished off the Seminoles with a 10-1 run that included five straight points by Walter Clayton Jr., a baby-faced assassin from Lake Wales. Florida’s 87-74 win bore the look of respectability but head coach Todd Golden knew it was a great escape due to 19 turnovers that kept the Seminoles and the pro-FSU crowd in the game.

“We got up 18 points, and a big part of that was just taking care of the basketball,” Golden said after scoring his third straight win over Florida State. “We had eight turnovers at halftime. We got 11 in the second half, and if the end of the game would have gone differently, that would have been the issue. That would have been what we pointed at and said, 'This is what cost us the game.'

“We had some guys step up and make some big shots late. Kind of saved us, but we obviously .. . we have to do a much better job taking care of the ball, especially as we will see more teams that guard like this when we get into SEC play.”

FSU’s near Lazarus comeback from the dead had something to do with the way the Seminoles played defense but more to do with the Gators getting sloppy with the basketball. It was 37-19 with 5:38 to go in the first half after back-to-back threes by Clayton, who finished the night with 25. At that point, Florida State was against the ropes, knees wobbly, ready to drop to the canvas for an 8-count.

The Gators lacked the knockout punch, however. Florida turned the ball over four times in the final five minutes, compounding the ball security issues with three missed 3-pointers and two missed layups. FSU weathered enough of the storm to finish the half down, 44-31.

It could have been and should have been worse.

Turnovers, too many missed threes and not enough defensive pressure plagued the Gators in the second half. The Gators hit five of their first 10 from the 3-point line, finishing 7-15 from three at the half. The second half was a totally different story. Florida kept launching SCUDs and FSU kept turning empty UF possessions into points at the other end. FSU got back within eight (53-45) after converting a Florida turnover into points with 13:38 to go.

It was 63-52 when the Gators went on a 6-2 mini-run over a 79-second span for a 69-54 lead that had the feel of a knockout. Only problem was, the Seminoles clung to the ropes and wouldn’t go down.

They fought back and the Gators obliged with turnovers and ill-advised 3-point shots. A Clayton layup with 3:19 to go made it a 77-67 game, FSU scored the next six. At 77-73 with 2:23 to go, momentum was clearly with the Seminoles, but they fouled Thomas Haugh, who converted both free throws and Martin’s desperation heave not only beat the clock but found the bottom of the net.

Clayton blocked a 3-pointer by Daequan Davis at 1:21 that Will Richard retrieved for the Gators. Clayton followed that up with another 3-pointer with 55 seconds to go and put the finishing touches on the win with a layup with 21 seconds to go.

What saved the Gators from a total collapse was domination on the backboards.  The Gators held FSU to 38.6 percent shooting from the field and only 13-21 from the foul line. Florida grabbed 47 FSU misses for an 18-rebound advantage. The Gators finished with a 16-9 advantage on second chance points.

Alex Condon only scored seven points but he yanked down 12 rebounds. The same was true for Thomas Haugh, five points but nine rebounds.

“We lost the turnover battle by 11, but we won the boards by 18,” Golden noted, adding, “They got nine more attempts than we did, and four more free throws than we did. That's usually a losing proposition, but the glass is what saved us tonight."

While blowout wins over a traditionally strong team from the Atlantic Coast Conference tend to get the attention of future opponents, righting a listing ship when a game is on the verge of slipping away tells a coach and a team they’re capable of staring adversity in the face and overcoming. That’s what happened against Florida State. Perhaps the Gators let their foot off the gas in the first half and it took awhile to regain their mojo. Once Florida State whittled the lead down to four, the Gators responded.

“In the second half, we regressed,” Golden said. “We’re only 23 percent, only three makes [on 3-pointers] but, you know, I do think to Florida State's credit, they did a good job of slowing us down in the second half and really kind of getting the momentum of the game shifted. They were playing downhill. We were kind of playing on our heels a little bit, but again, you know, we just dug in and found a way, especially in those last four minutes. Tommy's free throws were huge, and then those two threes from Alijah and Walt back-to-back were the separators."

Game notes: Clayton finished with 25 points on 8-15 shooting overall, 4-10 from the 3-point line and 5-5 from the foul line. He also had five rebounds, three assists, a blocked shot and a steal ... Martin scored 17 to go with five rebounds and two assists ... Sam Alexis came off the bench to score 12, hitting 5-6 from the field ... Overall the Gators hit 52.5 percent (32-61), 10-28 (35.7 percent) from the 3-point line and 13-17 (76.5 percent) from the foul line.

Friday’s scores

No. 20 FLORIDA (4-0) 87, Florida State (3-1) 74

No. 13 Purdue (4-0) 87, No. 2 Alabama (3-1) 78

Georgia (4-0) 77, Georgia Tech (2-2) 69

No. 23 Texas A&M (3-1) 78, No. 21 Ohio STate (2-1) 64

Today’s games

Stetson (1-2) at Oklahoma (2-0)

South Carolina (2-1) at No. 16 Indiana (2-0)

Jackson State (0-3) at Vanderbilt (2-0)

Colorado State (3-0) at No. 25 Ole Miss (3-0)

Mississippi Valley State (1-2) at Texas (2-1)

Sunday’s games

Austin Peay (3-0) at No. 12 Tennessee (2-0)

Utah (3-0) at Mississippi State (3-0)