Haugh Stuff: No. 1 Gators Open With 77-67 Win Over No. 14 Miami

No. 1 Florida opened its season with a 77-67 win over No. 14 Miami on Monday night in Tampa, pulling away behind Thomas Haugh and a 44-39 edge on the boards.

The Gators (1-0) and Hurricanes (0-1) met in the Orion180 Tipoff Classic at Benchmark International Arena. Florida led 46-36 at halftime, and its largest lead was 14 points.

Haugh led Florida with 19 points and 10 rebounds and made 4 of 8 three-pointers. Boogie Fland scored 12 and added four assists and four steals. Alex Condon had 11 points and seven rebounds, and Rueben Chinyelu finished with 14 rebounds and three blocks.

Miami's Acaden Lewis led all scorers with 24 points, and Somto Cyril scored 13. The Hurricanes shot 35 percent (21 of 60) and made 4 of 17 three-pointers.

Florida handed out 17 assists to Miami's six, forced 11 turnovers and scored 21 points off them to the Hurricanes' seven. The Gators made 11 of 26 three-pointers but only 20 of 35 free throws.

Florida returns home to host Jacksonville on Thursday, Nov. 5, at 8 p.m. ET on SEC Network+, then visits Florida State on Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Duke visits Gainesville on Tuesday, Dec. 1, at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Hear Buddy Martin and the crew break down the Gators live on The Buddy Martin Show, Monday through Thursday at 9 p.m. ET on YouTube.

Statistics: ESPN. More Florida basketball coverage to come on GatorBait Media.

Photo courtesy UAA (University Athletic Association, FloridaGators.com) and Hannah White. See more of her work on Instagram, and the official Florida Gators photo galleries at FloridaGators.com.