“I’m the one telling you the way it is.” – Chili Palmer, played by John Travolta in the movie “Get Shorty”

The paradox of the irresistible force meeting the immovable object comes to mind easily when comparing the way Todd Golden wants the Florida Gators to play and the rock fight that breaks out each time a Southeastern Conference team ventures to College Station to face Buzz Williams and the Texas A&M Aggies today (4 p.m., ESPN2). Golden wants the Gators (15-6, 5-3 SEC) to turn games into a track meet with a shot going up eight seconds into every possession. Buzz Williams prefers a grind it out, wear you down style. The Gators want to dictate a 160-point pace while the Aggies are content with games settled in the 60s or low 70s. The numbers are an extension of each coach’s philosophy. The Gators average 85.8 points per game, third best in the SEC, eighth in the nation and on pace to become the highest scoring team in University of Florida history. Only once all season have the Gators been held to fewer than 70 points in a game (66 vs. Tennessee). In their last two games, both overtime wins, the Gators scored 102 against Georgia and 94 against Kentucky. Texas A&M averages 73.8 per game while holding opponents to 68.4 points. Only Florida Atlantic, Memphis and Kentucky have scored more than 80 points in a game against the Aggies. The Aggies have only scored more than 80 four times. They are dead last in the SEC in both shooting (39 percent) and from the 3-point line (26.7 percent). It’s no secret what the Aggies will try to do defensively. They push, they shove, they double the ball, cut off passing angles and make opponents take a lot of seconds off the shot clock. When the Aggies have the ball, the bulk of the shots come from guards Wade Taylor IV and Tyrese Radford. They shoot and everyone crashes the boards for second chance opportunities. Nobody in the country does it better on the offensive backboards. "They do two things incredibly well,” Golden said Friday before the Gators left for the airport to fly to College Station. “They're obviously an amazing rebounding team. I think we're No. 2 nationally right now offensive rebounding, I think they're one. So that's going to be quite the scene on Saturday that way. They get to line a lot, then defensively they do a good job taking you out of what you run. They play like a little matchup zone, they guard different things, they switch a lot. They try to make you uncomfortable, so you're not gonna be able to run your normal offense for most of the game. “But you’ve got to take advantage of when they trap the ball and when they take chances, which they do a little bit. So different game stylistically. It'll be a lot different than the Kentucky game, that's for sure. It's more similar to the Missouri game, more similar to Mississippi State, teams that really like to get after you defensively. But they're good. They're really tough on their home floor. They beat Kentucky on their home floor. So it's a team, especially with Wade Taylor. They have some weapons and they just have a very physical mentality in terms of the way they play. So that's gonna be the challenge is making sure we go in there and fight the fight properly." Taylor is third in the Southeastern Conference in scoring at 20 points per game. He is a volume shooter (16.7 shots per game) who only hits 37.1 percent overall and 30.8 percent from the 3-point line, but he gets to the foul line a lot (122 times, second most in the SEC). When Taylor puts the ball on the deck and drives to the rack, he’s very effective dumping the ball off to teammates (3.8 assists per game). In Al McGuire terminology, Taylor is the head of the snake and he has to be cut off to render the Aggie offense ineffective. Radford averages 13 points per game mostly on getting to the rack. He shoots only 36.9 percent from the field and a miserable 23.7 percent from the 3-point line, but he can be streaky and he’s particularly effective getting offensive rebounds and stickbacks. The Aggies don’t turn the ball over much and they’re very good about getting to the foul line although they have problems converting once they get there. In the Aggies most recent game, a 71-68 loss to Ole Miss, they made only 12-22 from the line, which negated a 42-32 advantage on the backboards. Knowing that the Aggies will play a very physical game, it will be critical for the Gators to protect the ball as well as they did in the win over Kentucky (9 turnovers in a 45 minute game) and make their free throws (18-22). Although Florida is only 69 percent from the foul line this season, the Gators have hit 52 of their last 62 attempts. Another key for the Gators will be making the extra pass. Unselfish play has been critical in the 4-game winning streak the Gators take into tonight’s game. Against Kentucky, Zyon Pullin had eight assists, four of them on Walter Clayton Jr.’s seven made 3-pointers. On the play that sent the Kentucky game into overtime, Pullin drove into the lane, forcing UK defenders to commit to him, then he found Clayton open on the wing for the game-tying 3-pointer. Riley Kugel had two opportunities that he could have taken the shot late in the game against Kentucky – once with less than a 20 seconds in regulation, the other in overtime – but he deferred on the first by drawing the defender to him before he dumped the ball to Tyrese Samuel, and in overtime by drawing the defender toward him before he found Clayton in the corner for an open three. “I think the biggest thing is we're just trying to keep it simple,” Golden said. “We're not trying to make hero plays where we're trying to make two-on-one or three-on-one decisions. We're letting the next guy make the play and we did a really good job of that on Wednesday night." Bracketology, etc.: Jerry Palm of CBS Sports has the Gators a No. 8 seed in the South Regional, facing 9th-seed Saint Mary’s in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. Todd Golden played collegiately at Saint Mary’s … The Gators are No. 36 in the NCAA Net Rankings. They’re No. 32 in the current kenpom.com analytics … With 88 assists and only 20 turnovers, Pullin leads the country in assist-to-turnover margin … The Gators continue to lead the country in rebounding at 44.9 per game. The last time a Florida team averaged more than 40 rebounds per game was 1975-76 when they averaged 43.2 per game … At 85.8 points per game, the Gators are two points ahead of the 1999-00 Gators (83.8 points per game) to become the highest scoring team in school history. Anticipated starting lineups FLORIDA (15-6, 5-3 SEC): 6-10 Tyrese Samuel (13.6 points, 8.5 rebounds); 7-1 Micah Handlogten (7.3 points, 7.5 rebounds); 6-4 Will Richard (11.6 points, 4.1 rebounds); 6-2 Walter Clayton Jr. (16.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists); 6-4 Zyon Pullin (15.3 points, 3.8 rebounds. 4.9 assists) Texas A&M (12-8, 3-4 SEC): 6-7 Solomon Washington (5.3, 5.0 rebounds); 6-11 Wildens Leveque (2.1 points, 3.4 rebounds); 6-7 Jace Carter (6.6 points, 5.3 rebounds); Tyrece Radford (13.0 points, 5.6 rebounds); Wade Taylor IV (20 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists) Today’s games: FLORIDA (15-6, 5-3 SEC) at Texas A&M (12-8, 3-4 SEC); No. 5 Tennessee (15-5, 5-2 SEC) at No. 6 Kentucky (15-5, 5-3 SEC); No. 16 Auburn (17-4, 6-2 SEC) at Ole Miss (18-3, 5-3 SEC); Mississippi State (14-7, 3-5 SEC) at No. 24 Alabama (15-6, 7-1 SEC); South Carolina (18-3, 6-2 SEC) at Georgia (14-7, 4-4 SEC); Missouri (8-13, 0-8 SEC) at Vanderbilt (5-15, 0-7 SEC)

The work in progress that is the evolution of Florida (15-6, 5-3 SEC) basketball was on display for the whole world to see at Rupp Arena in Lexington Wednesday night. The difference between the team that lost winnable neutral site games against Virginia (3 points) and Baylor (4 points) and a 2-pointer at home against Kentucky can be traced to poise at the foul line and the maturity to make exceptional decisions at crunch time. The Gators are only a 69 percent team at the foul line for the season, but they’re a combined 52-62 in the last three, all wins of the white knuckles variety, the last two in overtime. Against Kentucky in Rupp, with the state of Kentucky’s asylums given a day pass to attend a basketball game, the decibel level in the final 44.5 seconds was ear shattering, yet the Gators hit 5-6 to silence the crowd. The Gators finished the game 18-22 at the line, vastly better than their 18-29 effort against Kentucky in Gainesville. The Wildcats, who should be a better free throw shooting team at home, were a very poor 11-17. This was a game of great decision-making by the Gators. In stark contrast to the overtime win over Georgia in which the Gators turned the ball over 19 times, there were only nine turnovers Wednesday night. The Wildcats rely on turnovers and bad decisions to get out on the break where they are one of the fastest, if not the fastest team in the country. The Wildcats managed only seven points off Florida’s miscues. Four decisions in the final 25 seconds of regulation lend credence to the maturity angle. With 22 seconds to go and Kentucky leading 83-79, Tyrese Samuel got a feed in the low blocks but his shot was rejected by 7-1 Ugonna Onyenso. Somehow the ball wound up in Samuel's hands. Decision time. If he had gone straight up, chances are Onyenso would have gotten his ninth blocked shot, so he awkwardly got the ball into Riley Kugel’s hands. Kugel backed off along the baseline, drew Tre Mitchell away from the paint toward the corner and then put the ball on the deck. Instead of putting the ball up which nearly everyone in Rupp expected, he dumped it off to Samuel who softly got the ball in the net. This was one of two excellent decisions by Kugel, one at the end of regulation, the other in overtime that were converted into scores by the Gators. In the overtime, Kugel took a pass from Clayton, jab stepped Adou Thiero which caused Sheppard to back off Clayton just a step or two. Kugel delivered the pass into the corner and Clayton buried the three to give the Gators the lead for good at 89-87 with 1:42 to go. When the Wildcats’ Rob Dillingham missed the second of two free throws with 13.5 seconds to go in regulation, Walter Clayton Jr. grabbed the rebound. Rather than push the ball up the court, he put the ball in the hands of Zyon Pullin, who dribbled about five feet past the foul line, drawing three Kentucky defenders to him. Rather than kill his dribble flat-footed, Pullin went airborne, kicked the ball back to the left wing where he found Clayton waiting at the 3-point line. Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard had retreated too far below the foul line so he sprinted to try to get back into defensive position. When Sheppard left his feet, Clayton paused for a moment, let Sheppard fly by, then drilled the open 3-pointer to tie the game at 84-84 and send it to overtime. An excellent decision by Clayton to give the ball up after the rebound and another great decision by Pullin to find Clayton for the open 3-pointer with 3-seconds left. Once in overtime, Pullin showed his basketball IQ. With the Gators ahead 94-90 and only seconds remaining, Reeves rushed a 3-pointer from the corner which Sheppard rebounded. Before he could either back off to shoot a 3-pointer or find another shooter, Pullin fouled him. Two free throws instead of a chance to launch a game-tying 3-pointer. Sheppard had to make the first free throw, try to miss the second and hope the Wildcats could tap the ball out for a catch and shoot 3-pointer. Sheppard made the first shot, but Clayton crossed into the lane, grabbed the rebound and iced the clock. There were plenty more good decisions made in this game, but when the game was on the line the Gators made all the right decisions and all the right plays. There is a fine line between game-winning plays and end of the game mistakes. More often than not, the difference is in the decisions. Earlier in the year, the Gators might not have made the right decisions. Winners of their last four, this Florida team is playing like a mature team building momentum for the postseason. The Gators head to Texas A&M for a Saturday matchup with the Aggies. Win it and UF finds itself 6-3 in SEC play at the mid-point of the conference schedule. SEC BASKETBALL STATE OF THE LEAGUE General consensus is the SEC will get a minimum of seven teams in the NCAA Tournament although eight or even nine isn’t beyond the realm of possibility. The way the league is shaping up for the stretch run, a 9-9 record in SEC play seems to be the ticket that gets punched into the tournament. Here is where all 14 teams stand as the SEC hits the mid-point this weekend. No. 24. Alabama (15-6, 7-1 SEC): The Tide averages just a shade under 90 points per game while launching 29 3-pointers. Because they’re so difficult to prepare for, the Tide will be in the hunt for the regular season championship until the very end. Arkansas (11-10, 2-6 SEC): For want of a point guard … The Hogs probably wonder how good they could be if they had a real distributor at the point. They need eight wins to make the tournament with a schedule that will be tough to get more than six. No. 16 Auburn (17-4, 6-2 SEC): Bruce Pearl has one of the best bigs in the league in Johni Broome but they can be had if their 3-point shooters are launching SCUDs. Nobody has a tougher schedule down the stretch, but the Tigers are built to contend. FLORIDA (15-6, 5-3 SEC): Now that the Gators have shown they can (a) win on the road and (b) close out close games, they’re a team nobody wants to play. If they can beat the Aggies Saturday, they will be 6-3 at the midpoint of the conference schedule and an odds-on favorite to make the tournament. Georgia (14-7, 4-4 SEC): The Bulldogs have lost three of their last four and seem to be running out of gas. Mike White needs to score an upset over South Carolina Saturday to get the ship righted. It’s going to be a struggle to get to nine wins. No. 10 Kentucky (15-5, 5-3 SEC): The Wildcats have Final Four talent but they don’t always play that way. They’ll make the tournament as a top four seed thanks to excellent shooters and three 7-footers. LSU (11-9, 3-4 SEC): The next three games are brutal – at Tennessee, Alabama and at Florida – and unless the Tigers go 3-0 they will be playing for the NIT. Mississippi State (14-7, 3-5 SEC): The last four games are brutal – Kentucky, at Auburn, at Texas A&M and South Carolina. The Bulldogs have to get to seven wins minimum before those last four, otherwise they might be looking at the NIT. Missouri (8-13, 0-8 SEC): The Tigers are good enough to play everybody close. Figure they’ll steal one or two before the season is over. They may spoil someone’s season. Ole Miss (18-3, 5-3 SEC): The Rebels are formidable at home and with five home games remaining, it would take a total collapse for them not to make the tournament. Chris Beard is a legitimate candidate for SEC Coach of the Year. South Carolina (18-3, 6-2 SEC): Is there a more surprising team than the Gamecocks? They’ve got the shooters in Meechie Johnson and Myles Stute plus the beast in the middle in B.J. Mack. Three wins gets them to nine and in the tournament. Can they stay the course and contend to the very end? The schedule is favorable. No. 5 Tennessee (15-5, 5-2 SEC): The loss to South Carolina at home quieted a lot of the Final Four talk. The Vols will make the NCAA Tournament, no doubt about it, but if they drop a second straight, this one on the road at Rupp, it might be difficult to get the mojo back. Dalton Knecht can score like crazy, but how much help can they give him? Texas A&M (12-8, 3-4 SEC): It’s a long hard road for the Aggies to make the tournament field because other than Wade Taylor IV, they’re offensively challenged. Getting to 9-9 in league play is a daunting task since the Aggies have a roadies at Alabama and Ole Miss, a pair of games with the Vols, and homers with South Carolina and Mississippi State. The Aggies have the look of an NIT team. Vanderbilt (5-15, 0-7 SEC): Getting anywhere close to .500 by season’s end would be an accomplishment. Saturday’s games: FLORIDA (15-6, 5-3 SEC) at Texas A&M (12-8, 3-4 SEC); No. 5 Tennessee (15-5, 5-2 SEC) at No. 10 Kentucky (15-5, 5-3 SEC); No. 16 Auburn (17-4, 6-2 SEC) at Ole Miss (18-3, 5-3 SEC); Mississippi State (14-7, 3-5 SEC) at No. 24 Alabama (15-6, 7-1 SEC); South Carolina (18-3, 6-2 SEC) at Georgia (14-7, 4-4 SEC); Arkansas (11-10, 2-6 SEC) at LSU (11-9, 3-4 SEC); Missouri (8-13, 0-8 SEC) at Vanderbilt (5-15, 0-7 SEC SEC in NCAA Net Rankings: 5. Tennessee; 7. Alabama; 8. Auburn; 25. Kentucky; 36. FLORIDA; 37. Mississippi State; 41. South Carolina; 46. Texas A&M; 57. Ole Miss; 82. Georgia; 95. LSU; 123. Arkansas; 131. Missouri; 238. Vanderbilt SEC in kenpom.com analytics: 5. Auburn; 6. Tennessee; 8. Alabama; 23. Kentucky; 31. FLORIDA; 33. Mississippi State; 46. South Carolina; 47. Texas A&M; 61. Ole Miss; 69. Georgia; 85. LSU; 106. Arkansas; 116. Missouri; 193. Vanderbilt CBS SPORTS LISTS DAN MULLEN AS A CANDIDATE FOR THE BC JOB Jeff Hafley’s rather abrupt decision to leave Boston College for the defensive coordinator’s job with the Green Bay Packers has Will Backus of CBS Sports listing former Florida head coach Dan Mullen as a leading candidate.  Mullen has spent the last two seasons working the studio and the booth with ESPN and while he’s shown no inclination to get back on the sidelines, Boston College might intrigue him. He’s a native of nearby New Hampshire, BC relies on the kind of talent that typically gets overlooked much the same as Mississippi State where Mullen excelled and he won’t be overwhelmed by high expectations. Writes Backus, “He was fired [at Florida] in 2021 amid a 5-6 season and often draws criticism for his recruiting efforts, or lack thereof, but that wouldn't be an issue at Boston College. The Eagles don't necessarily have the resources to recruit like an SEC powerhouse, so the onus is on player development, the area in which Mullen excels.” ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Lawsuits have been filed by the attorneys general of Tennessee and Virginia against the NCAA over the legality of its guidelines for NIL. At the heart of the Virginia and Tennessee v. the NCAA, is the premise that the NCAA has violated antitrust laws by restricting what collegiate athletes can earn via NIL regulation. In that the NCAA penalized Florida State for NIL violations and is investigating Florida, this could be a case that Florida attorney general Ashley Moody joins. The NCAA has two other lawsuits it must contend with. House v. NCAA is asking for $4 billion in damages. Johnson v. NCAA contends that athletes should be paid employees who are owed back pay. Given the NCAA’s rotten record in court, one or all these suits combined could bring the organization to its knees. The NCAA vows to fight on, however, in large part to protect the cash cow that is collegiate sports. Sportico reported Thursday that the NCAA pulled in $1.3 billion in revenue in 2023 with assets of $870 billion.

John Calipari issued a warning back on January 6 when Kentucky escaped the O-Dome with an 87-85 win. “I’ll just say it again, Florida’s really good,” Calipari said. “We got lucky. I’m happy we won the game. I’m happy for our team, but I imagine they’re looking forward to coming to Lexington.” Oh yes, the Gators did look forward to coming to Lexington. They looked forward to the flight back to Gainesville even better after taking out 10th-ranked Kentucky (15-5, 5-3 SEC) 94-91 in overtime at Rupp Arena 94-91. It was the Gators’ (15-6, 5-3 SEC) first road win over a top ten team since 2003 in Starkville. In a season of close calls against teams that figure to make the NCAA Tournament like Virginia, Baylor and Kentucky, this was a reversal of fortune. Florida was the team that made the decisive plays at the end. “Heck of a win for us,” Florida coach Todd Golden said. “We’ve been knocking on the door for a win like this in our opportunities.” Florida is a really good basketball team. Calipari said it again Wednesday night. He knows fully well that Rupp is a place where the combination of Kentucky talent and a hostile environment turns very good teams into road kill. Only a good team can go into Rupp and do what the Gators did Wednesday night when they sent the game into overtime on a 3-pointer by Walter Clayton Jr. with three seconds left. Only a good team makes all the right plays in overtime, forcing a team with Final Four talent like Kentucky to try to miss a free throw on purpose while hoping for a miracle catch-and-shoot 3-ball at the buzzer that can send the game into a second overtime. Unless you’re a good basketball team you wilt when the decibel level reaches deafening proportions because the 20,068 packing Rupp to the rafters temporarily lose their sanity. The Gators did nothing to restore the sanity of the Kentucky faithful. They will be talking for days about how Florida maintained its poise throughout the game, but especially in the final 37 seconds of regulation. That’s when opposing teams’ knees and spinal cords usually turn to jelly. The final 37 seconds brought out the best in the Gators as they fought back from a 4-point deficit and nailed the last shot that sent a second straight game into overtime. Once in the extra period, the Gators completely took the game over. In most games won on the road by underdogs, a teensy bit of luck comes into play. For Florida it happened with 27.8 seconds left in regulation and the Gators trailing Kentucky 83-79. That’s when Todd Golden made perhaps the most fortuitous time out call of his still young coaching career. A split second after the zebras blew the time out whistle Clayton missed a 3-pointer from the left wing. Badly, but it didn’t matter. The time out call negated the miss. Another stroke of good fortune happened when play resumed. The ball went inside to Tyrese Samuel, whose shot was rejected Ugonna Onyenso, who erased eight shots to go with 13 points and 16 rebounds. Samuel, who finished with 22 points, 13 rebounds, one assist, four blocked shots and a steal, somehow wound up with the ball again. Rather than go straight up, he got the ball to Riley Kugel, who dribbled into the corner and the got the ball back to Samuel. This time, Samuel got the layup with his right hand while spinning left, closing the gap to 83-81. Florida sent Kentucky freshman Rob Dillingham to the foul line with 13.5 seconds to go. He found the bottom of the net with the first free throw, but the second one clanged off the rim and into Clayton’s hands. Clayton kicked it to Zyon Pullin, dribbled through traffic about five feet past the foul line. Pullin killed his dribble, pivoted and delivered a crosscourt pass to Clayton on the left wing. Clayton pump faked, which sent Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard flying past him. Then, just like he does it every day in practice, Clayton launched the 3-pointer that improbably tied the game. “ZP does a great job attracting the defense,” Clayton said after finishing the night with 23 points (7-13 shooting from the 3-point line), two rebounds, a blocked shot and a steal. “He’s a threat, obviously, so he drove middle, I raised up to the left wing. Reed was a little far away from me, came and closed out. I pump faked and hit the shot.” It was the best decision on a night of excellent decisions for Pullin, who put together yet another dominant game from the point. Pullin, whose 3-pointer near the end of the first half, was a momentum builder, had 21 points that included 8-9 from the foul line, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals. Golden was impressed by the maturity Pullin showed to find the open shooter instead of trying to do it all by himself. “It would’ve been really easy for ZP to come down and take a hero shot trying to extend the game,” Golden said. “Did a great job playing off two [feet], found Walt on the wrap and, as Walt said, got his defender up in the air, slide-stepped. That’s a great shot for him. Any shot he gets up, we feel like is a really good shot for our team.” Just like they were Saturday when they beat Georgia in overtime at the O-Dome, the Gators played relaxed and with purpose in the extra period. Samuel got the first points of the overtime and the Gators took the lead for good on Clayton’s seventh 3-pointer of the game with 1:42 left for an 89-86 lead. After that it became a free throw shooting contest. Unlike the game in Gainesville when the Gators went 18-29 from the foul line, the Gators hit 5-6 from the line in the final minute of the game to finish 18-22. In the last three games, the Gators are a combined 52-62. Still, there were moments when the Kentucky faithful felt a miracle of changing water into wine proportions was in the works. Down 94-87 and with the Wildcats teetering on the verge of extinction, Sheppard hit a straightaway three with 10.5 seconds to go to reduce Florida’s margin to four. Hope sprung eternal when Reeves came up with a steal off a deflection but his subsequent 3-pointer missed the mark. Sheppard came down with the offensive rebound but before he could get the ball in the hands of a 3-point shooter, he was fouled by Pullin. That meant Sheppard had to make the first of two free throws, try to miss the second and hope the Wildcats could do a catch-and-shoot 3-ball that could tie the game. Just like they drew it up, Sheppard made the first, but his deliberate miss on the second wound up in Clayton’s hands. The collective groan of the Kentucky faithful said it all. Just getting to overtime required the Gators to expend so much energy. Instead of looking like a tired and emotionally drained team, however, they played the overtime with energy, poise and maturity. “Once we got it to overtime, it kind of felt like we were playing with house money at that point,” Golden said. “We weren’t nervous about anything. It was a 5-minute game. Obviously, if you’d asked us coming into it tonight, would you have taken a five-minute game to determine the winner, we would have said absolutely.” Getting to a point where the Gators had a chance to make it a 5-minute game was an adventure. Kentucky took control of the game in the final minutes of the first half, building a 10-point lead (41-31) with 1:10 to go before the break. The Wildcats had it all going for them, but the Gators had two huge plays to get a bit of momentum heading into the locker room. The first was a nifty pass from Will Richard to Pullin. Richard drove baseline into Kentucky’s tall trees, but instead of going up for a shot that might have been blocked, he flipped the ball back to Pullin on the right wing. Pullin side-stepped a defender to stick the 3-ball with 51 seconds to go. Then came the unsung play of the game. Dillingham missed a jumper but freshman Thomas Haugh outmuscled two Kentucky players for the rebound after which he launched a 50-foot two-hand chest pass that was like a QB leading a wide receiver to Richard who got behind the Kentucky backline defense, gathered it in and hit a layup to halve the Kentucky lead with 24 seconds left. There indeed was momentum and two of the three guys who gave it to the Gators to end the first half cranked it up to start the second. Pullin started the second half with a 3-point play on a layup and a free throw followed by a step back, straightaway 3-pointer by Richard for a 42-41 lead, Florida’s first lead since Denzel Aberdeen’s turnaround jumper in the lane with 7:07 left out the Gators in front 28-27. It became a 3-man game for the Gators offensively over the next five minutes. Samuel scored six points on three layups, Clayton hit a pair of threes and Pullin hit a pair of free throws, a layup and a short jumper that tied the game at 58-58 with 13:02 left in the game. The Gators were in a real offensive groove, but so were the Wildcats. Every time the Gators hit a shot to tie the score, Kentucky countered with a shot of its own. Neither team could shake the other until Antonio Reeves scored four points on consecutive possessions – a running bank-shot jumper and a pair of free throws – for an 81-77 lead with 1:50 left in the game.  All that did was set the stage for Florida to make the plays that won the game. Game notes: Since starting the SEC portion of the schedule 1-3, the Gators have now won four in a row … This was Florida’s first Quad 1 win, which will elevate the Gators in both the NCAA Net Rankings and kenpom.com analytics … Samuel posted his ninth double-double of the season … The Gators hit 32-78 from the field overall (41 percent) and 12-28 (42.9 percent) from the 3-point line. Florida won the rebounding battle 50-48 … The Gators did an exceptional job protecting the basketball. Florida’s nine turnovers (10 fewer than the win over Georgia) were only converted into seven Kentucky points … The Gators got nine points, six rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot from Richard, while Kugel had eight points, three rebounds and four assists … Kentucky shot 35-78 from the field (44.9 percent) and 10-26 (38.5 percent) from the 3-point line … Sheppard was Kentucky’s leading scorer with 24 points to go with eight rebounds, six assists, two blocked shots and a steal. Dillingham scored 20 while Reeves had 19 and Onyenso 13 … The Wildcats, who were so good at the foul line in their win over the Gators in Gainesville, were only 11-17, one of their worst outings of the year. SEC basketball Wednesday’s scores: FLORIDA (15-6, 5-3 SEC) 94, No. 10 Kentucky (15-5, 5-3 SEC) 91, OT; No. 16 Auburn (17-4, 6-2 SEC) 81, Vanderbilt (5-15, 0-7 SEC) 54; No. 24 Alabama (15-6, 7-1 SEC) 85, Georgia (14-7, 4-4 SEC) 76; Arkansas (11-10, 2-6 SEC) 91, Missouri (8-13, 0-8 SEC) 74 Saturday’s games: FLORIDA (15-6, 5-3 SEC) at Texas A&M (12-8, 3-4 SEC); No. 5 Tennessee (15-5, 5-2 SEC) at No. 10 Kentucky (15-5, 5-3 SEC); No. 16 Auburn (17-4, 6-2 SEC) at Ole Miss (18-3, 5-3 SEC); Mississippi State (14-7, 3-5 SEC) at No. 24 Alabama (15-6, 7-1 SEC); South Carolina (18-3, 6-2 SEC) at Georgia (14-7, 4-4 SEC); Missouri (8-13, 0-8 SEC) at Vanderbilt (5-15, 0-7 SEC)

A few thoughts to jump start your Wednesday morning:

Three straight Southeastern Conference wins have the Florida Gators (14-6, 4-3 SEC) sitting squarely on the NCAA Tournament bubble. The Gators have crept up to No. 39 in the NCAA Net Rankings and No. 36 in the kenpom.com analytics, legitimate indicators of tournament worthiness. What’s lacking for the Gators is a signature win, the kind that could bump them off the bubble and squarely into tournament consideration. The Gators have their share of close calls against teams that are almost certain to make the tournament such as Virginia, Baylor and tonight’s opponent, 10th-ranked Kentucky (15-4, 5-2 SEC). A few weeks ago in Gainesville, the Gators fought Kentucky to the final horn, dropping an 87-85 decision that could have easily gone the other way. It was one of those if only kind of games as in if only the Gators had done a better job at the foul line (18-29), if only they had knocked down just one more 3-point shot (9-31) or if only one more second half defensive stop. Despite giving up 87, Florida coach Todd Golden said the Gators weren’t all that bad defensively in that first game. “We actually guarded them well enough to win the first time we played,” Golden said Tuesday before the Gators departed for Lexington where they face the Wildcats at Rupp Arena (8 p.m., ESPN). “We really did. They scored late after fouling a little bit, but we held them to like their third- or fourth-worst offensive performance of the year in here. “So it was really our offense, specifically in the second half, that I thought let us down a little bit. Not that we weren't executing. We did turn it over eight times and we went 1-for-11 from three in the second half. They’re too good offensively to do that and give yourself the win. The key is obviously we have to do a good job both halves defensively. We did a good enough job over 40, but not a good enough job in the second half. You’ve got to do a better job away from our bench, and then offensively we just got to play more solid for 40 minutes, but they're the type of team, especially on their home floor, that's explosive offensively, so we're gonna have to do a really good job that way.” The Gators have made enough shots to win three in a row, particularly in last Saturday’s 102-98 overtime win over Georgia. In wins over Missouri and Mississippi State, the Gators had 15 turnovers combined but in blowing a 21-point second half lead against Georgia UF gave it away 19 times. The foul line, so critical in the first loss to Kentucky, has been a source of a mini-revival in the last two. In both of the wins over Mississippi State and Georgia last week, the Gators went 17-20 from the foul line. To win at Rupp, the Gators will certainly have to make shots from both the field and the foul line, plus they’ll have to limit the turnovers. In the loss to Kentucky, the Gators let the lead slip away in the final minutes of the game. Holding onto a lead is an area of concern. In the win over Missouri, the Gators saw a 19-point lead dissipate to six before they regained their poise for a 79-70 win. After losing a 21-point second half lead against Georgia, the Gators won in overtime. "We've done a really good job getting leads these last three games,” Golden said. “We were up double figures on the road against Missouri, we were up 17 in the second half against Mississippi State and up big in the second half against Georgia and that's hard to do … This team a month-and-a-half, two months ago, we weren't getting leads like this against really quality opponents like we've been facing and now the big challenge is – and it's really hard to do to get over the hump – is playing with leads when teams have their back up against the wall and don't have as much fear of failure and they go out and play with freedom and start making some shots and they're pressing you and taking more chances defensively. Those are harder circumstances to play under and I think for us, just continuing to get more comfortable in those situations and the only way you can do that is by being in those situations. “The disappointing thing on Saturday is we just didn't take care of the ball well in the second half. We beat the press okay but in the halfcourt we had some careless turnovers that allowed them to get all the way back whereas against Mississippi State, they made a run but we didn't turn it over and we kept them at six and it didn't really get so tight. Obviously Saturday got really tight." Beating Kentucky in Rupp is one of the more difficult tasks in college basketball. Perhaps no one has a more rabid, loyal fan base than the Wildcats, who play every home game before crowds of more than 20,000. Visitors wilt under the energy in the building, something the Gators have to avoid tonight because this game is critical toward building a resume that will impress the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee. The SEC is so deep this season that a 9-9 record in league play is almost a guarantee of marching to the madness. The Gators have a home loss to Kentucky and they have a road win at Missouri. They don’t have a road win over a quality opponent, however. Beating Kentucky in Rupp would qualify as stealing one on the road. “The reality is every game is a resume game one way or the other,” Golden said. “If you lose to a team that you're supposed to beat, that hurts your resume and when you win those games helps you stack up your quality. For us to get to the tournament, we're going to have to win some of these games as we all know so I'm not necessarily stressing the importance of one over another in particular. A big part of what we do is process over result and being consistent in our approach and this is more about a good road opportunity against a team that we played pretty well against here and we feel we let slip away. I think they realize that as well and they're going to be ready for us. We should go in with a little confidence knowing that we can play with these guys if we stay true to who we are." Anticipated starting lineups FLORIDA (14-6, 4-3 SEC): 6-10 Tyrese Samuel (13.2 points, 8.3 rebounds); 7-1 Micha Handlogten (7.4 points, 7.9 rebounds); 6-4 Will Richard (11.8 points, 4.0 rebounds); 6-2 Walter Clayton Jr. (15.9 points, 3.8 rebounds); 6-4 Zyon Pullin (14.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists) KENTUCKY (15-4, 5-2 SEC): 6-9 Tre Mitchell (13.4 points, 7.7 rebounds); 7-1 Aaron Bradshaw (6.4 points, 4.6 rebounds); 6-8 Adou Thiero (7.0 points, 5.6 rebounds); 6-6 Antonio Reeves (19.5 points, 4.4 rebounds); 6-4 DJ Wagner (12.0 points, 3.4 assists) SEC BASKETBALL Tuesday’s scores: South Carolina (18-3, 6-2 SEC) 63, No. 5 Tennessee (15-5, 5-2 SEC); Ole Miss (18-3, 5-3 SEC) 86, Mississippi State (14-7, 3-5 SEC) 82 Today’s games: FLORIDA (14-6, 4-3 SEC) at No. 6 Kentucky (15-4, 5-2 SEC); Vanderbilt (5-14, 0-6 SEC) at No. 8 Auburn (16-4, 5-2 SEC); Alabama (13-6, 5-1 SEC) at Georgia (14-6, 4-3 SEC); Arkansas (10-10, 1-6 SEC) at Missouri (8-12, 0-7 SEC)

A few thoughts to jump start your Tuesday morning: Behind the No. 1 quarterback ranking of DJ Lagway, Florida’s 2024 recruiting class moved up two spots to No. 13 in the On3 Sports rankings. Lagway is also ranked as the No. 1 quarterback in the country by 247Sports. Both On3 and 247Sports rank Lagway as the overall No. 3 player in the country. The Gatorade National Player of the Year, Lagway is the first 5-star quarterback signed by Florida since Jeff Driskel in 2011. Lagway is one of five Gators ranked in the top 100 players in the country by On3. Fellow 5-star LJ McCray was ranked No. 10 while 4-star linebacker Myles Graham was No. 57, 4-star linebacker Aaron Chiles No. 73 and 4-star tight end Amir Jackson No. 95. Other Gators of note in the On3 rankings: 157. CB Jameer Grimsley (signed with Alabama, transferred to UF); 172. RB Kahnen Williams; 191. OT Fletcher Westphal; 264. NT D’Antre Robinson (signed with Texas, flipped to Florida); 299. WR Jerrae Hawkins; 313. RB Jaden Baugh; 385. OT Marcus Mascoll; 396. S Gregory Smith. Just behind Lagway in the 247Sports rankings, McCray is the No. 4 player in the country and the top defensive lineman. Other 4-star Florida recruits and their national ranking by 247Sports: 83. LB Aaron Chiles; 114. LB Myles Graham; 128. OT Fletcher Westphal; 152. TE Amir Jackson; 175. RB Kahnen Daniels; 240. WR Jerrae Hawkins. UF BASEBALL: Caglianone, Neely make preseason All-America Jac Caglianone and Brandon Neely were selected to D1Baseball preseason All-America teams on Monday with Caglianone named first team utility and Neely second team as a relief pitcher. Caglianone, who led the NCAA with 33 home runs last year while driving in 90, also had a 7-4 record on the mound with a 4.34 ERA. Neely was Florida’s closer, logging 34 appearances in which he was credited with 13 saves and a 3.58 ERA. The Gators, who open their season with St. John’s February 16, start the season ranked X by D1Baseball, No. 4 by Baseball America. The National Collegiate Baseball Writers and USA Today Coaches polls have yet to be released. D1Baseball preseason top 25: 1. Wake Forest; 2. FLORIDA; 3. Arkansas; 4. LSU; 5. TCU; 6. Vanderbilt; 7. Oregon State; 8. Texas A&M; 9. Tennessee; 10. Clemson; 11. East Carolina; 12. Duke; 13. North Carolina State; 14. Virginia; 15. North Carolina; 16. Texas; 17. UC-Santa Barbara; 18. Coastal Carolina; 19. Alabama; 20. Iowa; 21. Texas Tech; 22. UCLA; 23. Northweastern; 24. Kansas State; 25. South Carolina Baseball America top 25 preseason: 1. Wake Forest; 2. LSU; 3. Arkansas; 4. FLORIDA; 5. Oregon State; 6. TCU; 7. Vanderbilt; 8. Tennessee; 9. Clemson; 10. Virginia; 11. Texas A&M; 12. South Carolina; 13. Texas; 14. East Carolina; 15. Stanford; 16. Duke; 17. North Carolina; 18. Texas Tech; 19. Coastal Carolina; 20. Iowa; 21. Oklahoma State; 22. North Carolina State; 23. Auburn; 24. Northeastern; 25. UC-Irvine UF BASKETBALL: Gators will be road warriors this week After a pair of white knuckle finishes in the friendly confines of the O-Dome, the Gators will hit the road this week to two of the more difficult arenas in the SEC. The Gators will be at Rupp Arena Wednesday to face 10th-ranked Kentucky and Saturday they will be in College Station to face Texas A&M. Both games are Quad 1 opportunities for the Gators in the all-important NCAA Net Rankings. Florida is currently ranked 39th, while Kentucky is 23rd and the Aggies are 46th. With 11 games remaining in the regular season, all of them in the SEC, the Gators are sitting on the NCAA Tournament bubble. Jerry Palm of CBS Sports has the Gators on his first four out line. Joe Lunardi of ESPN will come out with his latest brackets today. The SEC is the second strongest league in the country behind the Big 12, which has eight teams ranked in the latest Associated Press top 25. The SEC has four ranked teams, while the Big Ten has three and the Mountain West, Big East and ACC have two each. Based on the difficulty of winning on the road in the SEC, any team making it to 9-9 in conference play during the regular season will likely hear its name called on Selection Sunday. The Gators nearly knocked off Kentucky at the O-Dome back on January 6. After leading most of the game, Kentucky got an improbable 3-pointer from freshman 7-footer Aaron Bradshaw as the Wildcats took an 87-85 win. This was a winnable game that the Gators let slip through their fingers as they hit only 18-29 free throws and 9-31 from the 3-point line. Zyon Pullin and Walter Clayton Jr. each scored 23 and Riley Kugel added 15 for the Gators. SEC basketball Today’s games: South Carolina (17-3, 5-2 SEC) at No. 5 Tennessee (15-4, 5-1 SEC); Mississippi State (14-6, 3-4 SEC) at Ole Miss (17-3, 4-3 SEC) Wednesday’s games: FLORIDA (14-6, 4-3 SEC) at No. 6 Kentucky (15-4, 5-2 SEC); Vanderbilt (5-14, 0-6 SEC) at No. 8 Auburn (16-4, 5-2 SEC); Alabama (13-6, 5-1 SEC) at Georgia (14-6, 4-3 SEC); Arkansas (10-10, 1-6 SEC) at Missouri (8-12, 0-7 SEC) Associated Press top 25: 1. UConn 18-2; 2. Purdue 19-2; 3. North Carolina 17-3; 4. Houston 18-2; 5. Tennessee 15-4; 6. Wisconsin 16-4; 7. Duke 15-4; 8. Kansas 16-4; 9. Marquette 15-5; 10. Kentucky 15-4; 11. Arizona 15-5; 12. Iowa State 16-4; 13. Creighton 16-5; 14. Illinois 15-5; 15. Texas Tech 16-3; 16. Auburn 16-4; 17. Utah State 18-2; 18. Baylor 14-5; 19. New Mexico 18-3; 20. Florida Atlantic 17-4; 21. Dayton 16-3; 22. BYU 15-5; 23. Oklahoma 15-5; 24. Alabama 14-6; 25. TCU 15-5 Coaches top 25: 1. UConn 18-2; 2. Purdue 19-2; 3. North Carolina 17-3; 4. Houston 18-2; 5. Tennessee 15-4; 6. Wisconsin 16-4; 7. Duke 15-4; 8. Kentucky 15-4; 9. Kansas 16-4; 10. Marquette 15-5; 11. Iowa State 16-4; 12. Arizona 15-5; 13. Creighton 16-5; 14. Illinois 15-5; 15. Texas Tech 16-3; 16. Auburn 16-4; 17. Utah State 18-2; 18. Baylor 14-5; 19. Dayton 16-3; 20. New Mexico 18-3; 21. BYU 15-4; 22. Alabama 14-6; 23. Florida Atlantic 17-4; 24. Oklahoma 15-5; 25. TCU 15-5 UF TRACK AND FIELD: Women No. 2; Men No. 3 in indoor rankings USTFCCCA men’s top 25: 1. Texas Tech; 2. Northern Arizona; 3. FLORIDA; 4. Arkansas; 5. Southern California; 6. Washington; 7. Texas; 8. Georgia; 9. Florida State; 10. Kentucky; 11. Illinois; 12. Oklahoma State; 13. Alabama; 14. LSU; 15. Oklahoma; 16. South Carolina; 17. Penn State; 18. Texas A&M; 19. Virginia; 20. Harvard; 21. Kansas State; 22. Iowa State; 23. Tennessee; 24. Ole Miss; 25. Stanford USTFCCCA women’s top 25: 1. Arkansas; 2. FLORIDA; 3. Oregon; 4. Southern California; 5. Illinois; 6. Texas A&M; 7. BYU; 8. Washington; 9. Georgia; 10. Oklahoma State; 11. Ole Miss; 12. LSU; 13. Texas Tech; 14. Alabama; 15. South Carolina; 16. Kentucky; 17. Tennessee; 18. Texas; 19. Stanford; 20. Northern Arizona; 21. Baylor; 22. Providence; 23. Penn State; 24. Clemson; 25. Virginia UF SWIMMING: Women No. 3, Men No. 4 in national rankings CSCAA men’s top 25: 1. Arizona State; 2. California; 3. North Carolina State; 4. FLORIDA; 5. Stanford; 6. Indiana; 7. Georgia; 8. Texas A&M; 9. Texas; 10. Auburn; 11. Tennessee; 12. Notre Dame; 13. Virginia Tech; 14. Ohio State; 15. Louisville; 16. Florida State; 17. Southern California; 18. Michigan; 19. Alabama; 20. Virginia; 21. Arizona; 22. Wisconsin; 23. Georgia Tech; 24. Princeton; 25. SMU CSCAA women’s top 25: 1. Virginia; 2. Texas; 3. FLORIDA; 4. Stanford; 5. California; 6. Ohio State; 7. Southern California; 8. Louisville; 9. Indiana; 10. North Carolina State; 11. Texas A&M; 12. Tennessee; 13. Georgia; 14. Wisconsin; 15. Auburn; 16. Michigan; 18. Duke; 18. Alabama; 19. North Carolina; 20. Arizona State; 21. South Carolina; 22. Minnesota; 23. Virginia Tech; 24. Princeton; 25. LSU ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: You can’t tell the players without a program, part two. Nearly every SEC roster will be filled with newbies who played their college football at St. Somewhere Else in 2023. Emphasis today on key new arrivals: Alabama (30 departures, 5 arrivals): The most important arrivals are WR Germie Bernard (Washington); CB Domani Jackson (Southern Cal) Arkansas (23 departures, 13 arrivals): The most important arrivals are OG Keyshawn Blackstock (Michigan State); LB Xavian Storey Jr. (Georgia); RB Ja’Quinden Jackson (Utah); QB Taylen Green (Boise State); S Miguel Mitchell (Florida). Auburn (17 departures, 10 arrivals): The most important arrivals are WR Robert Lewis (Georgia State); DT Trill Carter (Texas); DT Gage Keys (Kansas); OT Percy Lewis  (Mississippi State); TE Rico Walker (Maryland). FLORIDA (21 departures, 11 arrivals): The most important arrivals are DT Joey Slackman (Penn); EDGE George Gumbs (Northern Illinois); S Asa Turner (Washington); S Trikweze Bridges (Oregon); OT Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson (San Diego State); OT Devon Manuel (Arkansas); LB Grayson Howard (South Carolina); S DJ Douglas (Tulane); Georgia (21 departures, 6 arrivals): The most important arrivals are RB Trevor Etienne (Florida); WR London Humphreys (Vanderbilt); WR Colbie Young (Miami); S Jake Pope (Alabama). Kentucky (13 departures, 10 arrivals): The most important arrivals are QB Brock Vandagriff and LB Dumas Johnson (Georgia); WR Raymond Cottrell (Texas A&M); DB Kristian Story (Alabama); OT Gerald Mincey (Tennessee). LSU (18 departures, 6 arrivals): The most important arrivals are WR Zavion Thomas (Mississippi State); QB AJ Swann (Vanderbilt); WR CJ Daniels (Liberty); DB Jardin Gilbert (Texas A&M). Mississippi State (16 depatures, 14 arrivals): The most important arrivals are QB Blake Shapen (Baylor); DL Marlon Martinez (LSU); WR Kelly Akharaiyi (UTEP); DL Kendrick Bingley-Jones (North Carolina). Missouri (15 departures, 11 arrivals): The most important arrivals are CB Toriano Pride (Clemson); RB Marcus Carroll (Georgia State); DL Chris McClellan (Florida); RB Nate Noel (Appalachian State); OT Cayden Green (Oklahoma); LB Darris Smith (Georgia); LB Corey Flagg (Miami). Oklahoma (19 departures, 13 arrivals): The most important arrivals are OT Spencer Brown (Michigan State); RB Samuel Franklin (UT-Martin); WR Deion Burks (Purdue); EDGE Caiden Woullard (Miami OH); OG Febechi Nwaiwu (North Texas); OG Geirian Hatchett (Washington). Ole Miss (18 departures, 18 arrivals): The most important arrivals are WR Juice Wells (South Carolina); DT Walter Nolen (Texas A&M); EDGE Princely Umanmielen (Florida); OT Diego Pounds (North Carolina); S Key Lawrence (Oklahoma); S Louis Moore (Indiana); CB Decamerion Richardson (Mississippi State); RB Logan Diggs (LSU); S Brandon Turnage (Tennessee). South Carolina (21 departures, 19 arrivals): The most important arrivals are RB Raheim Sanders (Arkansas); RB Oscar Adway (North Texas); OT Aaryn Parks (Oklahoma); DL Gilber Edmond (Florida State); WR Gage Larvadain (Miami OH); DL Monkell Goodwine (Alabama); QB Davis Beville (Oklahoma). Tennessee (13 departures, 8 arrivals): The most important arrivals are WR Chris Brazzell II (Tulane); OT Lance Heard (LSU); S Jakobe Thomas (Middle Tennessee State). Texas (14 departures, 7 arrivals): The most important arrivals are EDGE Trey Moore (Texas-San Antonio); LB Kendrick Blackshire and WR Isaiah Bond (Alabama); WR Silas Bolden (Oregon State); S Andrew Mukuba (Clemson). Texas A&M (21 departures, 23 arrivals): The most important arrivals are EDGE Cashius Howell (Bowling Green); S DeRickey Wright (Vanderbilt); LB Scooby Williams (Florida); WR Jabre Barber (Troy); DE Rodas Johnson (Wisconsin); TE Garrett Miller (Purdue); WR Cyrus Allen (Louisiana Tech); CB Jaydon Hill (Florida); CB Will Lee III (Kansas State). Vanderbilt (17 departures, 13 arrivals): The most important arrivals are QB Diego Pavia (New Mexico State); QB Nate Johnson (Utah); OG Steven Loyosa (Mississippi State); WR Kisean Johnson (Alabama State); CB Kolbey Taylor (Wyoming).

A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:

Joe Houston, recently associated with the New England Patriots as a special teams assistant, is set to join the University of Florida's coaching staff, as reported by GatorsOnline.com. Houston, a former placekicker at USC, played under renowned coaches Pete Carroll and Lane Kiffin in 2009 and 2010. He was pivotal in USC's special teams, leading in scoring during his senior year. At Florida, Houston's expertise will be integral in enhancing the special teams' performance, particularly in areas like field goal efficiency. Last season, Florida saw potential in kicker Trey Smack, and Houston's guidance is expected to further elevate these capabilities. This addition is part of a broader initiative by head coach Billy Napier to strengthen the Gators' coaching staff. For more detailed updates, GatorBait Media will provide ongoing coverage.

With less than six seconds showing in regulation and a chance for Georgia to put the last cruel nail in a coffin of Florida’s own making, Justice Hill, who had been wearing out every defender the Gators put on him lost control of his dribble, the ball bouncing mysteriously and ever so conveniently into the hands of Will Richard. Richard tried to break out of a pack with a nifty behind the back dribble but his attempted 3-pointer at the buzzer banked off the glass, onto the iron and harmlessly away as time ran out. For a team that had somehow survived blowing all 21 points of what seemed like an insurmountable lead, going to overtime must have felt a lot like rolling up to the gas pump after the engine has coughed out the last fumes from an empty gas tank. In the huddle before the extra five minutes were tacked on, a re-start after a 40-minute battle produced an 85-85 deadlock, Florida coach Todd Golden gave the Gators an ultimatum. “The message was, 'Hey, we can respond one or two ways in the situation: we can either feel sorry for ourselves and, you know, think we blew it and just kind of not regain that focus and regain that fight, or we can buck up and get back to playing basketball.'” In overtime, the Gators chose to play basketball more like they were playing when they led 68-47 with 12:52 left in regulation and a lot less like the team hell bent on going belly up. The five extra minutes weren’t without a couple of moments that all but sucked the air out of the lungs of the O-Dome crowd of 10,045, but somehow, someway, Florida (14-6, 4-3 SEC) played through the troubles, got its third straight win, 102-98, and pulled one game over .500 in Southeastern Conference play for the first time this season. That it took overtime one game removed from nearly blowing a 19-point lead in a win over Mississippi State earlier in the week was irrelevant. This is the SEC, the toughest league in the country not named Big 12. The SEC is so tough that the few and the proud that finish the regular season at 9-9 are likely to find their names filling out NCAA Tournament brackets in March. Even though the Gators have seemingly hit a wall when they were on the verge of getting statement blowouts the last two games, the only thing that matters is both games wound up in the win column. As so many Hall of Fame coaches have reiterated time and time again, you never apologize for winning. The ugly wins count the same as the pretty ones. “The great thing is we can learn from it positively and not have a tough weekend thinking about a brutal loss,” Golden said. “That's part of growing as a program. You know, we've obviously improved over these last couple weeks. You don't get up by 19 and 21 in these two games at home against some good teams if you're not improving from where we were a month ago and I think the next step for our group is just pushing through and playing the full 40, you know, regardless of the score, regardless of the situation, just staying true to what we want to do in terms of our execution, in terms of taking care of the ball and I didn't think we did that last 10 minutes.” The last 10 minutes of regulation were dog’s butt ugly, a sharp contrast to the first 30. In those first 30 minutes, the Gators did everything right. They shot well, they defended, they dominated the backboards, they made exceptionally good decisions with the basketball. You name it, the Gators did it well. In those first 30 minutes, the Gators looked like a team that won't have to sweat Selection Sunday when the NCAA fills out the tournament brackets. Then came the last 10 minutes and the nightmare that was RJ Melendez, a certifiable SCUD launcher who went into a shooter’s coma. It’s not that Melendez wasn’t shooting well prior to the final 10, but he lit up the Gators for 14 of his 35 points down the stretch. When Georgia had the ball for the final possession in regulation every Gator fan in the O-Dome was fearful the ball would wind up in the hands of Melendez. He might have had a chance to win it if Justice Hill hadn't lost control of the ball. Coming into the game in Gainesville, Melendez was 14-62 (22.6 percent) from the 3-point line. He was 6-10 against the Gators when even the shots that didn’t go in looked good all the way. When he wasn’t bombing away behind the 3-point line, he was putting the ball on the deck and driving to the rim. It seemed that Golden tried every defender he had on Melendez at one time or another, but none of them had answers. Fortunately, Melendez never saw the ball at the end of regulation. He scored seven of the Bulldogs’ 13 overtime points, but it was a completely different story in the five minute extra period. The Gators came out dominant, starting with Zyon Pullin’s layup and free throw to break the ice and the 85-85 deadlock. On consecutive trips down the floor, Walter Clayton Jr. made nifty passes for assists, one that got a layup for Micah Handlogten and a 90-87 lead and another to Richard for another layup to make it 92-89. With 2:41 left in overtime, Pullin knocked in a flatfooted shot from about 12 feet out and after a missed 3-ball by Clayton, Richard grabbed the offensive rebound and got the ball up and in among the trees to put the Gators up 96-91. Florida’s last six points came from the foul line, two by Clayton, two by freshman Alex Condon and two by Pullin with five seconds left to make it a 2-possession game at 102-98. Trailing by four, Melendez finally went snake eyes on a 3-pointer that mattered. His 30-footer just before the final buzzer struck iron and bounced into Pullin’s hands to seal the win. Pullin put together another brilliant game at the point with 20 points (6-9 from the field overall, 1-1 from the 3-point line, 7-8 from the foul line), seven rebounds and eight assists with only one turnover. In Florida’s seven Southeastern Conference games, Pullin has 31 assists and only five turnovers while hitting 36-42 from the foul line. Handlogten had his best game as a Gator and perhaps the best of his collegiate career with 23 points and 17 rebounds, becoming the first Gator with 17 rebounds since Alex Tyus did it against BYU in the 2011 NCAA Tournament. Handlogten hit 10-13 shots from the field including 1-1 from the 3-point line and he was 2-3 from the foul line. With Handlogten leading the way, the Gators outrebounded the Bulldogs, 48-27, with 16 rebounds coming on the offensive end. Richard had 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists, a blocked shot and three steals. Clayton had 18 points with two rebounds, two assists, a blocked shot and a steal. Condon had 10 points, four rebounds, five assists and a blocked shot. The negative was Florida’s 19 turnovers. The Gators turned the ball over only 15 times in the previous two games combined, but they turned it over 10 times in the second half alone which Georgia converted into 16 points. “If we take care of the ball, we’re going to be really good offensively, because we get on the glass so well,” Golden said. “You know, we had 16 offensive rebounds tonight. We almost got 50 percent of our misses back, so a great formula is just getting a shot, as crazy as that sounds. But we can’t come in with 19 turnovers, because that’ll give the other team life, and that leads to transition and that leads to difficult things to recover from.” Somehow, the Gators turned it over enough times that Georgia scored 24 points and despite the dominance on the backboards, Georgia scored 54 points in the paint. So, this was a game of the good, the bad and the ugly, and despite too much bad and too much ugly, the Gators left the O-Dome with a win and some momentum heading into Wednesday night when they face Kentucky in Rupp Arena. Golden recognized the importance, not just of this win but of the 3-game winning streak that the Gators take into a tough 3-game stretch of (at) Kentucky, (at) Texas A&M and Auburn (home). “Very important, you know, for two reasons,” Golden said. Number one, it makes my weekend a lot better. So, I'm gonna go home and watch some games and not hate myself all night. I can go enjoy it and just think about ways I can improve and do a better job for our club. And the reality is, the guys feel it. Like, we're definitely playing better. We're playing better. The wins are stacking. And listen, we’ve got a tough stretch coming up. We go to Rupp, we go to College Station. I think we have Auburn coming in after a bye after that. So it ain’t getting any easier. “And this was a game we were supposed to win. Not that that means that you're definitely going to win as proven by their comeback. But when you stack games like this, you put yourself in position to accomplish your goals. So it was a big win for us against a program and a ballclub that we have a lot of respect for. Mike [White] did a really good job keeping them poised and obviously kind of fueling that comeback, but I was proud of the way our guys got it done.” SEC basketball Saturday’s scores: FLORIDA (14-6, 4-3 SEC) 102, Georgia (14-6, 4-3 SEC) 98, OT; No. 5 Tennessee (15-4, 5-1 SEC) 75, Vanderbilt (5-14, 0-6 SEC) 62; No. 6 Kentucky (15-4, 5-2 SEC) 63, Arkansas (10-10, 1-6 SEC) 57; Mississippi State (14-6, 3-4 SEC) 64, No. 8 Auburn (16-4, 5-2 SEC) 58; Alabama (14-6, 6-1 SEC) 109, LSU (11-9, 3-4 SEC) 88; South Carolina (17-3, 5-2 SEC) 72, Missouri (8-12, 0-7 SEC) 64; Ole Miss (17-3, 4-3 SEC) 71, Texas A&M (12-8, 3-4 SEC) 68 Tuesday’s games: South Carolina (17-3, 5-2 SEC) at No. 5 Tennessee (15-4, 5-1 SEC); Mississippi State (14-6, 3-4 SEC) at Ole Miss (17-3, 4-3 SEC) Wednesday’s games: FLORIDA (14-6, 4-3 SEC) at No. 6 Kentucky (15-4, 5-2 SEC); Vanderbilt (5-14, 0-6 SEC) at No. 8 Auburn (16-4, 5-2 SEC); Alabama (13-6, 5-1 SEC) at Georgia (14-6, 4-3 SEC); Arkansas (10-10, 1-6 SEC) at Missouri (8-12, 0-7 SEC)

The Florida Gators got a measure of redemption with 102-98 overtime victory over the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday at Exactech Arena. The Gators improved their record to 14-6 overall and 4-3 in the SEC, while the Bulldogs now stand at an identical 14-6 overall and 4-3 in conference play. Florida's sophomore Micah Handlogten led the team with a double-double, scoring a career-high 23 points and grabbing 17 rebounds. Zyon Pullin contributed 20 points, while Walter Clayton Jr. and Will Richard each added 18 points, and Alex Condon chipped in with 10. For Georgia, junior RJ Melendez was the top scorer, setting a career-high with 35 points, including a crucial 3-pointer late in overtime. Russel Tchewa achieved his 11th career double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Freshman Blue Cain and Justin Hill added 14 and 11 points, respectively. The Gators initially led by 13 at halftime and extended their lead to 21 points early in the second half. However, the Bulldogs mounted a comeback, outscoring the Gators 51-38 in the second half. Cain's scoring spree was vital in erasing a 68-47 deficit and sending the game into overtime. In overtime, Florida outscored Georgia 17-13 to clinch the win. The game was marked by Florida's rebounding advantage, 46-25, and Georgia's fewer turnovers, 8 compared to Florida's 17. The Gators' win extends their series winning streak against the Bulldogs to nine games. The game's attendance was reported at 10,045.

If you can remember back to that long ago, Florida last lost to Georgia on Feb. 22, 2019 — 57 weeks or 1,799 days ago. Florida faced gymnastics rival Alabama Friday in front of another sold-out crowd of more than 8,800, continuing a streak of more than three seasons of sellouts for the Gators. It was a battle of youth versus experience as Florida's top-ranked freshman class faced Alabama's senior-heavy squad, which included seven seniors and four super seniors, such as stars Luisa Blanco and Makarri Doggett. Blanco won the all-around competition with a score of 39.70 out of a possible 40. However, it was a challenging start for Florida, playing catch-up from an uncharacteristic position on vault night. Here's the recap, with six gymnasts competing for the top five scores: Vault (Last week: 49.225) - Freshman Skylar Draser: small step back on Yurchenko 1 ½ - 9.825 - Freshman Anya Pilgrim: 10.0 start value, very smooth - 9.925 - Ellie Lazzari: fell backward onto the mat, no distance off the vault - 9.150 (drop score) - Victoria Nguyen: nailed it! - 9.975 - Leanne Wong: only vault not a Yurchenko 1 1/2, working on elite skills for the Paris team - 9.95 - Freshman Danny Ferris: fell backward - 9.60 (counting a fall is never ideal, especially at the meet's start) Score: 49.275, down 0.100 after one rotation. Uneven Bars (Last week: 49.400) - Sloan Blakely: nice handstands, blind backward landing with a stick - 9.925 - Victoria Nguyen: fell on lower bar, legs separated early - 9.275 (drop score) - Freshman Gabby Disidore: great routine following Nguyen's fall - 9.80 - Anya Pilgrim: legs glued together, minimal deductions - 9.925 - Ellie Lazzari: impressive performance after vault fall - 9.90 - Leanne Wong: slight hop on landing, overall beautiful routine - 9.90 Score: 49.350, trailing Alabama by 0.150 after two rotations. Balance Beam (Last week: 49.225) - Skylar Draser: double backflip, hopped on landing - 9.825 (drop score) - Sloan Blakely: smooth front-to-back flip series, stuck landing - 9.925 - Anya Pilgrim: springboard mount, backflip series, excellent routine - 9.925 - Ellie Lazzari: triple series of back layouts, slight balance check, tiny hop - 9.90 - Victoria Nguyen: springboard mount, beautiful routine, tiny hop - 9.90 - Leanne Wong: major balance check - 9.875 Score: 49.525; UF now leads by 0.025 after three rotations. Floor Exercise (Last week: 49.475) - Lori Brubach: first pass with long runs, front layout 1 1/2 twists, second pass double tuck backflip - 9.825 - Victoria Nguyen: first pass double twist, excellent dance elements, second pass back twist to 1 1/2 - 9.850 - Anya Pilgrim: first pass flip mid-floor to backflip, second pass back handspring double flip - 9.825 (score arguably should have been higher) - Sloan Blakely: first pass front flip to double, super clean, second pass front 1 1/2 flip - 9.925 - Leanne Wong: first pass double flip lands chest down (deduction), second pass flip to lunge back twist - 9.850 Florida needed a 9.95 to win. Alabama delivered a solid beam routine, and Florida needed mistakes from Alabama to win. - Morgan Hurd: first pass front layout backflip lands out of bounds, second pass double backflip - 9.70 Score: 49.275; Florida loses to Alabama 197.575-197.425. Overall, there were positives. The Gators continue to improve their overall score (197.425 versus 197.325 last week), crucial for postseason qualification. Ellie Lazzari's recovery after a 9.150 on vault to score 9.925 and 9.90 on bars and beam was remarkable. Anya Pilgrim shows promise and will only get better. The judging, however, remains a point of contention in gymnastics. Questionable scoring on floor exercises impacted the outcome, reminiscent of past national titles. Nevertheless, if Florida had performed better on vault and Wong had a typical night, they could have triumphed over Alabama. The key is to improve each week. Florida's next challenge is in Athens against a formidable Georgia team.