If it's a shootout, then Walter Clayton Jr. will need to have a big game (Photo by Chris Spears) The secret of Alabama’s success isn’t rocket science. The Nate Oats philosophy is actually rather simple. Shoot a lot of layups and 3-pointers. It works well enough that the 8th-ranked Crimson Tide (23-6, 12-4 SEC) leads the country in scoring at 91 points per game. Alabama has scored 100 or more points seven times, most recently last week in a 111-73 blowout win over Mississippi State.   Scoring is rarely a problem for Alabama, which has been held to fewer than 80 points only four times all season. Stopping people from scoring? A problem, yes, but to the Tide’s credit, they tend to win shootouts.   Philosophically, Florida coach Todd Golden knows exactly what the 5th-ranked Gators (25-4, 12-4 SEC) need to do tonight when they take on Alabama in Tuscaloosa (7 p.m., ESPN2).   “I think you have to do what you do well or do what’s important to our program, so obviously transition defense is going to be huge in their building tomorrow night, trying to make them operate in the halfcourt,” Golden said Tuesday. “And, then they’re very efficient. They take rim shots and threes. Obviously, we’re going to try to make them operate in the mid-range, try to make them take shots they’re not comfortable with or strive to take. But it’s going to be a battle.”   On most occasions this season, the Gators have been very good defending the 3-pointers. The Gators rank seventh nationally in 3-point defense, holding opponents to 29.2 percent. In the last couple of weeks, the Gators have gone through some spells when the 3-point defense let them down. LSU hit five in a row while on a 22-2 run at the end of the first half in Baton Rouge. Georgia’s Silas Demary and Blue Cain went into shooter’s comas in the first half last week when Georgia torched the Gators for a 39-13 lead in the first half.   In both games, however, the 3-point defense kicked in, early enough for a win in Baton Rouge, not soon enough in Athens. The Gators can’t afford to go into a 3-point defensive funk against Alabama. Golden’s game plan is to make the Crimson Tide uncomfortable doing what it does best.   “Obviously, against a team like Alabama that is so explosive you’re not going to be able to stop them doing everything they want to do,” Golden said. “You have to pick some things you’re able to live with. If they beat you in those ways, you tip your cap. But transition defense is going to be important … limiting threes from their star shooters, trying to keep (Mark) Sears out of the paint to the best of our ability and trying to keep their big men from getting dunks off pick-and-rolls. Those are the main things we have to limit in order to compete tomorrow.”   The Gators, who allow 67.2 points per game, have held 21 opponents to 70 or fewer points but Alabama is the best offensive team they have faced all season. If the game evolves into a shootout, the Gators are quite capable of winning in an up and down the floor game. Florida ranks ninth in the country in scoring (83.8 per game) and the Gators are third in the country in fast break points per game (16.93). The Gators are improved defensively, but they are also a better offensive team than they were a year ago when they went 2-1 in shootout games against Alabama. The Gators lost 98-93 in overtime in Tuscaloosa then trounced the Tide 105-87 on Senior Night in Gainesville. Ten days later at the SEC Tournament in Nashville, the Gators outran Alabama again, 102-88.   No matter how this game evolves tonight, the winner will have a big advantage in the race for a second place regular season finish in the Southeastern Conference. Both teams are 12-4 in SEC play. Florida only has to win one of its two games this week to be assured of a top four finish and the double bye at next week’s SEC Tournament in Nashville. If Alabama goes 0-2 this week and both Tennessee and Missouri go 2-0, Bama would be doomed to a 5th-place finish since the Tide lost to the Vols and Mizzou.   Anticipated starting lineups No. 5 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC): Tommy Haugh (6-9, 215, SO); Rueben Chinyelu (6-10, 255, SO); Will Richard (6-4, 206, SR); Alijah Martin (6-2, 195, GR); Walter Clayton Jr. (6-2, 195, SR)   No. 8 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC): Grant Nelson (6-11, 230, SR); Clifford Omoruyi (6-11, 250, SR); Labaron Philon (6-4, 177, FR); Chris Youngblood (6-4, 223, SR); Mark Sears (6-1, 190, SR)   SEC BASKETBALL Tuesday’s scores No. 22 Texas A&M (21-9, 10-7 SEC) 83, No. 1 Auburn (27-3, 15-2 SEC) 72 No. 19 Kentucky (20-10, 9-8 SEC) 95, LSU (14-16, 3-14 SEC) 64 Texas (17-13, 6-11 SEC) 87, No. 25 Mississippi State (20-10, 8-9 SEC) 82. OT Arkansas (18-12, 7-10 SEC) 90, Vanderbilt (20-10, 8-9 SEC) 77 Georgia (19-11, 7-10 SEC) 73, South Carolina (12-18, 2-15 SEC) 64   Tonight’s games No. 5 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC) at No. 7 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC) No. 4 Tennessee (24-5, 11-5 SEC) at Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC) No. 15 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC) at Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC)   Saturday’s games Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC) at No. 5 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC) No. 7 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC) at No. 1 Auburn (27-3, 15-2 SEC) South Carolina (12-18, 2-15 SEC) at No. 4 Tennessee (24-5, 11-5 SEC) No. 22 Texas A&M (21-9, 10-7 SEC) at LSU (14-16, 3-14 SEC) No. 19 Kentucky (20-10, 9-8 SEC) at No. 15 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC) No. 25 Mississippi State (20-10, 8-9 SEC) at Arkansas (18-12, 7-10 SEC) Vanderbilt (20-10, 8-9 SEC) at Georgia (19-11, 7-10 SEC) Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC) at Texas (17-13, 6-11 SEC)   BRACKET BUSTING IN THE SEC No. 8 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC): A 2-0 finish this week will keep Bama on the No. 2 line and could get the Tide a No. 1 seed. Currently, Alabama is 10-6 in Quad 1 games.   Arkansas (18-12, 7-10 SEC): Saturday’s loss to South Carolina is a thing of the past. The Razorbacks beat Vanderbilt in Nashville for their seventh SEC win which should put them squarely in the NCAA Tournament.   No. 1 Auburn (27-3, 15-2 SEC): The Tigers have already won the SEC regular season so the loss to the Aggies in College Station won’t hurt them. Most experts say they could lose to Alabama and still be the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.   No. 5 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC): The Gators are a lock as a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Win two and then a couple of games in Nashville and the Gators might bump someone off the No. 1 line.   Georgia (19-11, 7-10 SEC): Georgia has gone from an NIT lock to a lock for the NCAA Tournament. Win Saturday against Vandy and they may move up to a No. 9 seed.   No. 19 Kentucky (20-10, 9-8 SEC): The Wildcats are assured of at least a .500 record in the SEC. Lunardi still has them as a No. 3 seed. If they lose at Missouri Saturday they could fall to a No. 4, but the NCAA won’t let them fall farther than that since Kentucky guarantees sellouts no matter where they go in the NCAA.   No. 25 Mississippi State (20-10, 8-9 SEC): The loss to Texas will drop the Bulldogs down a notch or two in the NCAA seeding, but they’re in no matter what happens Saturday.   No. 15 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC): The Tigers need to go 2-0 and hope Alabama or Florida loses twice to get the double bye in Nashville. Mizzou could get a top four seed with two wins.   Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC): The Sooners need a couple of wins this week and at least one in Nashville to get in the NCAA Tournament.   Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC): Whether the Rebels win one, win two or go 0-2 this week they’re in the NCAA Tournament, most likely a six or seven seed.   No. 5 Tennessee (23-6, 11-5 SEC): Lunardi and Palm have the Vols as a No. 1. Two very winnable games this week should keep them there.   Texas (17-13, 6-11 SEC): The Longhorns beat Mississippi State on the road to revive their NCAA hopes. If they beat Oklahoma they could not only knock the Sooners out, but get them in the NCAA.   No. 22 Texas A&M (21-9, 10-7 SEC): Beating No. 1 Auburn stopped a 4-game slide while reviving the Aggies’ hopes of a top four NCAA seed. They get LSU in Baton Rouge Saturday, which should get them to 22 regular season wins.   Vanderbilt (20-10, 8-9 SEC): The Commodores are as good as in the NCAA, but they have a tough road game Saturday at Georgia. Win and they probably avoid a No. 11 for what amounts to a play-in game.

(Photo by Chris Spears) Last week’s loss to Georgia dropped the Florida Gators two spots to fifth in both the Associated Press and Coaches polls. Bracketologists Joe Lunardi and Jerry Palm immediately dropped the Gators from a No. 1 NCAA seed to a No. 2.   Obviously, Ken Pomeroy ( kenpom.com ) didn’t get the memo. Nor did Bart Torvik ( barttorvik.com ) or Evan Miyakawa ( evanmiya.com ). If you really want to know who are the best teams in college basketball, you read those guys religiously, particularly Pomeroy. All three of them have Florida No. 4 in their analysis. The Gators are also No. 4 in the NCAA NET rankings.   Despite the loss at Georgia, the Gators are one of college basketball’s four best teams. There isn’t a team above or below them in anybody’s rankings that they can’t beat. If they show up focused and ready to go from the opening tip there isn’t a team they can’t beat.   Win these next two games – at No. 8 Alabama and home against Ole Miss – and the Gators should move back to the No. 1 line for both Lunardi and Palm.   Coaches top 25: 1. Auburn 27-2; 2. Duke 26-3; 3. Houston 25-4; 4. Tennessee 24-5; 5. FLORIDA 25-4; 6. St. John’s 26-4; 7. Michigan State 24-5; 8. Alabama 23-6; 9. Texas Tech 22-7; 10. Iowa State 22-7; 11. Clemson 24-5; 12. Wisconsin 22-7; 13. Louisville 23-6; 14. Maryland 22-7; 15. Michigan 22-7; 16. Memphis 24-5; 17. Saint Mary’s 27-4; 18. Purdue 20-9; 19. Missouri 21-8; 20. Marquette 22-7; 21. Texas A&M 20-9; 22. BYU 21-8; 23. Arizona 19-10; 24. Kentucky 19-10; 25. VCU 24-5   Associated Press top 25: 1. Auburn 27-2; 2. Duke 26-3; 3. Houston 25-4; 4. Tennessee 24-5; 5. FLORIDA 25-4; 6. St. John’s 26-4; 7. Alabama 23-6; 8. Michigan State 24-5; 9. Texas Tech 22-7; 10. Iowa State 22-7; 11. Clemson 24-5; 12. Wisconsin 22-7; 13. Maryland 22-7; 14. Louisville 23-6; 15. Missouri 21-8; 16. Memphis 24-5; 17. Michigan 22-7; 18. Purdue 20-9; 19. Kentucky 19-10; 20. Marquette 22-7; 21. Saint Mary’s 27-4; 22. Texas A&M 20-9; 23. BYU 21-8; 24. Arizona 19-10; 25. Mississippi State 20-9   SEC Basketball Tonight’s games No. 1 Auburn (27-2, 15-1 SEC) at No. 22 Texas A&M (20-9, 9-7 SEC) LSU (14-15, 3-13 SEC) at No. 19 Kentucky (19-10, 8-8 SEC) Texas (16-13, 5-11 SEC) at No. 25 Mississippi State (20-9, 8-8 SEC) Arkansas (17-12, 6-10 SEC) at Vanderbilt (20-9, 8-8 SEC) Georgia (18-11, 6-10 SEC) at South Carolina (12-17, 2-14 SEC)   Wednesday’s games No. 5 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC) at No. 7 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC) No. 4 Tennessee (24-5, 11-5 SEC) at Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC) No. 15 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC) at Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC)   Saturday’s games Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC) at No. 5 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC) No. 7 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC) at No. 1 Auburn (27-2, 15-1 SEC) South Carolina (12-17, 2-14 SEC) at No. 4 Tennessee (24-5, 11-5 SEC) No. 22 Texas A&M (20-9, 9-7 SEC) at LSU (14-15, 3-13 SEC) No. 19 Kentucky (19-10, 8-8 SEC) at No. 15 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC) No. 25 Mississippi State (20-9, 8-8 SEC) at Arkansas (17-12, 6-10 SEC) Vanderbilt (20-9, 8-8 SEC) at Georgia (18-11, 6-10 SEC) Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC) at Texas (16-13, 5-11 SEC)   UF BASEBALL: AIDAN KING SEC PITCHER OF THE WEEK Freshman Aidan King, who pitched 3-1/3 scoreless innings in Florida’s game two win over Miami and three no-hit shutout innings earlier in the week against Stetson, was named SEC Pitcher of the Week. In five appearances this season, King is 2-0 with an 0.87 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 10-1/3 innings.   The Gators (11-1) moved up to No. 7 in the D1Baseball top 25 poll while remaining No. 6 in the Baseball America poll. The Gators will take on UCF (8-3) in Orlando tonight, returning home Wednesday to face Florida Atlantic (10-1).   D1Baseball top 25: 1. LSU 11-1; 2. Tennessee 11-0; 3. Arkansas 10-1; 4. North Carolina 12-0; 5. Georgia 13-1; 6. Florida State 11-0; 7. FLORIDA 11-1; 8. Oregon State 7-3; 9. Virginia 7-3; 10. Oregon 10-2; 11. Clemson 10-1; 12. Texas 9-1; 13. Oklahoma 11-0; 14. Texas A&M 6-4; 15. Wake Forest 10-3; 16. UC-Santa Barbara 9-2; 17. Ole Miss 10-1; 18. Vanderbilt 9-3; 19. Troy 11-1; 20. Southern Miss 9-3; 21. Dallas Baptist 8-3; 22. Auburn 11-1; 23. Alabama 12-0; 24. Coastal Carolina 10-2; 25. Oklahoma State 6-4   Baseball America top 25: 1. Tennessee 11-0; 2. LSU 11-1; 3. Arkansas 10-1; 4. Florida State 11-0; 5. Clemson 10-1; 6. FLORIDA 11-1; 7. North Carolina 12-0; 8. Virginia 7-3; 9. Georgia 13-1; 10. Oklahoma 11-0; 11. Texas A&M 6-4; 12. Texas 9-1; 13. Oregon State 7-3; 14. Oklahoma State 6-4; 15. Oregon 10-2; 16. Wake Forest 10-3; 17. Vanderbilt 9-3; 18. UC-Irvine 8-3; 19. Ole Miss 10-1; 20. Alabama 12-0; 21. Dallas Baptist 8-3; 22. Mississippi State 7-4; 23. Kentucky 9-1; 24. Southern Miss 9-3; 25. UC-Santa Barbara 9-2   UF SOFTBALL: WALSH SEC CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK Reagan Walsh, who went 11-16 with three doubles, four home runs and 11 RBI while helping the Gators go 5-0, was named Southeastern Conference Co-Player of the Week. For the season, Walsh is hitting .345 with five doubles, six homers and 23 RBI.   The Gators (23-1) remained third in the Softball America poll, trailing Texas and Oklahoma. The Gators will go on the road to face Houston Wednesday before opening up the SEC portion of their schedule in College Station against 5th-ranked Texas A&M (20-2).   The Gators lead the nation in hitting (.402) and RBI (208). UF is second in home runs (44). Taylor Shumaker leads the nation in RBIs (38) and is tied for second in home runs (11). Kendra Falby leads the country in stolen bases (26) and is fourth in hits (36). Shumaker (38) and Falby (36) rank 1-2 in runs scored.   Softball America top 25: 1. Texas 20-1; 2. Oklahoma 19-0; 3. FLORIDA 22-1; 4. Arizona 21-2; 5. Texas A&M 20-2; 6. LSU 18-1; 7. UCLA 18-4; 8. Florida State 16-1; 9. South Carolina 19-0; 10. Arkansas 19-1; 11. Oregon 20-1; 12. Tennessee 19-3; 13. Oklahoma State 14-4; 14. Duke 14-6; 15. Georgia 18-2; 16. Texas Tech 18-6; 17. Auburn 19-1; 18. Nebraska 15-6; 19. Alabama 15-6; 20. Virginia Tech 17-4; 21. Stanford 14-3; 22. Liberty 16-4; 23. Virginia 15-5; 24. Mississippi State 18-3; 25. Clemson 14-6   UF LACROSSE: GATORS FALL TO NO. 10 Florida’s loss to James Madison Saturday sent the Gators plummeting into a tie for 10th with Syracuse in the Inside Lacrosse poll. The Gators will be home Saturday to face 16th-ranked Loyola at Donald R. Dizney Stadium.   Inside Lacrosse top 25: 1. Boston College 6-0; 2. North Carolina 5-0; 3. Northwestern 5-1; 4. Yale 5-0; 5. Michigan 4-1; 6. Stanford 6-0; 7. Clemson 5-0; 8. Johns Hopkins 4-2; 9. Maryland 3-1; 10. (TIE) FLORIDA 3-2 and Syracuse 3-3; 12. James Madison 4-1; 13. Princeton 3-1; 14. Virginia 3-2; 15. Stony Brook 3-1; 16. Loyola 3-2; 17. Duke 4-2; 18. Navy 5-1; 19. Harvard 3-1; 20. Penn 2-2; 21. Ohio State 5-0; 22. Notre Dame 3-3; 23. Southern California 5-1; 24. Drexel 4-2; 25. UConn 4-2   UF WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: GATORS 11TH SEED AT SEC TOURNAMENT As the 11th seed, the Gators (14-16, 5-11 SEC) will open play in the Southeastern Conference Tournament against 14th-seeded Auburn (12-17, 3-13 SEC) Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. in Greenville, South Carolina. During the regular season the Gators lost on the road at Auburn, 74-51.   If the Gators win Wednesday, they play 6th-seeded Alabama (23-7, 10-6 SEC) Thursday at 8:30. During the regular season, the Gators lost twice to Alabama, falling 79-69 in Tuscaloosa and 84-66 in Gainesville.      A BRAIN IS A TERRIBLE THING TO BASTE … BASKETBALL THOUGHTS 1. Well, excuuuuuussse me: Bill Bender of Sporting News came up with NCAA brackets. He has Florida a No. 2 based on the Gators losing by five to Auburn. If memory serves me correct, the Gators beat Auburn by nine AT Auburn.   2. Virginia will hire Shaka Smart: He’s at Marquette, which is a dead end. If you’re a 4- or 5-star recruit and you have a choice between Milwaukee and Charlottesville? Charlottesville and it’s a no-brainer. Shaka can win a national championship at Virginia. He’s the guy UVa wants and they’ll get him.   3. A power program will hire Will Wade: And why not? What got him in trouble at LSU is legal now. Oh, sure, some do-gooder elite of a college president will say not on my watch, but some school will take a chance and will be glad he did.   4. Texas will pink slip Rodney Terry: This is set in stone. Texas is going to miss the NCAA Tournament and the natives are restless. Only God has more money than the Longhorns, who will fire Terry and make a Godfather offer to lure Billy Donovan from the NBA.   5. If Indiana is really smart it will make a serious run to hire …: The right man for the job is Texas A&M’s Buzz Williams. He’s won everywhere he’s ever been, but he’s never been somewhere that it is realistically possible to win a national championship. That is possible at Indiana. Despite the fact God and the Longhorns are the only ones with more money than the Aggies, basketball at A&M is what you do while waiting for spring football to begin. At Indiana, basketball is practically the state religion and the Indiana coach can recruit Indianapolis, Chicago, Detroit and Louisville, which are all nearby.

Will Richard lit up the Aggies for 25 points Saturday night (Photo by Chris Spears) Florida’s 89-70 win over 12th-ranked Texas A&M Saturday night was impressive as the Gators (25-4, 12-4 SEC) beat the Aggies inside with 42-37 advantage on the backboards and outside with 14 3-pointers led by Will Richard’s 6-9 effort. The question today is will the impressive win over the Aggies give voters in the polls offset Florida’s stunning loss to Georgia earlier in the week?   The Gators dropped one spot to No. 3 in last week’s poll because voters were unimpressed with the Gators win over LSU. The Gators fell behind by 26 points before coming back to actually take the lead late in the Georgia game. It was a ferocious comeback that clearly showed how strong and capable the Gators can be, but is it enough to convince the voters to keep the Gators at No. 3?   Bracketologists Joe Lunardi (ESPN) and Jerry Palm (CBS) dropped the Gators down to a No. 2 seed for the NCAA Tournament after the Georgia loss. Getting back to No. 1 will take the Gators beating Alabama in Tuscaloosa and then finishing off the regular season at home by knocking off Ole Miss.     EVERY SEC TEAM WITH TWO GAMES TO GO No. 6 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC): The loss at Tennessee could have serious consequences. With games against No. 3 Florida and at No. 1 Auburn, the Crimson Tide is in danger of free-falling to a fifth place finish in the SEC which will mean no double bye in Nashville.     Arkansas (17-12, 6-10 SEC): What John Calipari has done with only eight scholarship players at his disposal is miraculous, but that bad loss at South Carolina leaves the Razorbacks with work to do this week. They’re at Vanderbilt and home against Mississippi State. It’s almost imperative that they win at least one of those two games.   No. 1 Auburn (27-2, 15-1 SEC): The Tigers are the SEC champs. No matter what happens this week they will have the double bye in Nashville and they’ll be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.   No. 3 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC): The Gators can take sole possession of second place with wins at Alabama and home against Ole Miss this week. At 27-4, it might be very difficult for the NCAA to keep the Gators off the No. 1 line. Split the two games and the Gators still clinch a top four finish in the SEC and the double bye.   Georgia (18-11, 6-10 SEC): The Bulldogs are Team Lazarus. They’ve risen from the dead and are two wins away from 20, which will put them squarely in the NCAA Tournament. The Bulldogs are at South Carolina and home against Vanderbilt this week.   No. 17 Kentucky (19-10, 8-8 SEC): The Wildcats are in serious danger of finishing with a sub-.500 SEC record and possibly playing on the first day at the SEC Tournament. The honeymoon is over for head coach Mark Pope. He’s not in danger of being fired this year but having to play on Wednesday at the SEC Tournament would make his seat very, very warm for 2026.   LSU (14-15, 3-13 SEC): The only hope for the Tigers is to win the last two games at Kentucky and home against the Aggies, then win a game or two at the SEC Tournament. If LSU gets to 17 wins it probably makes the NIT. Would that be enough to hush the talk that head coach Matt McMahon needs to find gainful employment somewhere else?   No. 24 Mississippi State (20-9, 8-8 SEC): The Bulldogs need at least a split this week for a .500 record in league play that would prevent having to play on Wednesday. Two wins might get to a five or six seed in the NCAA Tournament.   No. 14 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC): If the Tigers go 2-0 and Alabama goes 0-2, Mizzou would finish among the top four teams and get the double bye since it owns the tiebreaker. Two wins could get the Tigers all the way up to the No. 4 line in the NCAA Tournament.   Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC): The Sooners are in scramble mode, needing wins against Arkansas and Texas to make the NCAA Tournament.  Head coach Porter Moser has a very hot seat that won’t cool down even if he makes the NCAA field.   Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC): The Rebels got a much-needed win to get them to 20 for the season. They are solidly in the NCAA. Tournament even if they lose to Missouri and Florida in the last two games of the regular season.   South Carolina (12-17, 2-14 SEC): The Gamecocks aren’t going anywhere but they can affect the SEC Tournament if they somehow spring an upset over either Georgia or Tennessee.   No. 5 Tennessee (23-6, 11-5 SEC): The Vols have two very winnable games this week. At 13-5, Tennessee will get the double bye and may very well clinch a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.   Texas (16-13, 5-11 SEC): Buzzards are circling over the Texas basketball complex. The Longhorns look like they’re a lock for the NIT which isn’t good for head coach Rodney Terry, who is 59-32 in three seasons on the job. Much more is expected. Only God had more money than the Longhorns so they can make a Godfather offer to someone … like maybe Billy Donovan? No. 12 Texas A&M (20-9, 9-7 SEC): Four straight losses have eliminated any thought that the Aggies will be a top four seed in both the SEC and NCAA tournaments. They’re in desperation mode which makes them dangerous for No. 1 Auburn, who they play Tuesday night.   Vanderbilt (20-9, 8-8 SEC): The Commodores have gone from the NCAA bubble to solidly in the tournament. Win two tough games this week (Arkansas, at Georgia) and they could make it to the No. 6 or even No. 5 NCAA line.   SEC BASKETBALL Tuesday’s games No. 1 Auburn (27-2, 15-1 SEC) at No. 12 Texas A&M (20-9, 9-7 SEC) LSU (14-15, 3-13 SEC) at No. 17 Kentucky (19-10, 8-8 SEC) Texas (16-13, 5-11 SEC) at No. 24 Mississippi State (20-9, 8-8 SEC) Arkansas (17-12, 6-10 SEC) at Vanderbilt (20-9, 8-8 SEC) Georgia (18-11, 6-10 SEC) at South Carolina (12-17, 2-14 SEC)   Wednesday’s games No. 3 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC) at No. 6 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC) No. 5 Tennessee (24-5, 11-5 SEC) at Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC) No. 14 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC) at Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC)   Saturday’s games Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC) at No. 3 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC) No. 6 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC) at No. 1 Auburn (27-2, 15-1 SEC) South Carolina (12-17, 2-14 SEC) at No. 5 Tennessee (24-5, 11-5 SEC) No. 12 Texas A&M (20-9, 9-7 SEC) at LSU (14-15, 3-13 SEC) No. 17 Kentucky (19-10, 8-8 SEC) at No. 14 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC) No. 24 Mississippi State (20-9, 8-8 SEC) at Arkansas (17-12, 6-10 SEC) Vanderbilt (20-9, 8-8 SEC) at Georgia (18-11, 6-10 SEC) Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC) at Texas (16-13, 5-11 SEC)   UF BASEBALL: MIAMI HANDS GATORS FIRST LOSS The pitching ran out for the Gators Sunday afternoon as Miami salvaged some dignity for the weekend by winning game three, 13-7. Florida (11-1) won games one and two of the series behind great pitching and home runs, but the Gators had problems with the strike zone Sunday and that proved costly.     The Gators staked Jake Clemente to a 4-0 lead with a 2-run first and two more in the third on Brody Donay’s sixth home run of the season. Clemente couldn’t hold the lead because he walked four and hit three batters in four innings of work. Miami scored two in the fourth, five in the fifth and two more in the sixth.   The lead expanded to 13-4 before the Gators scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the eighth and another in the ninth.   The Gators will be at UCF Tuesday and return home to Condron Family Ballpark to host Florida Atlantic on Wednesday. The Gators will host Harvard next weekend.   UF SOFTBALL: GATORS RUN-RULE FAMU FOR 23rd WIN Reagan Walsh hit her fourth home in the last three games to help power the 3rd-ranked Gators (23-1) to their 16th run-rule win of the season, 9-1, over Florida A&M. Walsh, Mia Williams and Kendra Falby drove in two runs apiece as part of an 11-hit attack.   Olivia Miller (3-0) got the win with relief help from Kara Hammack. Miller went four innings, giving up two hits and one unearned run. Hammack pitched two hitless innings.   Falby stole two bases. She has 26 already this season and 108 for her career. Skylar Wallace holds the Florida career record (119) with Kelsey Stewart (113) in second place.   In the last five games, Walsh is 11-16 with three doubles and four home runs.   The Gators will be at Houston Wednesday then on to College Station to open SEC play at Texas A&M. The Gators will be without ace Keagan Rothrock for more than a week due to tenderness in her shoulder.

Alex Condon blocks Wade Taylor's 3-point attempt 25 feet from the rim (Photo by Chris Spears) Following the under-8 minute media time out with 3rd-ranked Florida holding a shaky 65-59 lead over 12th-ranked Texas A&M, Will Richard and Alex Condon turned the next 70 seconds into their own personal daggers to the heart of the Aggies. A 3-pointer by Richard on an assist by Condon with 7:34 left and two hammer-like 2-handed jams by Condon that sandwiched a tip-in by the Aggies’ Henry Coleman III had the effect of flipping a take no prisoners switch that ended any hope Texas A&M had of springing a much-needed upset.   Until that sudden change mini-run that saw the Gators create 11 points of breathing room (72-61) with 6:24 left in the game, the Aggies had been wearing the Gators down. Trailing by 17 at 51-34 in the first 90 seconds of the second half, the Aggies ratcheted up their defense to start chipping away at the deficit. The combination of some poor shot selection and way too many fouls allowed the Aggies to cut the margin to six points on two occasions. Had a Wade Taylor IV 3-ball found the mark just prior to the media time out with 7:45 to go, it would have been a 3-point game that would have given a collective case of the yips to the 10,784 shoehorned into the O-Dome.   The yips turned into one deafening outburst after another starting with Richard’s three. Two Condon dunks later and the Aggies were never the same again. Florida (25-4, 12-4 SEC) outscored Texas A&M 17-9 the rest of the way for a comfortable, 89-70, win that convinced Aggie coach Buzz Williams that the Gators have everything it takes to win a national championship.   “They’re as good as any team in the country,” Williams said of Florida after the Aggie tailspin continued with a fourth consecutive loss. Texas A&M, meanwhile, has gone from an almost surefire No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament to one that might fall all the way down to a six or seven if they can’t regain their winning ways. “Coach [Golden] has done a fabulous job, the staff, the roster construction, the way they play … I think Florida’s talent is elite, among the best in the country per position including the guys off the bench.”   The Gators needed the talent to step up to erase the bad memories of what happened at Georgia earlier in the week. That shocking loss had bracketologists Joe Lunardi and Jerry Palm knocking the Gators off their NCAA No. 1 lines while casting doubt on Florida’s ability to hang on to the double bye at the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Everything changed Saturday as the Gators showed how they are capable of withstanding body blows from an opponent then putting together the kind of spurts that leave the other team gasping for air.   Saturday we saw just how resilient the Gators can be and just how dangerous a team they are moving forward. When you couple Florida’s win with losses by Alabama and Missouri Saturday, it creates an opening for the Gators to storm past the field for a second place statement of a finish. The Gators need only a split of their final two regular season games next week to secure the double bye at the SEC Tournament. A Wednesday night win over Alabama and a regular season-ending win over Ole Miss next Saturday will put the Gators at 14-4 in SEC play and in sole possession of second place in the final regular season standings.   If the Gators merely split the last two, they will still be one of the top four teams in the regular season with a 13-5 SEC mark. At 13-5 the Gators will have the assurance of not having to play until the Friday quarterfinals at the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Now, if the Gators beat Bama and Ole Miss, it seems almost a certainty that Florida will be back on the No. 1 seed line after being busted down to a No. 2 due to the loss to Georgia.   The first 13 minutes of the first half at Georgia was rock bottom. The rally from 26 down to actually take the lead late in the game was conclusive evidence that this Florida team has gears no one else has. The way the Gators dismantled a very good Texas A&M (21-8, 9-7 SEC) was further proof that the Gators can go toe-to-toe for so long before they turn up the tempo and blow past. When the Gators do that, they’re scary good.   Todd Golden can't believe what he's seeing from the officiating crew (Photo by Chris Spears) So, how good can this Florida team be? The definitive answer to that question will come in the weeks ahead. Right now, we can only speculate but the Gators have a roster that can allow them to play any style and still be successful. The Aggies wanted a slow, grind it out game but they couldn’t match Florida’s outside shooting and their bigs had no chance in containing the Gators in the paint. That they were able to outrebound the Aggies enabled the Gators to get out on the run to force A&M into a tempo it did not want to play.   When the Aggies were able to get the game going at their desired tempo, the Gators ratcheted up the defense to force the action on one end, spread the floor and moved the ball unselfishly at the other. It created the ultimate dilemma: clog the paint and guys like Will Richard tear you apart or defend the perimeter and the big guys cut loose.   Richard, who scored a career-high 30 back on Tuesday against Georgia, followed that up with 25 against the Aggies. He hit 6-9 from the 3-point line, 5-6 coming after halftime. Alijah Martin and Tommy Haugh were the hot hands in the first half. Martin went 4-6 while Haugh went 2-3. Overall, the Gators were 14-33, a very respectable 42.4 percent.   The outside shooting was made possible because the Gators unselfishly shared the basketball. The Gators finished with 21 assists of their 32 made baskets. Ten of those assists came from Florida big guys: Condon (4); Haugh (4); Handlogten (2) and even Rueben Chinyelu (2) whose foul difficulties kept him on the bench for 33 of the 40 minutes.   Contributing to the outside shooting was Florida’s dominance on the backboards. The Gators outrebounded the Aggies 42-37 with 14 on the offensive end. Not many teams outrebound A&M, which is the national leader in offensive rebounds.   That stat made Golden almost giddy.   “To go +5 on the boards against A&M it’s like going +20 against a normal team,” Golden said.   It wasn’t just rebounding where the bigs excelled. They clogged the paint and when the Aggies tried to take them outside they went with them and matched stride for stride when the Aggies tried to put the ball on the deck and drive. Condon blocked three shots, Micah Handlogten two, with Chinyleu and Haugh each rejecting one.   Tommy Haugh looks for an opening on the perimeter (Photo by Chris Spears) When Chinyelu and Condon picked up two quick fouls in the first half, Haugh and Handlogten stepped things up. Haugh, whose two threes early in the first half led to the Gators breaking away and putting some distance in the rearview, scored eight of his 17 points which included consecutive threes in the first 20 minutes. Handlogten came off the bench to be Florida’s wall at the rim. In his 20 minutes on the floor he impacted winning without scoring. Handlogten finished with two points, eight rebounds, two assists, two blocked shots and two steals.   Golden gushed over Handlogten’s performance.   “He’s been such a luxury to have back and just shows how much of a winning player someone can be without scoring a lot,” Golden said. “He only had two points tonight but he was +16 (points) in 19 minutes. I thought he was maybe not the only one but one of the differences on the glass.”   From Williams’ perspective Florida’s bigs create the perfect storm because the Gators have outstanding shooters, big guys who get the ball back for second chance opportunities and the size to alter shots.   “I think they play with great physicality,” Williams said. “Like all teams, regardless of your defensive principles, it’s probably predicated on not allowing it to get into the paint and to try to defend without fouling.   “I think at the rim they may be the best I have seen and I have been doing this a long time, but I’ve been doing it awhile. They are perfect. I haven’t been to Florida’s practice since Coach (Billy) Donovan was here but every shot at the rim their thumbs were behind their ears. Even though many of those guys can block shots, their verticality is perfect.”   When the Gators get it going at both ends of the floor, they might be the most difficult team to play in the entire country. They can win basketball games in so many ways and what should be so frightening to opposing coaches is depth that allows Golden to sub in and out without fear of a dropoff.   There is a lot of basketball still to be played and so much can happen in both positive and negative ways but this is a Florida team that could very well win it all. For all the talk about Auburn, which clinched the SEC regular season title Saturday, the Gators went to their place and completely dominated them. That wasn’t a fluke. A fluke is what happened at Georgia.   If Florida can maintain its focus and play with purpose and the kind of intensity we saw against Texas A&M, they are everybody’s nightmare matchup the rest of the way. SEC BASKETBALL No. 3 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC) No. 12 Texas A&M (20-9, 9-7 SEC) No. 1 Auburn (27-2, 15-1 SEC) 94, No. 17 Kentucky (19-10, 8-8 SEC) 78 No. 5 Tennessee (24-5, 11-5 SEC) 79, No. 6 Alabama (23-6, 10-6 SEC) 76 Vanderbilt (20-9, 8-8 SEC) 97, No. 14 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC) 93, OT No. 24 Mississippi State (20-9, 8-8 SEC) 81, LSU (14-15, 3-13 SEC) 68 Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC) 87, Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC) 84 Georgia (18-11, 6-10 SEC) 83, Texas (16-13, 5-11 SEC) 67 South Carolina (12-17, 2-14 SEC) 72, Arkansas (17-12, 6-10 SEC) 53   Tuesday’s games No. 1 Auburn (27-2, 15-1 SEC) at No. 12 Texas A&M (21-8, 9-7 SEC) LSU (14-15, 3-13 SEC) at No. 17 Kentucky (19-10, 8-8 SEC) Texas (16-13, 5-11 SEC) at No. 24 Mississippi State (20-9, 8-8 SEC) Georgia (18-11, 6-10 SEC) at South Carolina (12-17, 2-14 SEC) Arkansas (17-12, 6-10 SEC) at Vanderbilt (20-9, 8-8 SEC)   Wednesday’s games No. 3 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC) at No. 6 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC) No. 5 Tennessee (24-5, 11-5 SEC) at Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC) No. 14 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC) at Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC)   Saturday, March 8 Ole Miss (20-9, 9-7 SEC) at No. 3 FLORIDA (25-4, 12-4 SEC) No. 6 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC) at No. 1 Auburn (27-2, 15-1 SEC) South Carolina (12-17, 2-14 SEC) at No. 5 Tennessee (24-5, 11-5 SEC) No. 12 Texas A&M (21-8, 9-7 SEC) at LSU (14-15, 3-13 SEC) No. 17 Kentucky (19-10, 8-8 SEC) at No. 14 Missouri (21-8, 10-6 SEC) No. 24 Mississippi State (20-9, 8-8 SEC) at Arkansas (17-12, 6-10 SEC) Vanderblit (20-9, 8-8 SEC) at Georgia (18-11, 6-10 SEC) Texas (16-13, 5-11 SEC) at Oklahoma (17-12, 4-12 SEC)

How sweet it is, Luke Heyman celebrates a home run (UAA Photo) There was a time when Florida fans dreaded the annual weekend series with the Miami Hurricanes. No longer. Saturday before a record crowd of 9,303 at Condron Family Ballpark the Gators rode three home runs and brilliant pitching from the bullpen for a 6-3 win over Miami, clinching the series for the 10th time in the last 11 years for head coach Kevin O’Sullivan.   What kept the 8th-ranked Gators unbeaten (11-0) was the ability to adjust on the fly. When Cade Kurland went down with a dislocated shoulder he suffered while making a brilliant play at second base, O’Sullivan simply moved center fielder Justin Nadeau to second base, shifted right fielder Hayden Yost to center field and brought in Ashton Wilson off the bench to play right. In their new positions, the three were rock solid.   When Pierce Coppola was pulled with two outs in the third inning for an undisclosed injury, O’Sullivan went to freshman Aidan King, the first of four pitchers out of the bullpen. King gave the Gators 3-1/3 innings of 1-hit relief. Frank Menendez went an inning but in the eighth struggled with his control. In came Luke McNeillie, who gave up a 2-run homer. Then in the ninth, Alex Philpott closed things out, allowing a run before shutting the door on the Hurricanes to earn the save.   From a collective standpoint, Florida pitching gave up six hits, walked five and struck out 10 Hurricanes. King got the win to go 2-0, but it was the combined effort of all five pitchers that shut down Miami’s very capable offense.   “W e finished third, fourth in the country last year and got to the World Series,” O’Sullivan said. “We started seeing signs of those younger pitchers starting to figure it out, like Frankie (Menendez) in the regional against Oklahoma State and obviously Luke (McNeillie) at Clemson in the super regional. You started seeing some flashes of those guys getting better and I think that's just a byproduct of them working hard. They're a year older, and you're starting to see the reason why we recruit a lot of these guys."   Support for the pitching staff came from an errorless day in the field and power at the plate. Bobby Boser homered for the second straight day, this one a wind-pushed high fly to right field that barely eluded Miami’s Derek Williams, who leaped but couldn’t bring the ball back in.   That 1-0 lead Boser gave the Gators stood until the sixth when the Gators struck for three. Wilson walked to lead things off, moved to second on a throwing error on an attempted pickoff and scored on a Landon Stripling double into the left field corner. After Blake Cyr’s sacrifice bunt moved Stripling to third, Luke Heyman launched a 2-run homer deep over the wall in left field that gave the Gators a 4-0 lead.   After Miami scored twice in the eighth to cut Florida’s lead to 4-2, the Gators responded with two more. Stripling singled and one out later Heyman hit his second home run of the game.   This was almost a business-like win for the Gators (11-0). It was methodical in the way the Gators simply got the job done. In the field it was Florida’s second consecutive error-free game. At the plate, the Gators weren’t overwhelming but they put together three innings that produced runs. On the mound, it was the second straight game in which the bullpen has held the fort without blowing a big lead, something the Gators were always in danger of doing a year ago.   Heyman broke out of his slump with two homers. Stripling continued to show O’Sullivan that if he plays he will produce. Nadeau made the switch from center field to second base without a hitch. Boser continued his assault on pitchers with his fifth home run of the season. For the second straight game, Cyr laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt, something the Gators of previous years struggled to do.   King handled taking over for Coppola like he’s been there, done that. He certainly didn’t pitch like a freshman. The Menendez of the seventh was a dart thrower who pounds the strike zone in the mid-90s. It wasn’t a great day for McNeillie, but Philpott cleaned things up in the end, solidifying his role as the closer.   "He throws strikes, he fields his position he holds runners,” O’Sullivan said. ”He's got multiple pitches. He's like a starter, but he's got different weapons. His fastball honestly is a lot different than it was last year. I thought he had the mentality to do it. It's a long season, but he certainly has had a good weekend."   How the injuries to Kurland and Coppola play out remains to be seen, but O’Sullivan shuffled the deck a bit when they went down and the results were the same.   The Gators and Hurricanes square off for the series finale at 1 p.m. at Condron Family Ballpark.

#6 Florida bounced back from a disappointing meet against Oklahoma by tying a season high score in defeating #8 Missouri 198.125-197.725. The Gators received good news/bad news earlier in the week when coach Rowland announced Anya Pilgrim would be available after a concussion on Uneven Bars last Friday in Norman, OK. Unfortunately Sloane Blakely’s lower leg injury would be season ending.

Todd Golden knows the importance of a win against the Aggies (Photo by Chris Spears) Must win. Desperation time. Pressure’s on. Can’t afford to lose this one. Got to have it.   Too often, particularly at this time of the year in college basketball, we hear those cliches in a variety of creative ways, and too often it’s nothing more than hype. Tonight, however, those sayings and maybe every other one you’ve heard apply to both 12th-ranked Texas A&M (20-8, 9-6 SEC) and 3rd-ranked Florida (24-4, 11-4 SEC). It cannot be overstated how both these teams need a win when they square off at the O-Dome (8:30 p.m., SEC Network).   Only a week ago, the Gators seemed like a lock for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Then came a disastrous loss at Athens Tuesday night, a game in which the Gators trailed in the first half by 26 points. Although their rally to take the lead before succumbing to Georgia in the final 47 seconds is admirable, no one on the selection committee is going to pay attention to how close a loss it was and that the Gators had a chance to win the game. The only thing they’re going to see is a loss in a game the Gators had no business whatsoever in losing.   And now, the Gators need a win. Yeah, they’re desperate. They haven’t had a 2-game losing streak all season, so that’s one good reason right there. They can still get back to a No. 1 seed if they go 3-0 the rest of the way, starting with tonight against the Aggies. That’s another good reason.   Here is the most important reason of all. By losing to Georgia the Gators lost their 2-game cushion over No. 5 Tennessee (23-5, 10-5 SEC) and No. 14 Missouri (21-7, 10-5 SEC) in Southeastern Conference play and the race for the coveted double bye at the SEC Tournament in Nashville. If the Gators go 2-1 and both the Vols and Mizzou win out in their last three, the Gators could find themselves odd man out for the double bye and forced to play on Thursday in Nashville.   A year ago, the Gators were outside the top four in Nashville but they won three straight games to reach the championship game with Auburn. The Gators not only lost the game, but they lost Micah Handlogten to a compound fracture of his leg. Who knows how much exhaustion played into both the loss and the injury. Four games in four days takes a toll, and that played into the Gators’ first round NCAA loss to Colorado.   Go 3-0 with wins next week at No. 6 Alabama (23-5, 12-3 SEC) and home against Ole Miss (19-9, 8-7 SEC) and it’s a no-brainer. The Gators finish second in the SEC, get the double bye, and almost certainly clinch a No. 1 seed in the NCAA.   “We can get a double bye and still get to two, though, for sure,” Florida coach Todd Golden said Friday when asked the importance of the double bye. “I think that's realistic, especially depending on the outcome at Alabama next week, but I like the double bye. I think that not playing until the Friday of the SEC Tournament gives a little time in a great problem of having to play three games – you don't have to play fourth. I think we would have the opportunity to stay a little fresher for the NCAA Tournament, but yeah, that'd be my answer. I'll take double bye, double bye for 500 please."   Right now, the Aggies stand in the way. A week ago the Aggies were on everybody’s No. 2 line for the NCAA Tournament and thought to be knocking on the door for a No. 1. Now they’ve lost three straight, there’s no shot at the double bye and their NCAA seeding is about to nosedive to a five or a six. Those 5-12 or 6-11 NCAA first round games are notorious for upsets. The Gators were a No. 6 last year when they faced No. 11 Colorado and lost.   Three straight losses are bad enough. Four would make it a bad day at Black Rock for this Aggie team that at one point was playing like it could take on and win against anyone in the country.   So tonight the Gators can expect Texas A&M to come out with the understanding that their season is on the brink. You always know you’re going to get a rock fight when you play a Buzz Williams-coached team, so that’s a given. Now throw in the desperation factor and the Gators can expect to play a team that understands what might have been is slip-sliding away.   But, the losing skid can stop and a furious finish could still keep the Aggies among the top four seeds. Somebody once said that winning cures a lot of ills. Nobody needs a win more than the Aggies and that’s what the Gators are up against tonight.   So what is Golden’s message to the Gators?   “ We’ve won six out of seven,” Golden said. “We have a really good team. The message and what we talk about all the time in our program is just being consistent. I think we prepare very well. I think we have a very mature group, and I'm not worried about this group in terms of competing the right way. So, we're playing against a very good A&M tomorrow that's lost three in a row in this league. You got to be able to deal with some adversity and trust what this team has shown over the last 28 games and I'm still thrilled to be the coach of this team. I think this team has a chance to have a great end of the year, and I still feel that way even if we don't win tomorrow. I think we've done enough to prove to ourselves that we have a chance to play deep into March.   “And, as you know, covering college basketball for a long time, the tournament is a lot of variation, a lot of things can happen. But we have a really good team that has a chance to make a run, and we'll just continue to get as good as we can before that, and let the chips fall wherever they may.”   ANTICIPATED STARTING LINEUPS No. 3 FLORIDA (24-4, 11-4 SEC): Tommy Haugh (6-9, 205, SO); Rueben Chinyelu (6-10, 255, SO); Will Richard (6-4, 206, SR); Alijah Martin (6-2, 195, GR); Walter Clayton Jr. (6-2, 195, SR)   No. 12 Texas A&M (20-8, 9-6 SEC): Andersson Garcia (6-7, 220 SR); Henry Coleman III (6-8, 250, SR); Solomon Washington (6-7, 220, JR); Zhuric Phelps (6-4, 190, SR); Wade Taylor IV (6-0, 180, SR)   SATURDAY IN THE SEC No. 12 Texas A&M (20-8, 9-6 SEC) at No. 3 FLORIDA (24-4, 11-4 SEC) No. 1 Auburn (26-2, 14-1 SEC) at No. 17 Kentucky (19-9, 8-7 SEC) No. 6 Alabama (23-5, 12-3 SEC) at No. 6 Tennessee (23-5, 10-5 SEC) No. 14 Missouri (21-7, 10-5 SEC) at Vanderbilt (19-9, 7-8 SEC) LSU (14-14, 3-12 SEC) at No. 24 Mississippi State (19-9, 7-8 SEC)Oklahoma (17-11, 4-11 SEC) at Ole Miss (19-9, 8-7 SEC)Georgia (17-11, 5-10 SEC) at Texas (16-12, 5-10 SEC)Arkansas (17-11, 6-9 SEC) at South Carolina (11-17, 1-14 SEC)

Bobby Boser launches leadoff homer in the third inning (UAA Photo) Two outs, a 3-1 count to the batter, runners second and third following a wild pitch that gave Miami a 2-1 lead in the top of the third inning. A year ago and there is a good chance Liam Peterson would have begun to unravel. Friday night at Condron Family Ballpark, the sophomore and more mature Liam Peterson gathered himself on the mound and blew two fast balls by Bobby Marsh to snuff out the threat of a big inning.   Peterson was all over the strike zone in those first three innings, but after striking out Marsh, he was a completely different pitcher. Over the next three innings, he dominated, needing just 33 pitches to breeze through the Miami lineup, allowing one hit the rest of the way. His fast ball regularly hit 97-98 on the gun. His curve ball regularly found the strike zone and kept the Hurricane hitters off balance.   “I feel like last year I kind of let the innings roll over a lot so that was kind of a big focus [in the offseason] and I feel like today I got it pretty well,” Peterson said after picking up his third win of the season as the 8th-ranked Florida Gators took the opening game of their weekend series with Miami, 6-2. The win extended Florida's win streak to 10 games, longest since the 2020 team won its first 16 games.   Perhaps inspired by the way things ended in the top of the third, the Gators put two on the scoreboard to take the lead in their half of the inning. Bobby Boser led off by driving the second pitch he saw from Miami starter Nick Robert to the back wall of the Hurricanes left field bullpen. Two outs later, freshman Brendan Lawson hit a towering home run to dead center field to put the Gators ahead for good, 3-2.   Staked to a lead, Peterson and the Florida bullpen took the game over. Peterson gave up a single in the fourth then set down the Hurricanes in 1-2-3 fashion in both the fifth and sixth. His six innings of work resulted in four hits, one intentional walk and seven strikeouts.   Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan used three fresh arms, an inning apiece to mow down Miami the rest of the way. Lefty Frank Menendez gave up an infield single, then struck out the side in his inning. Luke McNeillie pitched the eighth and Alex Philpott the ninth, both shutting down Miami 1-2-3.   Like Peterson, Menendez, McNeillie and Philpott had their struggles a year ago but Friday night against a very good offensive team they were dominant. The line for the four: Nine innings, five hits, two earned runs, one walk and 12 strikeouts.   When those four were freshman a year ago they had difficulty throwing strikes with any kind of consistency and had their issues in adversarial situations. Once Peterson got past the third, it was six consecutive innings of Florida pitchers pounding the strike zone.   “He [Peterson] ran his pitch count up close to thirty pitches there in the first and maybe last year, he wouldn't have been able to keep it together for six innings,” Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “He was outstanding. He set the tone for the weekend and then, what you say about our bullpen? Everybody kind of came in and just did their job, and it was a really well pitched game on the mound for us tonight."   The Gators backed the bullpen with single runs in each of the sixth, seven and eighth innings. The Gators loaded the bases without a hit and made it 4-2 in the sixth on Hayden Yost’s sacrifice fly that scored Lawson, who led off the inning with a walk and a stolen base. In the seventh, Boser led off with a single, advanced to third on consecutive ground outs and scored on Lawson’s sharp single to center field. The Gators finished off the scoring in the eighth on a two-out single by Boser to drive in Yost.   In running their record to 10-0, the Gators were efficient in every phase of the game. Pitchers threw strikes and got people out. In the field, the Gators were flawless. At the plate the Gators got six runs on eight hits with Boser and Lawson each hitting a homer, a single and driving in two runs.   Game two of the weekend series with Miami is at 4 p.m. today with lefty Pierce Coppola getting the start for Florida.   Game notes: A positive sign that things have changed for the better after a season in which Florida pitchers had difficulty finding the strike zone with any measure of consistency is a 129-23 strikeout to walk ratio … Florida pitchers have struck out at least one batter in 78 of the 84 innings pitched so far … The Gators stole only 43 bases all last year in 66 games. With two steals Friday night, the Gators now have 29 through 10 …Boser is hitting .385 with four homers and 12 RBI. Lawson is hitting .371 with two homers and 12 RBI.   UF SOFTBALL: TIM WALTON GETS 1000th WIN Hall of Fame softball coach Tim Walton got his 1000th win as Florida’s head coach Friday night when the 3rd-ranked Gators (20-1) got a 9-1 run-rule win over Samford in the Florida Invitational at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Walton, now in his 20th season at Florida, is 1,000-239 at UF, 1,123-303 overall.   In taking out Samford, Kara Hammack and Ava Brown combined to pitch a 4-hitter. Hammack (4-0) went five innings, giving up four hits while walking one and striking out four. Ava Brown came on to pitch the sixth while setting down the Bulldogs 1-2-3.   The Gators gave Hammack all the support she needed in the first when they pushed across three runs. Kendra Falby led off with a single, stole second and came home on a Taylor Shumaker single. After a walk to Korbe Otis, Kenleigh Cahalan hit a 2-run double.   The Gators made it 7-0 in the third on an RBI single by Otis, an RBI double by Reagan Walsh and a 2-run double by Gaby Comia. The Gators added a run in the fifth on another Walsh double and then closed out the scoring in the sixth on Cahalan’s sacrifice fly.   Shumaker led Florida’s 12-hit attack with three single and her 37th RBI of the season. Falby had two singles and two stolen bases. Otis went 2-3 with an RBI while Cahalan had two doubles and three RBI and Walsh doubled twice with two RBI.   Today, the Gators will play Troy at 11:30 a.m. and Western Michigan at 2:30 p.m.   Game notes: Shumaker is hitting .536 with 11 homers and 39 RBI …Falby is hitting .493 with 21 stolen bases. She has 103 for her career …Cahalan has 12 doubles, four homers and 33 RBI … As a team the Gators are hitting .396 with 39 home runs.

“One thing that makes it possible to be an optimist is if you have a contingency plan for when all hell breaks loose.” – Randy Pausch Mr. Pausch was not talking about the final three games of the Southeastern Conference regular season, but he could have been. The race for the regular season title is certainly No. 1 Auburn’s to lose. Barring a disaster, Auburn will win the SEC regular season title while earning the top seed in the NCAA Tournament.   The next 12 teams in the SEC need contingency plans because in these final three games across the board, all hell is likely to break loose. Everyone except Auburn and bottom-feeders LSU and South Carolina should be sweating bullets. Right now, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi and CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm have NCAA Tournament bids going out to everyone except Georgia, LSU and South Carolina. Georgia (17-11, 5-10 SEC) has to be optimistic after its win over 3rd-ranked Florida back on Tuesday. The Bulldogs have three winnable games and a 20-win Georgia team is definitely going to be in the field.   There will be sighs of relief for the top four teams in the final regular season standings because they will get a double bye for the SEC Tournament in Nashville. A top four finish means you don’t play your first game until the Friday quarterfinals. Teams five through eight get a one-day break. They’re off until Thursday while teams nine through 16 slog it out to advance, knowing fully well that one or two wins in Nashville punches their March Madness dance card.   The team with the most to lose right now seems to be 3rd-ranked Florida (24-4, 11-4 SEC), which suffered a shocking and uncharacteristic loss to Georgia in Athens back on Saturday. The Gators are currently in third place, a game ahead of 5th-ranked Tennessee (23-5, 10-5 SEC) and 14th-ranked  Missouri (21-7, 10-5). If the Vols and Mizzou both go 3-0 the rest of the way and the Gators lose a game, tiebreakers factor in the top four seed equation. Florida split with the Vols, lost their only game with Missouri. An 0-3 finish and the Gators are almost certainly playing on Thursday.   The Gators can erase any doubts with a 3-0 record. At 14-4 the Gators would move to No. 2. If 6th-ranked Alabama (23-5, 12-3 SEC) loses two of its last three, entirely possible since the last three games are (at) Tennessee, Florida and (at) Auburn, and the Gators go 3-0, there could be a 3-team logjam to determine which teams get the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds.   And that’s just what’s at the top. Any team that fails to get to 9-9 in SEC play probably has a Wednesday date in Nashville. One of those teams, believe it or not, might be 17th-ranked Kentucky (19-9, 8-7 SEC). The Wildcats have two very losable games in their last three, so they could finish in a tie-break that would have them playing on Wednesday. The people who run the SEC Tournament are probably praying for that since Kentucky fans will assure a first day sellout, same thing on day two if the Cats were to win on Wednesday.   Imagine this scenario: Arkansas (17-11, 6-9 SEC) goes 3-0 and finishes in a tie with Kentucky for the No. 8 spot. Arkansas wins the tiebreaker because of its win over UK at Rupp Arena. Former Kentucky coach John Calipari gets Arkansas a first day bye and first year Kentucky coach Mark Pope plays on Wednesday.   File that under things that make you go hmmmm in a very juicy way.   In serious trouble are SEC newcomers Texas (16-12, 5-10 SEC) and Oklahoma (17-11, 4-11 SEC). Both of them might be thinking about now that life was much, much easier in the Big 12.   Here is a team-by-team look at the SEC with three regular season games remaining.   No. 6 Alabama (23-5, 12-3 SEC): The last three games are at No. 5 Tennessee, No. 3 Florida and at No. 1 Auburn. Win those three and Alabama is a mortal lock for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. A 1-2 finish or 0-3 could bump the Tide to the No. 2 in the big dance. Lose three and the Crimson Tide might miss out on the double bye in Nashville.   Arkansas (17-11, 6-9 SEC): The Hogs have a legitimate shot at 20 regular season wins and a 9-9 SEC record. Considering the injuries that have the Hogs currently playing with seven scholarship players, John Calipari might be SEC Coach of the Year if Arkansas finishes off with wins over (at) South Carolina, (at) Vanderbilt and Mississippi State.   No. 1 Auburn (26-2, 14-1 SEC): Auburn is one win away from no worse than a tie for the SEC regular season championship. Two out of the last three (at No. 17 Kentucky, at No. 12 Texas A&M, No. 6 Alabama) clinches the title outright. A 3-0 finish and you can pencil in Auburn as the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.   No. 3 FLORIDA (24-4, 11-4 SEC): The Gators can earn their way back to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament if they finish 3-0. The Gators face No. 12 Texas A&M Saturday in the O-Dome, travel to No. 6 Alabama and close out at home against Ole Miss. To get the double bye for the SEC Tournament, the Gators have to go 2-1 or better in those final three while hoping Tennessee and Missouri don’t run the table.   Georgia (17-11, 5-10 SEC): The Bulldogs shocking win over Florida probably gets them into the NCAA Tournament if they take care of business in the last three games – at Texas, at South Carolina and home against Vanderbilt. A win at Texas could very well send the Longhorns to the NIT. Of course, if Georgia loses two of the last three the Bulldogs might also be in the NIT. Again.   No. 17 Kentucky (19-9, 8-7 SEC): The Wildcats are currently seventh in the SEC standings, needing two wins in their final three regular season games (No. 1 Auburn, LSU and at No. 14 Missouri) to avoid playing on Wednesday at the SEC Tournament in Nashville. At 9-9 there is no guarantee of a top eight finish. Kentucky will be in the NCAA Tournament with a better seed than the Wildcats deserve because their basketball fans travel better than any fans in college sports. The NCAA will honor that.   LSU (14-14, 3-12 SEC): Any hopes the Tigers have of salvaging a dismal season with the NIT are fading fast. Essentially, it will take a 3-0 finish against (at) No. 24 Mississippi State, (at) No. 17 Kentucky and home against No. 12 Texas A&M.   No. 24 Mississippi State (19-9, 7-8 SEC): The Bulldogs are in the NCAA Tournament. Their biggest concern is getting off the Wednesday bubble for the SEC Tournament in Nashville. Currently, they’re ninth in the SEC standings which would put them playing the opening game against South Carolina. The last three are winnable however – home games with LSU and Texas and closing out on the road with Arkansas.   No. 14 Missouri (21-7, 10-5 SEC): Missouri could play its way into a top four finish in the SEC which would ensure the double bye. All the Tigers have to do is run the table with roadies at Vanderbilt and Oklahoma and home to finish the season against No. 17 Kentucky. The Tigers can run with anyone and they can win rock fight games. A 3-0 finish could vault them into a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament.   Oklahoma (17-11, 4-11 SEC): Somehow the Sooners need to get to 19 wins or else their NCAA bubble will burst. They won’t get in the NCAA Tournament with four SEC wins and probably won’t with five, so they need to win two of the last three – at Ole Miss, No. 14 Missouri and Texas.   Ole Miss (19-9, 8-7 SEC): The Rebels have gone in the tank, losing their last three games. They will make the NCAA Tournament, but if they wish to avoid playing on Wednesday at the SEC Tournament they really need to win two of the last three – Oklahoma, No. 5 Tennessee and at No. 3 Florida.   South Carolina (11-17, 1-14 SEC): The Gamecocks can only play for pride by throwing a wrench into someone else’s tournament hopes. The last three are homers with Arkansas and Georgia and a roadie to close it out at No. 5 Tennessee.   No. 5 Tennessee (23-5, 10-5 SEC): The Vols host Alabama Saturday. Win that one and the next two should (at Ole Miss, South Carolina) should go in the win column. At 13-5 Tennessee will get the double bye in the SEC Tournament and put the Vols in prime position to sneak in as a No. 1 on Selection Sunday.   Texas (16-12, 5-10 SEC): The loss to Arkansas hurt badly, but the Longhorns are capable of finishing the season on a 3-0 run – Georgia, at No. 24 Mississippi State and Oklahoma. At the very least, they need to go 2-1 the rest of the way and hope for some mercy from the selection committee. At 3-0 they’ll get in.      No. 12 Texas A&M (20-8, 9-6 SEC): The Aggies have lost three in a row and their next two games are at No. 3 Florida and home against No. 1 Auburn. The final game is at LSU, which should get them at least to 10 SEC wins and a top eight finish, which avoids playing on Wednesday. The Aggies may be wounded, but they are indeed dangerous.     Vanderbilt (19-9, 7-8 SEC):   Saturday’s games No. 12 Texas A&M (20-8, 9-6 SEC) at No. 3 FLORIDA (24-4, 11-4 SEC) No. 1 Auburn (26-2, 14-1 SEC) at No. 17 Kentucky (19-9, 8-7 SEC) No. 6 Alabama (23-5, 12-3 SEC) at No. 6 Tennessee (23-5, 10-5 SEC) No. 14 Missouri (21-7, 10-5 SEC) at Vanderbilt (19-9, 7-8 SEC) LSU (14-14, 3-12 SEC) at No. 24 Mississippi State (19-9, 7-8 SEC) Oklahoma (17-11, 4-11 SEC) at Ole Miss (19-9, 8-7 SEC) Georgia (17-11, 5-10 SEC) at Texas (16-12, 5-10 SEC) Arkansas (17-11, 6-9 SEC) at South Carolina (11-17, 1-14 SEC)   SEC Standings 1. Auburn 14-1; 2. Alabama 12-3; 3. FLORIDA 11-4; 4. (TIE) Missouri 10-5 and Tennessee 10-5; 6. Texas A&M 9-6; 7. (TIE) Kentucky 8-7 and Ole Miss 8-7; 9. (TIE) Mississippi State 7-8 and Vanderbilt 7-8; 11. Arkansas 6-9; 12. (TIE) Georgia 5-10 and Texas 5-10; 14. Oklahoma 4-11; 15. LSU 3-12; 16. South Carolina 1-14   SEC Tournament brackets Wednesday, March 12 No. 16 vs. No. 9 No. 13 vs. No. 12 No. 15 vs. No. 10 No. 14 vs. No. 11   Thursday, March 13 Winner 16-9 vs. No. 8 Winner 13-12 vs. No. 5 Winner 15-10 vs. No. 7 Winner 14-11 vs. No. 6   Friday quarterfinals, March 14 Winner game 1 Thursday vs. No. 1 Winner game 2 Thursday vs. No. 4 Winner game 3 Thursday vs. No. 2 Winner game 4 Thursday vs. No. 4   Saturday semifinals, March 15 Friday game 1 vs. Friday game 2 Friday game 3 vs. Friday game 4

Will Richard goes high off the glass for a driving layup (UAA Photo) There are two ways to look at 3rd-ranked Florida’s disappointing 88-83 loss to Georgia (17-11, 5-10 SEC) in Athens Tuesday night. First and probably foremost, the Gators (24-4, 11-4 SEC) played their worst 20 minutes of defense in a first half in which they fell behind by as many as 26 points and over the course of the game bricked too many free throws. Second, despite falling behind 39-13 in the first 12:14 of the game, the Gators came back, actually took the lead with 1:28 to go, and had a legitimate shot to win what would have been the most remarkable comeback in Florida basketball history.   Obviously, point number two doesn’t matter. This isn’t like lobbing a hand grenade and getting close to the target. The bottom line is the Gators lost a game they had no business losing. Play Georgia 10 times and odds are the Gators win nine times. The one time they lose they forget all about defending the 3-point line in the first half and go 18-29 at the foul line. A couple of defensive stops, a few made free throws and we’re talking about how the Gators won in spite of themselves.   Instead, it’s a head-shaking loss that makes no sense at all. Georgia is a very difficult team to beat in Athens, but this is a Florida team that went into Neville Arena and stuck it to No. 1 Auburn. When the Gators are good, they’re very, very good.   When they get off to such a dismal start as they did Tuesday night, they are very, very beatable.   Despite playing so poorly in the first half and for stretches in the second half, the Gators did roar back to make a game of it. Bad teams pack it in when they can’t get it going at both ends of the floor while the other team is making shots it hasn’t made all season long. Good teams never give up and keep fighting even when it seems they’re teetering on the verge of sinking like the Titanic.   Fighting wasn’t Florida’s problem. Keeping Georgia from making shots was. The same Georgia team that had more scuds in its arsenal than Saddam Hussein in Gainesville went 7-9 from the 3-point line in the first half and 19-28 overall.   “They made a lot of shots,” Florida coach Todd Golden said, an obvious understatement. “We didn’t make them miss enough. That’s really all it was.”   Florida, meanwhile, was in China Syndrome meltdown the first 12:14. Georgia might have missed a few shots if the Gators had gotten hands in their faces or cut off driving lanes. At the other end of the court, the Gators couldn’t get anything to go in the paint and shots weren’t falling from the perimeter.   “We just put ourselves in too big of a hole,” Golden said. “Obviously, getting down by 26 points 13 minutes into the game is not ideal when you're trying to win a basketball game. ”   From the point where the Gators trailed by 26, they outscored Georgia 70-49 the rest of the way. The Bulldogs who couldn’t miss in the first half came back down to earth. When Tommy Haugh scored on a fast break layup with 1:28 to go, the Gators had their first lead of the game at 79-78. There would be a chance to extend the lead to three, but Alijah Martin missed the first of two free throws with 1:08 to go and that proved critical since Blue Cain nailed a dagger of a three with 47 seconds to go that allowed the Bulldogs to regain the lead a t 81-80.   There was still plenty of time for the Gators to pull the game out, but as hot as they were in the 13-0 run that put them in position to win, they went ice cold after the Cain 3-ball. A turnover, a pair of missed threes and fouls that allowed Georgia to hit 7-8 of their free throws ended any hopes of a miracle Florida comeback.   It shouldn’t have taken a miracle comeback to beat Georgia. Stuff like that happens, however, when you play defense with feet that seem set in concrete and it takes most of the game to get someone other than Will Richard involved in the offense.   Given room to load and launch, the Bulldogs were living in can’t miss heaven until the Gators came off life support in the final 7:46 of the half. That’s when Richard became a one-man gang. The Gators were down 39-13 when Richard heated up, scoring all 17 of Florida’s final 22 first half points as the Gators cut Georgia’s margin to 51-35 at the intermission.   Richard, who scored 30 points to go with five rebounds, three assists and three steals, scored seven of Florida’s first 10 second half points when the offense continued showing signs of life. After seven minutes of trading baskets, Micah Handlogten scored on a stickback with 12:59 left that reduced the margin to 66-51. That spark spread quickly into a fire as the Gators scored the next six points, a free throw by Alijah Martin at 11:08 cutting the deficit down to single digits for the first time since the 15:51 mark of the first half.   Georgia built the lead back to 12 but Handlogten tipped in a missed shot with 7:53 left and once again, it seemed to ignite the Gators. Richard heated up again, hitting a stepback jumper with 7:04 to go that got the Gators back within eight and a three with 6:21 left to cut Georgia’s lead to 74-67.   Georgia scored the next four points but didn’t score again until Cain’s dagger three. In between the Gators played with a furious purpose at both ends of the floor, going on a 13-0 run that was fueled by a pair of threes by Walter Clayton Jr. and Alex Condon going 4-4 at the foul line.   Haugh’s layup with 1:28 to go gave the Gators their first lead of the game at 79-78. Alijah Martin was fouled on his way to the rim after a steal, but he made only 1-2 from the line, negating a chance for the Gators to go up by three.   When Cain came off a double screen for the 3-pointer that enabled Georgia to regain the lead at 81-80, the Gators seemed to run out of gas. Georgia pulled away on 7-8 shooting from the foul line although Clayton did offer a ray of hope when he went 3-3 from the line when fouled in the act of shooting with 6.4 seconds to go in the game.   So Georgia got a win that could very well punch the Bulldogs’ ticket to the NCAA Tournament. Florida has no NCAA worries although this loss does make a No. 1 seed a shaky proposition. The comeback was heroic, but the loss was disappointing and unnecessary even with the worst first half the Gators have played all season.   “There were a lot of things that we could've done better, but at the end of the day we also didn't shoot the free throws very well tonight,” Golden said. “We left a lot … we made four less free throws than they did on two more attempts. That was kind of the story of the game from the field, as well. We shot 66 shots (made 27), they only shot 52 (made 28). The math is usually going to go in your favor when that happens. But again, they had an elite first half. Multiple guys played very, very well. A 26-point hole is not something you generally want to put yourself in when you're trying to win a basketball game."   The Gators will be home Saturday night against 11th-ranked Texas A&M (20-7, 9-5 SEC).   Game notes: Richard (30) and Clayton (18) were the only Gators to score in double figures. Clayton also had five rebounds and five assists… At one point in the first half, the Gators were being outrebounded 16-7 by Georgia. Florida outrebounded the Bulldogs 27-16 the rest of the way … The Gators were 11-32 on 3-pointers, 6-15 in the second half … Georgia outscored the Gators 32-16 in the paint. The Gators outscored Georgia 29-12 off turnovers.   SEC BASKETBALL Tuesday scores Georgia (17-11, 5-10 SEC) 88, No. 3 FLORIDA (24-4, 11-4 SEC) 83 No. 5 Tennessee (23-5, 10-5 SEC) 65, LSU (14-14, 3-12 SEC) 59 No. 6 Alabama (23-5, 12-3 SEC) 111, No. 24 Mississippi State (19-9, 7-8 SEC) 73 No. 14 Missouri (21-7, 10-5 SEC) 101, South Carolina (11-17, 1-14 SEC) 71   Wednesday’s games Ole Miss (19-8, 8-6 SEC) at No. 1 Auburn (25-2, 13-1 SEC) Vanderbilt (18-9, 6-8 SEC) at No. 12 Texas A&M (20-7, 9-5 SEC) No. 17 Kentucky (18-9, 7-7 SEC) at Oklahoma (17-10, 4-10 SEC) Texas (16-11, 5-9 SEC) at Arkansas (16-11, 5-9 SEC)   Saturday’s games No. 7 Texas A&M (20-7, 9-5 SEC) at No. 3 FLORIDA (24-4, 11-4 SEC) No. 1 Auburn (25-2, 13-1 SEC) at No. 17 Kentucky (18-9, 9-5 SEC) No. 6 Alabama (23-5, 12-3 SEC) at No. 6 Tennessee (23-5, 10-5 SEC) No. 14 Missouri (21-7, 10-5 SEC) at Vanderbilt (18-9, 6-8 SEC) LSU (14-14, 3-12 SEC) at No. 24 Mississippi State (19-9, 7-8 SEC) Oklahoma (17-10, 4-10 SEC) at Ole Miss (19-8, 8-6 SEC) Georgia (17-11, 5-10 SEC) at Texas (16-11, 5-9 SEC) Arkansas (16-11, 5-9 SEC) at South Carolina (11-17, 1-14 SEC)   UF BASEBALL: GATORS SNUFF OUT STETSON, 6-1 Held hitless through the first four innings, the 7th-ranked Gators (8-0) methodically pounded out a 6-1 win over Stetson (4-4) in DeLand Tuesday night.   Blake Cyr, who broke up the no-hitter with a double in the fifth. Cyr homered in the seventh to give the Gators the lead for good, 2-1. In the eighth, Cade Kurland hit his third homer in the last two games, a 3-run job that put the Hatters away.   Billy Barlow got the start for UF, going four innings while giving up five hits and a run in the bottom of the fourth. Freshman Aidan King came on to pitch three perfect innings while striking out four to collect his first collegiate win. Alex Philpott gave up a hit and two walks while striking out two in the eighth and ninth.   Colby Shelton and Cyr each had two hits to pace Florida’s 9-hit attack.   “Overall, it was a really good win over a really good Stetson team,” Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “I think they are picked win their conference, so we knew coming down here it was going to be a difficult game."   The Gators will be home tonight at Condron Family Ballpark to face North Florida (6:30 p.m., SEC Network+). The Gators will be home all weekend for their annual series with Miami.