Georgia Southern's Antoine Johnson (5) and Johntavious Rucker (1) put the pressure on Florida's Ray Shipman as he tries to get to the basket during the first half of Wednesday's game in Gainsville, Fla.
Two Georgia Southern Eagles fouled out and four more were limping one foul away by the time it was all over.
The Florida Gators took advantage of 20 second-half fouls by GSU to turn a one-point halftime lead into a 69-49 win Wednesday at the O’Connell Center.
The Gators (2-0) took 43 foul shots in the game while getting whistled just seven times in the second half.
“We’re an aggressive team and we like to deliver the first blow,” said GSU guard Antonio Hanson, who had 11points and three 3-pointers in the loss. “I guess tonight was a little too aggressive. All in all, we don’t want to let that effect how we play down the line.”
The Eagles (1-2) led for most of the first half and trailed 26-25 at halftime.
They opened the second period with a quick layup by Cameron Baskerville and a 3-ball by Hanson, but the Gators answered with a 12-point run to take a 38-30 lead they would not relinquish.
Most of the second half was spent at the UF foul line after getting tinto the bonus with 15:04 remaining in the game.
“We controlled the first three minutes (of the second half) and then we kind of went flat,” said point guard Willie Powers (4 points, 5 assists, zero turnovers). “We got in foul trouble, they got in bonus, and it hurt us.”
Florida didn’t lead until 3:10 remained in an ugly first half that saw the teams go a combined 16 for 56 from the floor.
“Non-conference competition is for preparation and to learn,” said GSU coach Charlton Young. “We’re definitely learning what we gotta do to play at the highest level. We think we’re good enough to play at this level.”
With Johntavious Rucker starting in place of Tyler Troup, he laid one in for the game’s first points.
The Gators answered with two by Vernon Macklin and a pair of free throws by Kenny Boynton to take a 4-2 lead, but a Rory Spencer (13 points, 4 blocks) foul shot followed by a three-point play gave GSU an 8-4 advantage at the 16:10: mark. The Gators would not lead again until a two-handed, baseline dunk by Macklin put Florida within one and woke up the crowd. A pair of Erving Walker free throws put the UF advantage at 22-21 with 3:30 remaining in the half.
Until that point, nobody wanted to score.
The Eagles shot just 32-percent in the half while missing all of their eight 3-point attempts, and the Gators were even worse, missing all nine 3 attempts and shooting just 8 for 31 from the floor and 66.7-percent from the line.
Spencer led all first-half scorers with 11 in the first 20 minutes including 5 of 7 from the charity stripe, while the Gators out-rebounded GSU 26-18.
Georgia Southern took a 25-24 lead with seven seconds remaining in the half, but Ben Drayton was called for a foul as Walker drove the floor with 0:05 remaining in the first to hit a pair of free throws and secure a 26-25 Florida lead at the break.
“The first half, we played good,” Hanson said. “The second half we just didn’t answer the run. Coach says you need to be at least 12 points better (on the road) and we didn’t respond.”
NOTES: The game was a first-round game in the Legend’s Classic tournament. Saturday’s 5:30 p.m. game at Jacksonville State is also part of the tournament. The Eagles return home Nov. 27-29 to host Valparaiso, Troy and Arkansas-Fort Smith for the subregional portion of the tournament. … Baskerville snagged 10 rebounds for the third-straight game. … Announced attendance was 10,006.
Matt Yogus can be reached at (912) 489-9408.
Post a Comment
