Florida vs. Florida State: No. 1 Gators Stay Unbeaten 81-72 After Going 30 of 41 at the Line

Photo: Florida Athletics. Thomas Haugh, official roster photo. Card design: The Dyme.

FINAL, Tucker Center, Tallahassee: No. 1 Florida 81, Florida State 72.

Florida State made 27 field goals. Florida made 21. The Gators still won by nine, because they went 30 of 41 at the line and the Seminoles went 14 of 18. Florida State was called for 27 fouls to Florida's 19. The Gators shot 27 of 33 from the line in the second half alone, by our count from the ESPN play-by-play.

Thomas Haugh led Florida with 21 points and 10 rebounds. He made 4 of 8 shots, 3 of 6 threes and 10 of 12 free throws, and did not commit a turnover. Boogie Fland scored 14 with four assists. Urban Klavzar scored 10 off the bench while making 1 of 7 from the field and all 7 of his free throws. Alex Condon had 9 points and 10 rebounds. Sebastian Rancik led Florida State with 23, and Anthony Robinson II scored 19.

Where the 9 points came from

By our count, Florida State made 23 two-point baskets to Florida's 12, a 22-point edge on twos (46-24). Florida's 9 threes to Florida State's 4 gave the Gators 15 points back. The 16-point gap at the line (30-14) covered the rest.

Florida State won the paint 32-20, and Florida had zero fast-break points. The Gators won the boards 41-29, with 12 offensive rebounds to 9. Florida State went 4 of 21 from three (19 percent).

The swing

Rancik's hook gave Florida State a 29-28 lead with 39 seconds left in the first half. Haugh answered with a 27-footer, then opened the second half with another three and a dunk. By our count, that was a 9-0 Florida run, with Haugh scoring 8 of the 9 and Fland adding a free throw. The Gators went from 29-28 down to 37-29 up. Florida led 31-29 at the break.

Florida State got within 37-36 on a Kam Taylor dunk and within 53-50 at the 7:17 mark. Klavzar then hit a three and made five free throws in a 70-second stretch, and Florida led 62-54 with 5:05 left. The Gators' largest lead was 11. Florida led for 83 percent of the game, per ESPN.

Florida State's night

Rancik shot 8 of 17 with 5 rebounds. Robinson made 2 of 5 threes and all 5 free throws, and hit two late threes that cut it to 76-70. Shon Abaev and Taylor scored 10 each. Abaev went 3 of 12 from the field. The Seminoles forced 14 Florida turnovers and turned them into 17 points.

What it means

Florida is 3-0. Florida State is 2-1. The Gators had won the previous five meetings, according to Yahoo Sports, including a 78-76 win in Gainesville last season. By our count, that makes six straight Florida wins in the rivalry. ESPN lists attendance at 11,500 in a building FSU Wire reported was sold out.

Sources

• ESPN box score and play-by-play
• SEC Sports game page
• Yahoo Sports live updates
• FSU Wire live updates
• Photo: Florida Athletics official roster photo of Thomas Haugh, used inside the Dyme card.