The Florida Gators traveled to Lexington, KY, with an outside shot at an upset victory over the No. 3 Kentucky Wildcats and possibly a guaranteed spot in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. Though Florida (20-11, 9-7 SEC) was unable to pull out the win, the team showed resilience and a solid all-around effort while falling 74-66 to Kentucky (29-2, 14-2 SEC) at Rupp Arena.

Three Gators – junior forward Alex Tyus (12 points) and freshmen F Erik Murphy (11) and guard Kenny Boynton (11) – scored in double figures, but Florida’s defense was unable to contain the Wildcats. Five Kentucky players posted double-digit points as guards Eric Bledsoe and Darius Miller led the way with 14 points, F Patrick Patterson added 13, G John Wall contributed 11 and G Darnell Dodson posted 10.

Read the rest of OGGOA’s Florida at No. 3 Kentucky game story after the jump!
Continue Reading » Florida puts up a fight, falls to No. 3 Kentucky

Tags: Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, Darius Miller, Darnell Dodson, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, John Wall, Kenny Boynton, Kentucky Wildcats, NCAA Tournament, Patrick Patterson, Ray Shipman, Rupp Arena, Senior Day, Vernon Macklin

Closing out the game on a 17-5 run after being tied at 72 late in the second half, the No. 2 Kentucky Wildcats (17-0) stormed the Stephen C. O’Connell Center, taking down the Florida Gators (11-5) 89-77 in Gainesville, FL.

Kentucky freshman guard Eric Bledsoe scored a game-high 25 points on 10-13 shooting while going 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. He added seven rebounds and five assists as fellow freshman G John Wall accounted for 19 points and six dishes. Junior forward Patrick Patterson dominated the paint with 15 points and seven rebounds, sharing the block with freshman F DeMarcus Cousins (13 points, five boards) and freshman F Daniel Orton, who controlled the post with nine rebounds and four blocks.

Florida was ice cold from downtown in the first half, though junior F Alex Tyus did make two treys (the first and second of his career) before halftime; he finished with 17 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Sophomore G Erving Walker was 4-for-9 from three with four assists, scoring the majority of his 20 points in the second half. Freshman G Kenny Boynton finished with 12 points on 5-of-17 shooting while senior F Dan Werner was an abysmal 0-4 from beyond the arc with six rebounds.

A seven-point halftime deficit turned into a seemingly insurmountable 15-point hole for the Gators, but a red-hot Walker combined with a ferocious Tyus knotted the game at 72 with five minutes left in the game. After a alley-oop completed by Wall, Florida unraveled and allowed the Wildcats to pick them apart in front of the Rowdy Reptiles.

Now 0-2 in Southeastern Conference play, the Gators hope to right some wrongs on Saturday when they host the LSU Tigers at 8 p.m. The game will air live on FSN.

Tags: Alex Tyus, Dan Werner, Daniel Orton, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Erving Walker, John Wall, Kenny Boynton, Kentucky Wildcats, O'Connell Center, Patrick Patterson, Rowdy Reptiles, SEC

Location: Stephen C. O’Connell Center – Gainesville, FL [Capacity: 12,000]
Time: 9:00 p.m. (EST)

TV: ESPN
Online: ESPN360.com
Sirius 217 – XM: 199

Odds: Kentucky -3.5, O/U 142

KEEP AN EYE ON…
- Players scoring in double-figures…five Gators starters and one bench player are all averaging double-digit points. Freshman guard Kenny Boynton averages 14.6 ppg while junior forwards Alex Tyus and Chandler Parsons, redshrit junior center Vernon Macklin and sophomore point guard Erving Walker all average 11.7-10.0 ppg.
- Kentucky’s double-digit scorers…three average more than 15 points per game, while the team is scoring 82.4 points per game and shooting 49.8 percent from the floor.
- Tyus…who is averaging 15.0 points and 7.5 rebounds over the last six games. He has been in double figures for six straight contests and scored above his average in four.
- Boynton/Walker connection…the duo combined for 50 points against Vanderbilt on Saturday and have dished out 127 assists to just 58 turnovers on the season.
- The Wildcats’ John Wall…ranks in the top five in the NCAA with 6.9 assists per game and leads the team in points (17.2) and steals (2.2) per game.
- Kentucky’s Patrick Patterson…is averaging 16.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game.

STREAKS:
- Florida trails the all-time series against Kentucky by a large margin – 86-32. However, the Gators won the last meeting, eight of the last 10 and five straight in Gainesville.
- The Wildcats are the highest-ranked opponent to come to the O’Connell Center since they were also ranked No. 2 in March of 2003.
- Under Donovan, Florida is 3-3 against top-five teams at home (2-2 vs. Kentucky).
- The Gators and Wildcats will face-off on national television for the 24th straight time since 1999 – the longest streak in the SEC.

Read OGGOA’s Gators vs. No. 2 Wildcats preview after the jump!
Continue Reading » Florida Gators vs. No. 2 Kentucky Wildcats

Tags: Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, John Calipari, John Wall, Kenny Boynton, Kentucky Wildcats, O'Connell Center, Patrick Patterson, SEC, Vernon Macklin