Florida basketball score, takeaways: No. 21 Gators make easy work of Florida A&M, improve to 5-0

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Image Credit: UAA

No. 21 Florida Gators basketball improved to 5-0 on the young season with a decisive victory over the Florida A&M Rattlers at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida. It was never a contest as the Gators scored the first four points of the game and led wire-to-wire in a 84-60 triumph.

Head coach Todd Golden, still mired in controversy, has UF off to its best start since 2021-22 leading a complete team that continues to play efficient basketball in most phases.

Let’s take a look at what went down on Tuesday night.

It was over when … Florida compiled an extended 24-2 run spanning halftime to take a 51-22 lead. The Gators had a separate 10-0 run in the opening 20 minutes, and they were shooting 43.8% from 3-point range at the break having led the entire period after starting with a 4-0 advantage just over a minute into the game. Largely taking its foot off the gas in the second half, Florida did not increase its lead beyond 30 points. In fact, it dropped to as few as 17 a couple times down the stretch, though UF ended the game with a 12-1 run before giving up a late 4-point play.

Exceptional efforts: Senior guard Will Richard led the way with a late scoring flurry posting 20 points on 8 of 15 shooting with 7 rebounds and 2 assists. Senior G Walter Clayton Jr. was dominant in the first half ultimately scoring 17 points with 5 dimes and 3 boards; the duo each hit three triples on 16 total attempts. Sophomore forward Thomas Haugh also finished in double digits with 12 points and 7 rebounds, while redshirt senior G Alijah Martin did his scoring late adding 14 points and 8 boards.

Odds & ends: Florida improved to 14-0 all-time against FAMU with a 13-0 record in the O’Dome … the Gators outscored the Rattlers 30-4 on the fastbreak and 20-9 off turnovers … Florida posted 17 assists on 28 baskets taking 13 more shots in the contest … the Gators are now 35-9 under Golden when leading at halftime, 42-5 when leading with 5 minutes left, 40-6 when shooting the same or better than an opponent from the field, 33-9 when shooting the same or better as an opponent from 3-point range and 31-7 when outrebounding an opponent

What it means: Less than nothing. FAMU entered 0-3 on the season having lost each contest by 29+ points. Florida did well moving the ball around creating high-percentage shots while playing consistent defense even with a substantial lead in the second half. The Gators actually picked up the least-impressive win that a team has achieved against the Rattlers yet, though it’s difficult to compare one blow out to another. The cupcake stretch of the nonconference slate mostly comes to an end in a few days, so working out the kinks was the best UF could do Tuesday night.

What’s next? Florida remains home with Southern Illinois visiting the O’Dome on Friday. The game will tip off at 7 p.m. ET and air live nationally on SEC Network.

And the ladies? The Gators (3-1) dropped their first game of the season Saturday against their first power-conference opponent. Florida fell 83-73 to Miami in the O’Dome with senior G Jeriah Warren (25 points) and senior center Ra Shaya Kyle (14 points on 7 of 11 shooting, 8 rebounds) leading the way. Freshman sensation G Liv McGill was on the struggle bus going 0 of 5 from downtown, though she posted 11 points, 9 assists and 3 steals. UF gets the entire week to rebound before playing at Florida State on Friday (7 p.m., ACC Network).