Florida basketball takeaways: Gators dominate, Olivier Rioux makes history in blowout of Saint Francis

Basketball

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Image Credit: UAA

No. 23 Florida Gators basketball scored 61 seconds into Wednesday night’s game against the Saint Francis Red Flash and never looked back, completing a wire-to-wire 102-61 victory in Gainesville, Florida.

The 41-point win — Florida’s largest in 361 days and second-largest under head coach Todd Golden — marked the first men’s game played at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center in nearly a month. The Gators led by double digits less than 5 minutes into the contest, as many as 25 points in the first half and a game-high 46 points on the back of an 8-0 run with 2:05 to play.

Let’s take a look at what went down with some Fastbreak Takeaways.

It was over when … Florida used an 8-0 run to jump ahead by 32 points with 15:06 to play. Saint Francis had a few spurts where it was able to cut into a lead that UF was amassing, but every time, the Gators came right back over the top, putting the game away with plenty of time remaining.

Exceptional efforts: The Gators saw six players reach double figures as they completely overwhelmed the Red Flash with their size. Florida dominated the paint with 44-19 rebounding and 52-30 scoring edges, dishing 21 assists on 36 made baskets.

Junior center Rueben Chinyelu made all five of his shots for a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds, and senior C Micah Handlogten nearly matched him by making all four of his attempts for 10 points with eight boards. Junior forward Alex Condon was all over the court with 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while senior guard Xaivian Lee continued his improved play with 18 points on 7 of 9 shooting (2 of 4 from deep) with four boards, two dimes and two turnovers. Guards sophomore Boogie Fland and junior Urban Klavžar each contributed 11 points.

Getting some run: Guards sophomore Isaiah Brown and freshman CJ Ingram II each got double-digit minutes in the contest. Brown only made 1 of 4 triples for nine points, while Ingram went 1 of 3 from the field for 3 points. They combined for five fouls in 27 total minutes played.

History maker: Redshirt freshman C Olivier Rioux at 7-foot-9 became the tallest player in college basketball history to score a field goal. Rioux played late in the fourth quarter and drove the lane for a dunk that shot his teammates and the crowd onto their feet in the closing seconds.

Odds & ends: Stay tuned.

What it means / what’s next? As Chris Rock said about taking care of your kids, this is what Florida was supposed to do to an opponent like Saint Francis. The arrow continues to point up for Lee, but with an opponent so weak, it’s tough to draw too many conclusions from his play. The Gators are in the midst of a three-game homestand to conclude nonconference play. They will host Colgate on Sunday with a noon ET tip-off on SEC Network+.