In key SEC clash, No. 14 Florida handles No. 25 Kentucky

Urban Klavzar netted 19 points off the bench and sparked a second-half run as No. 14 Florida led wire-to-wire to knock off No. 25 Kentucky 92-83 on Saturday afternoon in Gainesville, Fla.

Klavzar, who was 5 of 11 from distance, scored eight points in a span of 4:06 to turn an eight-point game into a 14-point lead to help the Gators win their fifth straight game and 10th in their last 11.

Leading the Southeastern Conference standings, the Gators (19-6, 10-2 SEC) led by 15 in the first half and created a two-game lead over the Wildcats (17-8, 8-4), who fell to 8-2 in their past 10 games.

Florida’s Xaivian Lee scored 22 points and Thomas Haugh had 17 points and eight rebounds. Alex Condon posted 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Rueben Chinyelu also had a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Kentucky’s Denzel Aberdeen notched 19 points and four assists, while Collin Chandler had 18 points, three rebounds and three steals. Otega Oweh had 13 points and five boards and Malachi Moreno totaled 11 points and 11 rebounds.

The home side started fast by making four of five shots, including Lee’s two three-pointers, as it led 10-2. The Gators then built a 20-8 advantage at 13:55 on Lee’s driving layup.

Just after the half’s midpoint, the Gators moved the margin to 32-17 as Haugh and Lee combined for 25 points. Boogie Fland punctuated a 5-0 burst with a steal and dunk at 9:24.

Aberdeen’s driving hoop with 4:03 left cut Kentucky’s deficit to 34-29, but the Gators left the court with a 43-34 advantage after shooting 50% (17 of 34) from the field.

A member of Florida’s national champion squad last season, Aberdeen netted nine points, but the Wildcats were successful on just 12 of 32 shots (37.5%).

Florida held a 16-5 margin in points off turnovers after the first 20 minutes.

However, Kentucky broke out on a 7-0 run to start the second half to make it a one-possession game. Klavzar, a long-range specialist, hit a wing three-pointer at 13:14 to make it 59-51.

With just over 10 minutes left, Klavzar canned a corner three and added a layup as Florida’s lead moved to 72-58.

Kentucky managed to slash the deficit to five in the final 36 seconds, but the Gators hit four free throws to seal the win.

–Field Level Media