Despite KeVaughn Allen scoring 29 points, No. 19 Florida (14-5, 5-2 SEC) dropped its second consecutive game as it fell to Vanderbilt (9-10, 3-4 SEC) 68-66 on Saturday afternoon in the O’Connell Center.
The loss marks Florida’s first at home in either football or basketball this athletic year.
Instant Analysis now takes a closer look at Florida’s loss.
IT WAS OVER WHEN: Following a 12-0 Vanderbilt run midway through the second half, Florida responded with a 7-0 run of its own to tie things up at 56-56 with 5:31 left. Down the stretch, the game remained close and saw a number of lead changes.
However, Vanderbilt managed to pull away with the win late. After a foul was surprisingly not called on Florida point guard Kasey Hill as he drove to the rim and drew contact, Vanderbilt’s Nolan Cressler knocked down two free throws on the other end to give his team a 66-63 lead with 1:30 left.
Hill was fouled on the next possession, but went just 1-of-2 from the charity stripe. Cressler then scored again on a drive to the hole to lift Vandy’s lead to 68-64 with 36 seconds left. Hill responded quickly with a layup – and then Florida managed to force a turnover on the next play.
Down two points with seven seconds left, Allen let off a highly contested three from the left corner, but it was no good as Vandy ran off with the ball as the buzzer soon sounded.
HE STOLE THE SHOW: Allen was Florida’s source of offense Saturday, scoring 29 points on 10-of-18 shooting (and 5-of-12 shooting from downtown). Against Vanderbilt, he was close to doubling his scoring total from the previous three games (16 points on a combined 5-of-18 shooting). While Allen got out of his shooting slump, the rest of the Gators shot just 16-of-39 (41.0%) and 3-of-13 from three.
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* Florida-Georgia game discussion
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THESE STATS DON'T LIE: After shooting 0-of-17 from three against South Carolina last Wednesday, Florida went 8-of-25 from behind the arc Saturday. Meanwhile, Vanderbilt went 10-of-25. The Commodores got to the free throw line more frequently, shooting 12-of-13 while the Gators made six attempts on eight tries.
WHAT A PLAY: Devin Robinson beat the buzzer to help Florida close the first half on a 7-2 run and enter halftime with a 32-27 lead. After center John Egbunu missed a hook shot and forward Justin Leon was short on the putback, Robinson jumped in just in time to quick grab the offensive board and release a layup attempt on the bank-in. As the buzzer sounded, Robinson celebrated and the O’Dome erupted in cheers.
THE BOTTOM LINE: This week was a forgettable one for the Gators, who dropped a road result to a talented South Carolina squad loss but now have lost to arguably their worst opponent this season in Vandy. It’s Florida’s first loss to a non-top 25 opponent this year, as Vanderbilt is currently 69th in KenPom.com’s team rankings. Florida needs to clean up a number of things and play less sloppy basketball, especially with two road matchups on the horizon next week.
NEXT UP: The Gators will look to regroup with two games on the road this upcoming week. After traveling to Baton Rouge to square off against LSU on Wednesday night at 9 p.m. ET in a matchup that’ll air on the SEC Network, Florida will face Oklahoma on the road next Saturday at 2 p.m. ET in an ESPN-televised contest as part of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
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