Next Up: Friday, March 13, 1 p.m. EDT, SEC Tournament Quarterfinals, ESPN
Notable
* Thomas Haugh’s team-high 20 points and nine rebounds led the Gators to their 11th straight win, a wire-to-wire victory. Florida closes the regular season with 25 wins, fourth-most in program history.
* Florida opened the game on an 11-0 run, including 3-pointers from Boogie Fland and Xaivian Lee. After UK closed back within 1, 20-19, UF responded with a 13-0 run and eventually took a 49-32 lead into halftime.
* All five starters scored in double figures: Haugh (20), Boogie Fland (16), Alex Condon (14), Rueben Chinyelu (13), Xaivian Lee (11).
* Florida owned a 24-4 advantage in fastbreak points.
* Florida dished 20 assists on 28 field goals, the Gators’ eighth 20-assist game of the season. Fland led the way with six assists and Lee had five.
* The Gators earned their seventh season sweep vs. Kentucky in series history: 2026, 2018, 2014, 2007, 2006, 1988, 1967.
* Haugh tallied his 13th 20-point game of the season.
* Chinyelu’s 353 rebounds this season passed Al Horford for third-most in a season (360, 2006-07) and trails only Neal Walk’s seasons of 494 (1967-78) and 481 (1968-69).
* Urban Klavžar has hit a 3-pointer in 21 straight games and is shooting 27-for-55 (.491) during the Gators’ current winning streak.
* Lee has a streak of five straight games with five or more assists.
* Fland has shot 9-for-17 (.529) from 3-point range over the last three games.
More Milestones & Trends
* Florida reached 25 regular season wins, hitting 25 before postseason for the second time in a row after having 27 last season (29, 2013-14; 26, 2006-07).
* The Gators notched their 11th straight win overall, tied for UF’s third-longest SEC winning streak and 10th longest overall winning streak in program history. Three of Florida’s 13 double-digit win streaks have occurred under Todd Golden.
* Florida’s 16 SEC wins are the second-most in program history. The Gators’ 30 SEC wins over the past two seasons are also the second-highest two-season span (32, 2013 and 2014) in UF history.
* Since started their 2025 SEC schedule 2-2, the Gators are 32-4 against SEC foes including SEC and NCAA Tournament action.
Head Coach Todd Golden
Opening Statement…
“Incredibly proud of my team. Obviously a tough place to play. Thought we did a great job getting off to a great start. The first half, we played about as well as you could hope coming into a place like this, and second half thought we were solid. Last 10 minutes, I don’t think we handled the pressure very well. We didn’t make enough winning plays in the last 10 minutes, allowed them to have some hope the last five minutes or so. But we did a good enough job making free throws, did a good enough job taking care of the basketball, and then forced some misses down the stretch. Great win for us. Finished 8-1 on the road in conference play this year, 16-2 in the league, and just really proud of the way our guys have performed all year.”
On Thomas Haugh’s performance setting the tone…
“He got off to a great start. I thought he just did a great job picking his spots when he was at the 3. He was able to get downhill and get to the rim and finish, and we were able to take advantage of the ball screen coverage when he was at the four, being guarded by some bigger guys that allowed him to get some open 3s, and then he drove closeouts well and made good decisions in the paint. We did a bad job on Otega (Oweh) first half, let him get some 3s, but Tommy’s ability to get 17 kind of counteracted that. He slowed down a little bit late, but overall, he had a fantastic game and obviously we’re a much better team when he’s out there.”
On Florida’s fastbreak scoring advantage…
“I thought when we got off to a great start. They started playing with a little more tension and a little more physicality and started crashing more into the offensive glass, which allowed us to get run outs on clean rebounds. I thought our bigs did a really good job fighting their crashes and getting the ball out to the guards quick, and they weren’t able to get back and organize the transition. So I think that was the main thing that allowed us to get out there and obviously get that advantage in the fastbreak game today.”
Sophomore G Boogie Fland
On letting Kentucky get close at the end…
“We have to be able to control that part. We have to get better at that. But we came out with a W. That’s what matters.”
Junior F Thomas Haugh
On hanging onto the lead late…
“We just got too complacent. Had the big lead and kind of thought it was going to be over. It can’t be that way, especially in March Madness when anything can happen.”
