With Mike Rosario leading the way, Florida used electric shooting to burn Auburn on the road.
Rosario scored a game-high 22 points as the No. 7 Gators (21-3, 11-1 Southeastern Conference) drilled a season-best 15 three-pointers against the Tigers (9-16, 3-9 SEC) in an 83-52 victory Saturday afternoon.
Florida shot 50 percent from behind the arc and took 30 of its 54 attempts from three-point range. Overall, the Gators shot 57.4 percent from the field.
Rosario’s 22 points are his most in his two years at Florida. The redshirt senior guard made 9 of his 14 shots and helped UF get off to a hot start.
The Gators began the game on a 13-3 run with 5 points coming from Rosario.
His most dynamic stretch came on consecutive possessions. With 9:52 in the first half and UF up 20-10, Rosario made a backdoor cut and scored a reverse layup after receiving a bounce pass from junior forward Casey Prather.
On the next possession, he stole the ball at the top of the key after Auburn’s Rob Chubb made an errant pass. Rosario then went coast-to-coast, making a layup and drawing a foul.
After Rosario buried the free throw, he had 14 of the Gators’ 25 points.
“On any given night, it can be anybody,” coach Billy Donovan said. “Rosario happened to explode in the first half and played really well.”
UF finished the first half on a 17-5 run to lead 47-22 at halftime.
Setting a UF record with his 129th career start, senior guard Kenny Boynton scored 16 points on 5-of-11 shooting. He made 4 of his 9 attempts from beyond the arc, grabbed five boards and notched four assists.
Freshman guard Michael Frazier II recorded a career-best 18 points, burying 6 of his 8 three-point attempts. Four of his threes came in the second half to build Florida’s advantage.
Junior point guard Scottie Wilbekin tallied 10 assists with 8 coming in the first half. Senior forward Erik Murphy added 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting.
Auburn shot 35.2 percent and made only 4 of its 16 three-point attempts.
Florida turned over the ball only nine times to Auburn’s 14. The Gators also out-assisted the Tigers 25-9.
Florida has won 13 of its past 14 contests and will travel to Columbia, Mo., to face Missouri on Tuesday night. The Gators routed Mizzou 83-52 at home in their last matchup on Jan. 19.
“It’s been proven that when you play a team … they play a tougher game [at home] rather than on the road,” Boynton said. “We definitely have to be focused and locked in.”
Television and radio broadcasts contributed to this report.
Redshirt senior guard Mike Rosario reacts to Florida's 72-47 win against Florida State in Tallahassee on Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2012. Rosario scored a game-high 22 points during UF's 83-52 victory against Auburn on Saturday.
