Nick Calathes caught the ball at the top of the key, took one step behind the 3-point line and buried the Razorbacks.
Calathes scored 28 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as he carried No. 24 UF (16-2, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) to an 80-65 victory against Arkansas (12-4, 0-3 SEC) on Saturday in the O'Connell Center.
The sophomore drained his third consecutive three with 9:15 left and put to rest any thoughts of another second-half slump.
The Gators have struggled to close out games all season, but this time around, Calathes and the Gators finished the deal.
UF opened the second half with a 9-0 run and prevented Arkansas from scoring for almost four minutes.
It was the third double-double of the season for Calathes and the second-highest point total of his career.
"I was open and my teammates found me," Calathes said. "I guess it was just my night shooting."
Calathes knocked down a career-high six 3-pointers and shot 60 percent from long distance.
It was the 10th straight win for UF, which is perfect through three games of conference play.
Coming into the matchup, there were serious questions about whether or not UF would be able to contain Arkansas center Michael Washington - the only player in the SEC averaging a double-double.
Washington finished with 21 points, but the Gators outrebounded the Razorbacks 39-33, and both center Alex Tyus (11 points) and freshman backup Kenny Kadji (10) scored in double figures for the second straight game.
"With someone like Nick out there passing the ball, when you get open, you're going to get easy baskets," Kadji said.
The freshman center has emerged as an inside presence for the Gators in the last two games.
"Kenny is stepping up. Our inside game is getting a lot better," Calathes said. "I think we're going to start going inside-out a lot more."
Guard Erving Walker, who has been battling flu-like symptoms for more than a week, celebrated his 19th birthday with 13 points and two steals.
"We're a lot more mature," Calathes said. "Our freshmen stepped up huge for us tonight. I don't think they could have played those minutes (earlier this season)."
UF coach Billy Donovan put the lid on his team's shooting during practice leading up to their game against Arkansas, and it appears he has taken the top off of whatever was holding back their rebounding as well.
Donovan placed a plastic seal on the baskets, preventing the ball from going in the net.
"If you wanted to get off of defense, you had to get the rebound," forward Chandler Parsons said. "We know we're not the biggest or strongest team, but that showed us that it's all about playing with passion on the defensive end."
The Gators were embarrassed on the boards by Mississippi a week ago but have outrebounded their opponents in each of the last two games.
For the first time in his career, Arkansas coach John Pelphrey sat on the visitor's bench in the O'Connell Center.
Pelphrey worked as an assistant to UF coach Billy Donovan from 1997-2002 before leaving to become the head coach at South Alabama.
"This is a special place to be," Pelphrey said. "Being a part of that coaching staff was a special time. There was just something about that group of guys."
UF moved back into the national rankings Monday for the first time since losing to Florida State on Dec. 7 in Tallahassee.
Despite their fast start in the SEC, Donovan played down any thoughts of a return to the national stage.
"I don't think we warrant being ranked," Donovan said.
