ATHENS, Ga. - Georgia forward Terrance Woodbury hugged the ball with both arms as he jumped up and down in the Bulldogs student section, reveling in one of the biggest upsets of the Southeastern Conference season.
Woodbury scored a game-high 32 points as Georgia (10-15, 1-9 SEC) knocked off UF (19-6, 6-4 SEC) 88-86 on Saturday in Athens.
The Gators have now lost three of their last four games and back-to-back games for the first time all year.
Point guard Nick Calathes' head fell into his hands while cheerleaders waved flags at center court.
It's happening all over again.
"Our backs are against the wall," Calathes said. "It's back to last year."
After playing their way into the national rankings early last season, the Gators unraveled down the stretch, losing eight of their last 11 SEC games in 2008.
The Bulldogs, who fired coach Dennis Felton following their 83-57 loss to the Gators back on Jan. 28, came into the game without a win in conference play this season.
It was their first victory of the 2009 calendar year.
Calathes scored 16 points, dished out 13 assists and came within one rebound of a triple-double.
"That doesn't mean anything to me right now," Calathes said. "We've got a loss against a team we should have beaten."
For the first time in several games, the sophomore had help on the offensive end of the floor, with four teammates scoring in double figures.
But as it has been all season, the Gators were betrayed by defense.
The Bulldogs opened the game with eight straight made baskets and shot 69 percent in the first half.
They finished the night going 57 percent from the field.
"You can't win when the other team is shooting that percentage," said guard Walter Hodge, who scored a team-high 22 points. "We have to play better defense."
The Gators took their first lead of the game with 8:06 to play following two Ray Shipman foul shots.
But UF scored just 2 points in the final five minutes of the game and converted on only one of its final six possessions.
With the Gators down 2 and the clock inside of 16 seconds, guard Erving Walker grabbed a rebound and raced down the court.
The freshman frantically dribbled, looking for an open man, but settled for a leaning jump shot over two defenders with four seconds left.
The ball flew off the rim, and the game fell out of reach.
"Erving got caught with the ball, and I think what you want to do in that situation is give it up and quickly pass it," Donovan said. "He probably held on to it a little too long, and I think it's going to be a good lesson for him on the film how to make a play there."
Donovan had a timeout left in his pocket but decided against using it.
"I've been in situations where you call a timeout, and you don't get a great shot up and playing in transition is better," Donovan said. "I've always felt with our team, the best thing we do is play in transition."
