ATLANTA— In the first two games of the Southeastern Conference Tournament, the Gators were able to overcome slow starts with dominant second halves.
But Sunday, their late-game magic finally ran out.
No. 15 Kentucky (25-8, 10-6 SEC) came out of the gate strong and never let up, outmuscling No. 12 Florida (26-7, 13-3 SEC) 70-54 to claim the SEC Tournament Championship.
“The difference, I thought, was we weren’t physical enough,” UF coach Billy Donovan said. “I just didn’t think that our frontcourt guys, when they got the ball, did very much with it.”
Starters Alex Tyus and Vernon Macklin combined for 12 points and only eight shots, as the Wildcats denied post feeds and forced the Gators’ big men away from the rim.
Florida was equally ineffective driving the ball to the hoop, which led to Kentucky taking 29 free throws to Florida’s eight.
“The game was won at the free-throw line,” Donovan said. “When someone takes 21 more free throws than you, it’s hard to overcome.”
The Gators’ inability to score from the line proved to be critical, as they also struggled from the field.
Florida shot just 38.6 percent for the game, including a combined 7 for 26 from guards Erving Walker and Kenny Boynton.
“We weren’t aggressive enough attacking the paint,” Walker said. “You’re not going to shoot the ball well every game. … You’ve just got to battle through that.”
Florida managed to keep it close with strong defense, holding Kentucky to just 41.7 percent shooting.
The Gators hit a few major slumps in the contest, going scoreless for a 7:09 stretch in the first half and a 5:28 stretch in the second half.
“I don’t think they did anything different from when we played them a couple of weeks ago, but I think they did a great job,” Boynton said.
Freshman Scottie Wilbekin sparked UF with eight points in a 1:15 stretch despite entering Sunday scoring 2.5 points per game.
After Florida took a 24-21 lead, the Wildcats responded with a 10-0 run to gain an advantage they would never relinquish.
