Using a combination of dominant defense, rebounding and hot shooting, Florida ran Mississippi State out of Humphrey Coliseum on Saturday night.
The No. 8 Gators (16-2, 6-0 Southeastern Conference) buried 14 three-pointers, handling the Bulldogs for an 82-47 victory in Starkville, Miss.
UF shot 55.4 percent from the field with a 64 percent clip in the second half. The Gators made 14 of their 31 attempts from behind the arc, while the Bulldogs (7-11, 2-4 SEC) went 3 of 15 from three-point range.
Florida limited Mississippi State to 32.7 percent shooting. The Gators now have held 10 opponents this season to under 50 points.
“When we’re playing defense at such a high level, there’s nobody that we can’t stop,” junior center Patric Young said.
On the glass, UF was also superior. The Gators won the rebounding battle 44-20 — their biggest margin this year. Freshman guard Michael Frazier II grabbed a career-high eight boards to boost Florida’s effort on the glass.
Seniors Kenny Boynton and Erik Murphy each finished with 18 points on a combined 13-of-19 shooting. Murphy scored seven of Florida’s first 14 points and made 4 of his 6 three-point attempts.
Young scored 13 points on 6-of-6 shooting, grabbed six boards and tallied two blocks.
Unlike in Florida’s last matchup against Georgia on Wednesday, where it trailed at the half, the Gators got off to a fast start. Florida used runs of 14-2 and 11-2 during the first half to build the early advantage.
But the Gators didn’t let up in the second period, starting on a 15-2 run and making their first six shots.
UF tallied a season-best 23 assists — nine coming from junior point guard Scottie Wilbekin. The Bulldogs recorded only eight assists.
“We really move and shared the ball, and found the open man,” coach Billy Donovan said. “Through our ball movement, we got some really good looks.”
After Saturday night’s contest, Florida’s average margin of victory in SEC play is 26.5 points per game.
With No. 1 Duke (17-2), No. 3 Syracuse (18-2), No. 5 Louisville (16-4) and No. 6 Arizona (17-2) all suffering losses this week, No. 8 Florida could make a big climb in Monday’s AP poll.
A radio broadcast contributed to this report.
Patric Young dunks during Florida's 83-52 victory against Missouri on Jan. 19.
