Malik Monk looked like a mythical animal in Lexington.
One second he was in the corner. Then he was hanging in the air. He swiveled around a shot blocker like lightning. His dunk sounded like thunder.
The Kentucky guard’s last dunk tied the game 55-55, and the Gators never came back.
Nine-game win streak: snapped; 35 days without defeat: done.
Monk scored 30 points in the second half to carry No. 11 Kentucky to a 76-66 win over No. 13 Florida in Rupp Arena on Saturday. Both teams came into the game tied for first place in the SEC, and the Wildcats (24-5, 14-2 SEC) knocked the Gators (23-6, 13-3 SEC) into second.
Gators shooting guard KeVaughn Allen scored 24 points. Forward Justin Leon had 13.
No other Gators scored in double figures as UF shot 36.6 percent from the field compared to Kentucky’s 45.3 percent.
Florida seized momentum to start the game, going on a 8-0 run to quiet the Kentucky crowd. The Gators built that lead into a 18-6 edge.
Then Kentucky found offense.
A dunk from Kentucky’s Bam Adebayo, who had 18 points and 15 rebounds, capped a 17-3 UK run.
“I thought we were the better team for the first 15 minutes of the game,” UF coach Mike White said. “And they were the better team the last 25.”
Kentucky tied the game at 28 going into halftime.
Monk was the first player to score in the second half and ended up scoring 30 of UK’s 48 points in the period.
White said Monk was incredible and said he took the game over.
“He’s got an unbelievable stroke,” White said. “He goes 5-of-7 from three, and I’m not sure he had a lot of space on any of them.”
Making shots wasn’t the problem for UF. The Gators ended up making 26 field goals to Kentucky’s 24. But the Wildcats held Florida to a season-low six free-throw attempts. Kentucky shot 27.
“You gotta find a way to get to the foul line more,” White said.
Florida has yet to win a game this season in which its opponent shoots more free throws.
The Gators also had trouble rebounding. When they beat Kentucky in Gainesville, 88-66, earlier in the season, they outrebounded Kentucky by more than 20.
Led by Adebayo, the Wildcats pulled in 18 more rebounds than the Gators on Saturday.
“Didn’t do a good enough job on the glass,” White said. “Very lopsided numbers there. Very unique in that regard.”
Contact Matt Brannon at mbrannon@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @MattB_727.
Kentucky's Malik Monk, left, looks for an opening on Florida's Justin Leon during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017, in Lexington, Ky. (AP Photo/James Crisp)
