Down by three with 3.1 seconds left, Florida had an opportunity to tie Missouri and send the game into overtime. But guard Mike Rosario’s desperation heave from the left corner couldn’t find the net.
Missouri (19-7, 8-5 Southeastern Conference) clawed back from a 13-point deficit to upset No. 5 Florida (21-4, 11-2 SEC) 63-60 at Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo.
“When the game was on the line, I thought we made some big plays defensively,” Missouri coach Frank Haith said.
The Gators defeated the Tigers in an 83-52 blowout on Jan. 19 in the O’Connell Center, but Tuesday was a different story.
Florida held a 49-36 lead with 10:51 remaining, but Missouri responded with a 17-5 run to cut UF’s lead to one point with 4 minutes left in the contest.
Guard Kenny Boynton was fouled by Mizzou guard Phil Pressey on a runner at the 3:44 mark and made his free throw to put UF up 57-53. But Tigers guard Jabari Brown responded with a three-pointer to cut the Gators’ lead to one. On the next play, Pressey drove down the left lane, made a layup and drew a foul to help Missouri take its first lead of the night with 2:47 remaining. He drilled his free throw to put the Tigers up 59-57.
With 1:39 left, guard Scottie Wilbekin used a pick from forward Erik Murphy to bury a three-pointer, helping Florida retake a one-point lead.
Missouri forward Laurence Bowers then drained a jumper from the elbow to put the Tigers ahead. On the next two plays, Boynton and Pressey traded missed threes.
With 19.1 seconds left, the Gators had the chance to take a lead, but Boynton missed a three from the top of the key with 7 seconds remaining. The Tigers’ Keion Bell pulled down the rebound, drew a foul and then hit two free throws to put Missouri up by three.
Florida had no timeouts remaining, so Boynton was forced to rush down the court and find Rosario in the corner. But the guard could not convert at the buzzer.
Bowers, who missed the Jan. 19 meeting with a sprained MCL, recorded 17 points on 8-of-17 shooting and 10 rebounds.
“He’s an efficient player,” coach Billy Donovan said. “He can do it on the offensive glass. ... He can shoot it great. I think it was a matter of time before he started to get into a groove being out with an injury.”
Missouri outrebounded UF 40-28. The Tigers outscored the Gators 24-16 in the paint.
“We did a great job of sweeping the gaps and keeping them out the middle of the paint,” Haith said.
Rosario led UF with 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting. Boynton added 11 on a 4-of-13 clip.
Murphy went scoreless in the first half, missing all six of his attempts. He finished the contest with eight points on 3-of-11 shooting.
Florida shot 40.7 percent from the field and took 33 of its 54 shots from behind the arc, making only 10.
Missouri committed 19 turnovers as both teams combined for 33.
The Gators went 6 of 12 from the charity stripe, helping the Tigers claw back.
UF missed the front end on all three one-and-one attempts in the second half.
Pressey scored 7 points. The Tigers guard went scoreless in the first half.
UF began the contest shooting 3 of 5 from behind the arc and owned a 29-18 lead against Missouri with 4:37 left in the first half. But the Tigers cut the Gators’ lead to three at halftime after making an 8-0 run. Florida shot 0 of 8 shooting in the half’s final 4 minutes.
The Tigers are now 15-0 at home this season. The Gators leave Columbia, Mo., with a 7-4 road record and a 1.5-game lead in the SEC standings.
A television broadcast contributed to this report.
Coach Billy Donovan instructs his players during Florida’s 69-52 win against Kentucky on Feb. 12 in the O’Connell Center.
