Kasey Hill has never smiled so wide after shooting an air ball.
UF’s point guard grinned and pointed to his bench in satisfaction after his three-pointer sailed way over the rim, since forward Kevarrius Hayes was there to catch the shot and put it back for two points.
“That was a pass,” Hill joked. “Honestly, I shot it and just air-balled… but I’m glad it made it in his hands and he scored it.”
Hayes’ putback off the glass came as part of a 21-0 run, in which Virginia was held scoreless for a full 8 minutes and 23 seconds, to pull away from the Cavaliers in Orlando on Saturday.
Florida beat No. 5 seed Virginia 65-39 to punch its ticket to the Sweet Sixteen in New York for the first time since 2013-14 under UF coaching legend Billy Donovan.
Florida’s offense was led by forwards Justin Leon and Devin Robinson who both finished the game with 14 points. Leon, who started the 21-0 run with eight straight points in the first half, pulled in a season-high 10 rebounds.
White called it Leon’s best game as a Gator, saying he couldn’t remember a single mistake Leon made on defense.
In addition to scoring 14, Robinson put in the effort on defense to pull in 11 rebounds, notch his second double-double in three games.
“My early years, I didn't really believe in playing defense effectively,” Robinson said. “But I know if you want to win games and try to win a championship, you have to play defense.”
Florida’s defense struggled to stop Virginia out of the gate. The Cavaliers build an early 6-2 lead after scoring on their first three trips down the court.
But after trading buckets, Florida was able to tie and pull ahead 15-13 on a dunk by freshman Gorjok Gak.
Gak, who came into the game having played only 55 minutes, scored 6 points in 10 minutes of playing time, both career-bests.
“I was happy for him. Everybody’s happy for him and the way he’s playing,” Hill said.
“He wants the team first instead of his individual success and when he got his turn, he was gonna take it.”
Florida managed a two-point lead until the score hit 19-17. By the time the Cavaliers scored again, the Gators had built up a 40-19 edge.
Florida’s defense was critical as it held Virginia to 0-for-10 shooting from the field between the last 5:38 of the first half and first 2:45 of the second.
Chiozza said that’s the best he’s seen Florida’s defense since the Gators rattled off a nine-game win streak midseason.
“That’s why we were able to go on that win streak,” Chiozza said. “We had our defense and our offense clicking on all cylinders, and I think this game really helped us get back to that.”
By the end of the game, the Gators held Virginia to 29.6 percent shooting from the field, the best performance since it held Oklahoma under 28 percent shooting in January.
Florida will face No. 8 seed Wisconsin in Madison Square Garden on Friday after the Badgers upset No. 1 seed and defending NCAA champion Villanova.
“Be careful with that,” White said before his players answered if Villanova’s loss gave them a boost heading into their matchup with Virginia.
“They lost their game,” Hill said. “That’s the tournament; anybody can lose. We were just worried about Virginia.”
Contact Matt Brannon at mbrannon@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @MattB_727.
Florida forwards Justin Leon and Devin Robinson (left) smile during a press conference following the Gators' 65-39 win against Virginia in the NCAA Tournament on Saturday in Orlando, Florida.
