NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Gators aren’t ready to go home just yet.
No. 8 seed Florida kept its postseason hopes afloat Thursday afternoon by beating ninth-seeded Alabama 69-61 in the second round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
In what has been arguably the most difficult season of his career for coach Billy Donovan, the Gators opened the game lacking the defensive intensity that has kept the season salvageable when the offense has routinely struggled.
With sharp-shooting junior Michael Frazier still hobbled by the sprained ankle he suffered against Kentucky on Feb. 7., the Gators needed someone else to step up and extend the season.
That someone was redshirt junior Dorian Finney-Smith.
Finney-Smith scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Gators (16-16) while using a combination of interior post moves and a barrage of three-pointers to send Alabama (18-14) back home to Tuscaloosa.
“If we’re open, I just want to shoot the ball with confidence,” Finney-Smith said. “I hope that the players on my team do the same. We move the ball, you get a good shot, just shoot it with confidence.”
Finney-Smith continued the strong play he’s displayed since being suspended Feb. 18 for a violation of team rules. The double-double performance was his second in four games since returning to Florida’s lineup in the Feb. 28 win over Tennessee.
The Portsmouth, Virginia, native is averaging 16.8 points and eight rebounds a game while shooting 52.4 percent from the field since returning from his suspension.
“I just wanted to come out, since the suspension, pick up the energy,” Finney-Smith said. “I got the players on the team, they did a good job of supporting me through tough times, and that’s why I just want to come out and play with that energy for these guys, play for these guys.”
For a while, it appeared the Gators would be the ones leaving disappointed.
The Crimson Tide quickly built an early 21-13 lead behind the strong play of senior Rodney Cooper, who finished with 13 points before fouling out with about three minutes remaining in the game.
But Florida was able to use a combination of stifling defense and intelligent ball movement to create space and knock down critical three-pointers in a contest that was back and forth until the closing minutes.
“I thought that we moved the ball pretty well,” Donovan said. “I felt like that offensively, we had been getting better. I thought we had some really good shots from the three-point line that didn’t go down.
“But sometimes it goes in and it doesn’t go in. I just try to look at the quality of shots we’re getting. I thought we got pretty decent shots.”
Florida got 11 points from Eli Carter while freshman Devin Robinson added 10 points coming off the bench. Alabama’s starting lineup was its only unit that contributed to the scoreboard as the Crimson Tide was unable to get any points from the bench.
Along with pulling the Gators to .500 at 16-16, the win extends Florida’s chance of making a postseason tournament for the 18th straight season.
Yet the road only gets tougher from here for UF, as the Gators take on the undefeated No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats at 1 p.m. Friday for the second time in less than a week.
“It’s all or nothing, you gotta win or go home,” Robinson said. “We just gotta keep winning.”
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Florida forward Dorian Finney-Smith (10) shoots over Alabama guard Justin Coleman (5) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in the second round of the Southeastern Conference tournament, Thursday, March 12, 2015, in Nashville, Tenn. Florida won 69-61.
