WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Florida was in a great spot. The Gators led Wake Forest by nine points inside 15 minutes to play and grabbed a couple offensive rebounds on the same possession. That second board was in the hands of freshman
Thomas Haugh, who was pressed up against the baseline and falling out of bounds. So Haugh tried to pitch it back, but his off-balance pass was picked by Demon Deacons guard Hunter Sallis, who turned the turnover into a transition opportunity and eventually two free throws.
It seemed like an incidental sequence, but it turned out to be the beginning of the end for the Gators, who proceeded to utterly crater in what became an 82-71 victory Wednesday night for the Deacons in the first ACC/SEC Challenge before a delighted crowd at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
Wake Forest made 13 of their last 16 shots to completely flip the scoreboard, out-pointing UF 44-24 over the final 15 minutes to hand the Gators (4-3) a second consecutive loss that felt not one iota like the previous two hotly contested defeats against a very good Virginia team and 13
th-ranked Baylor just five nights earlier in the NIT Season Tip-Off at Brooklyn, N.Y.
"We had multiple opportunities to extend that thing into double figures," said UF coach
Todd Golden, whose teams are 0-18 the last two seasons when trailing with five minutes remaining. "[We] allowed them to have a little hope and belief, as opposed to being able to close them out."
When the final horn sounded, the Deacons (4-3), previously winless in three games against power conference opponents, had shot 61.5 percent, made 20 free throws and scored 50 points in the second half, while limiting the Gators to just 35 points, 40 percent and forcing 10 turnovers in that final period.
Sallis, a Gonzaga transfer and former McDonald's All American, scored 24 points, including 16 in the second half when he played all 20 minutes. He made eight of his 15 shots, two of his four 3-point tries and all seven free throws. Forward Andrew Carr, the 6-foot-10 transfer from Delaware, added 22 points on 8-for-13 shooting, 3-for-6 from deep, and three of three from the line. The Deacons also got 18 points, six rebounds and four assists from point guard Cameron Hildreth.
"Really, really proud of our team," Wake coach Steve Forbes said. "Florida has a nice team. They are going to win a lot of games and have a chance to play in the NCAA Tournament. Down the road this will end up being a very good win. It was an identity win."
Hard, smart and together. That's how Forbes saw his team play. That's the identity he is trying to forge.
For about 25 minutes, the Gators played mostly to their identity – a good offensive team, a hard-playing defensive one – and it was enough to be in control, but then everything went sideways. UF shot 40 percent for the game, but converted just six of its final 18 shots over those final, frustrating 15 minutes.
Clearly, the Gators were exasperated with the way the game was officiated, particularly forwards
Tyrese Samuel and
Alex Condon in the post, as the Deacs were in the bonus with more than 13 minutes to play in the game.
That's life on the road, sometimes, and tough-minded teams play through that kind of adversity.
"We looked a little sped up and our decision-making wasn't as great as it's been over the course of the season," Golden said. "It can happen. It's one night. First true road game for us. Different environment, different setting. I thought we'd be able to push through, but we fell short that way."
For the second game in a row, Gators sophomore guard Riley Kugel tallied a career-high 24 points and four 3-pointers.
Florida got another great performance from sophomore guard
Riley Kugel, who tallied a career-high 24 points for a second straight game. Kugel was 9-for-14 overall and 4-for-6 from the 3-point line to go with five rebounds, but also had four of his team's 15 turnovers, the lot of which led to 22 Wake points.
Kugel's perimeter mates, though, mostly struggled.
Zyon Pullin and
Walter Clayton Jr. both scored 12 points, but combined to make just six of 24 shots and one of nine 3s. Wing
Will Richard, off the bench for the first time this season, had just three points and attempted just one shot in 19 minutes. Samuel had 12 points to go with five rebounds, but no other Gator scored more than five.
The Gators finished eight of 25 from distance (33.3 percent).
"Wake is not a pressure defense. They really just kind of pack it in and make you earn it from the 3-point line and make you make some skilled plays," Golden said. "I just don't think we handled it well over the course of 40 minutes."
It was the third consecutive game UF had to play without 7-1 center
Micah Handlogten, the team's best rim protector who suffered an ankle injury less than a minute into the team's NIT-opening win against Pittsburgh exactly a week earlier.
Minus Handlogten the Gators tried starting Samuel in the post and Haugh, the 6-9 freshman, his first career start. UF surrendered 38 points, got out-rebounded for only the second time this season and equaled its season-low of seven offensive boards.
Haugh had three points, six rebounds and two turnovers in 22 minutes. Condon, his freshman classmate, had five points, four rebounds and two turnovers before fouling out in 17 minutes.
"We're asking a lot out of these young guys with Micah out, to step up and play big minutes," Golden said. "They're going to have their freshmen moments."
The Gators had some veteran guys with some similar moments Wednesday, especially over the final, forgettable 15 minutes.