AT THE BUZZER
FLORIDA 69, No. 4 AUBURN 47
WHAT HAPPENED: Freshman forward
Omar Payne tallied career highs of 19 points, on a stunning 9-for-9 from the floor, and 11 rebounds (seven on the offensive end), playing the role of utter force around the paint in leading the Gators to a wire-to-wire defeat of the fourth-ranked Tigers before a sold-out, blacked-out crowd Saturday afternoon at Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center. Payne scored the first two baskets of the game and assisted on his team's third, a 3-pointer by shooting guard
Noah Locke, as the home team opened a quick 7-0 lead and got the joint jumping. Auburn rallied to tie the game three times in the period, but UF built a five-point margin by halftime and never looked back. Grad-transfer forward
Kerry Blackshear Jr. scored 11 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, while Locke added 14 points on four 3s, as the Gators shot 50 percent for the game and held the high-scoring Tigers, ranked second in the Southeastern Conference at 46.6 percent on the season, to a measly 25.5 percent. Florida led by just five at intermission, 28-23, despite an abysmal shooting display (6-for-29) by the visitors through the first 20 minutes. That's because UF turned the ball over 12 times in the period and let the Tigers stick around. After Auburn opened the second half with a bucket, Florida reeled off six straight to go up nine, then four minutes later got back-to-back 3s from reserve freshman guard
Ques Glover and Locke to take the margin out to 12. A minute later, it was 13 with just over 10 minutes to go. Consecutive 3s from Tigers guard
Samir Doughty got his team within six, 49-43, with just over eight minutes left, but another six-point Gators run (a layup from freshman wing
Scottie Lewis, tip-in by Payne and two free throws by Lewis) made it a 12-point margin again and home team took it home from there in a big way. How big? Late in the game, Locke,
Keyontae Johnson and Blackshear hit consecutive 3s that put the Gators up 25 and sent the O'Dome into a tizzy. Sophomore point guard
Andrew Nembhard, who's status was in question after missing the previous two days of practice with the flu, played 19 minutes, scored six points, dished five assists (to four turnovers) and also had five rebounds.
WHAT IT MEANS: The second win over a ranked opponent this season, but the first "Quadrant-1" victory for the Gators in four cracks, with previous losses to Florida State, Butler and Utah State currently on the books. UF and Auburn began the day in a four-way tie for second place in the SEC, one game behind LSU, so whatever happens with the rest of the day the Gators will be no worse than a lone game out of first place.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: This one was easy. Payne's best game prior to Saturday was an 11-point, 9-rebound outing in a 39-point blowout of Long Beach State. Auburn, with a few future pros roaming in the post, is a far cry from Long Beach State. It was exactly the kind of effort the 6-foot-10, 225-pounder and former Montverde (Fla.) Academy star needed to build confidence as SEC play heats up. Payne actually made all four of his shots in Tuesday night's win over Ole Miss, meaning he's hit 13 straight over the last two games. Hell, he came in just 9-for-26 from the free-throw line and even hit his only free throw.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: After turning the ball over a dozen times (leading to 12 Auburn points), the Gators had just three in the second half, and none through the first 11 minutes, allowing them to open up a big lead. Last year, in a pair of losses to the Tigers, the Gators had 17 turnovers in the regular season at Auburn, then 19 in their SEC Tournament semifinal, a 63-60 defeat.
UP NEXT: Florida (12-5, 4-1) is back on the SEC road for the second of a three-game conga line of killer opponents, as the Gators will take on LSU (12-4, 4-0), which began the day alone atop the league standings as the conference's only unbeaten. The Tigers, who play at Ole Miss later Saturday night, will be at home for the first time since the LSU football team captured the national championship Monday night, meaning a salute to Coach
Ed Orgeron, Heisman Trophy winner
Joe Burrow and company could be on the docket.