National Basketball Association
Florida 52, Alabama 50
When: 9:00 PM ET, Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Where: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Officials:
# Roger Ayers, # Doug Shows, # Olandis Poole
Attendance:
10759
By SportsDirect Inc.
Florida 52, Alabama 50: Dorian Finney-Smith delivered an emphatic dunk with 21 seconds left for his only points of the game and provided a pair of blocks in the final minute as the visiting Gators snapped a three-game losing streak with their 10th straight victory over the Crimson Tide.
Eli Carter scored 13 points for Florida (11-9, 4-3 SEC), which survived after blowing a 13-point halftime lead. Chris Walker recorded 12 points and four rebounds while Finney-Smith, who entered the game averaging 13.7 points, contributed five rebounds, three blocks and two steals.
Rodney Cooper registered 14 points and five rebounds, but could not prevent Alabama (13-7, 3-4) from losing for the fourth time in five contests. Ricky Tarrant fought off a foot injury to record 13 points and three steals while Levi Randolph added nine points and six rebounds for the Crimson Tide.
Walker scored on back-to-back possessions to extend Florida's lead to 50-45 with a little more than four minutes left before Tarrant, who left briefly with his injury, drained a 3-pointer with 2:16 remaining to even the score at 50. After Finney-Smith blocked Michael Kessens' shot near the basket with 53 seconds to play, the redshirt junior drove the lane and unleashed a powerful slam before blocking Randolph's driving shot in the final seconds to preserve the victory.
Carter scored 11 points in the opening 20 minutes and was 3-for-5 from 3-point range - 2-for-2 during a 10-4 half-ending run - as the Gators led 35-22 at the break. Alabama erased the deficit when Tarrant scored seven straight Crimson Tide points - the last two after stealing the ball from Finney-Smith and converting a breakaway layup - to make it 41-41 with just under eight minutes left before Chris Chiozza halted the 16-4 run with a 3-pointer to give Florida the lead back.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Carter left with 10:09 remaining after taking an accidental elbow from Finney-Smith, which bloodied his nose, before returning. ... Alabama coach Anthony Grant fell to 0-10 versus the Gators, while Florida coach Billy Donovan improved to 22-5 against the Crimson Tide. ... Florida avoided its first four-game losing streak since March 1-13, 2008.
Top Game Performances
Florida |
|
Alabama |
Eli Carter 13 |
Scoring |
Rodney Cooper 14 |
Chris Chiozza 3 |
Assists |
Michael Kessens 2 |
Dorian Finney-Smith 5 |
Rebounds |
Michael Kessens 8 |
Michael Frazier II 5 |
Free Throws Made |
Ricky Tarrant 4 |
Chris Chiozza 2 |
Steals |
Ricky Tarrant 3 |
Dorian Finney-Smith 3 |
Blocks |
Michael Kessens 3 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Florida
|
52 |
43.5 |
5-16 |
7-9 |
11 |
28 |
5 |
7 |
16 |
Alabama
|
50 |
39.1 |
6-17 |
8-12 |
7 |
26 |
6 |
9 |
17 |