LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Thomas Howe had 20 points and nine rebounds as fifth-ranked Florida beat Kentucky 84-77 on Saturday to end the regular season with its 11th straight victory.
Boogie Fland had 16 points and six assists for the Gators (25-6, 16-2 Southeastern Conference), the No. 1 seed in next week’s SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tenn. The defending national champions swept the Wildcats in the regular season (19-12, 10-8).
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Alex Condon scored 14 points for Florida. Rueben Chinyelu had 13 points and eight rebounds, and Xaivian Lee had 11 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Otega Oweh led Kentucky with 28 points, including 17 in the first half. Ove was honored before the game, along with senior Denzel Aberdeen and walk-ons Zack Tow and Walker Horn.
Aberdeen scored 15 points and Kentucky’s Mohamed Diubat also scored 10 off the bench.
Florida scored the first 11 points and never trailed. The Wildcats, meanwhile, missed their first seven shots, including three from 3-point range.
In the first half, Howe scored 17 points and hit three of the Gators’ six three-pointers.
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Despite a slow start, Kentucky rallied and closed the deficit twice before Florida responded with 13 straight points. The Gators went on a 25-8 run to lead 45-27 with 2:19 left in the first half, and Florida led 49-32 at halftime.
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Florida won the SEC regular-season title by three games over Arkansas and earned a double bye in Friday’s conference tournament quarterfinals.
Kentucky is awaiting its first SEC Tournament opponent.
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