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Florida Basketball: Gators focus on top-seeded Texas A&M after edging Arkansas in Round 2 of the SEC Tournament

By Andrew Schutte

Mar 10, 2016; Nashville, TN, USA; Florida Gators guard KeVaughn Allen (4) drives the ball away from Arkansas Razorbacks guard Anton Beard (31) during game 2 of the SEC tournament at Bridgestone Arena. Florida Gators won 68-61. Mandatory Credit: Joshua Lindsey-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 10, 2016; Nashville, TN, USA; Florida Gators guard KeVaughn Allen (4) drives the ball away from Arkansas Razorbacks guard Anton Beard (31) during game 2 of the SEC tournament at Bridgestone Arena. Florida Gators won 68-61. Mandatory Credit: Joshua Lindsey-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Gators survived the Razorbacks in Round 2 of the SEC tournament. Next up is No. 1 seed Texas A&M in what will likely be an NCAA tourney play-in game for Florida.

The matchup between the No. 8 seed Florida basketball Gators and the No. 9 seed Arkansas Razorbacks was arguably one of the more exciting games in the second round of the Southeastern Conference tournament.

It was a game the Gators absolutely had to have in order to keep their fleeting NCAA tournament hopes alive, and they somehow found a way to come away with a win.

It was a valiant effort from Arkansas.

Related Story: Florida basketball vs. Arkansas preview

The Razorbacks, behind guard Dusty Hannahs’ 33 points, rallied from an 11-point deficit in the second half to cut the Florida lead to one.

But the Hogs would get no closer than that for the remainder of the contest as UF closed with six straight points in the final minute: a reverse layup from Hill, a defensive stop leading to two made free throws from Finney-Smith and another stop turning into a run-out dunk by Devin Robinson to secure the victory.

Florida Gators
Florida Gators /

Florida Gators

Junior point guard Kasey Hill led the way for the Gators with 18 points and five assists, while senior forward Dorian Finney-Smith scored 13 points (all in the second half) and grabbed nine rebounds.

Surprisingly, Florida sophomore center John Egbunu ended up seeing some playing time (24 minutes) despite tearing a ligament in his right thumb at practice Tuesday — and he was effective.

Egbunu totaled eight points, making all three of his field goals and connecting on two of his three free throws. He also managed to haul in nine boards while battling against his Arkansas counterpart, center Moses Kingsley (10 points, 14 rebounds).

Even more shocking, the Razorbacks — who came into the game ranked No. 1 in the SEC in three-point shooting (40.2 percent) — were limited to just 2-for-12 from beyond the arc thanks to a determined effort on the Gators’ defensive end.

That statistic alone is the reason Florida is advancing to the quarterfinals Friday at 1 PM.

Coming up

The win over Arkansas doesn’t guarantee the Gators go dancing by any means. But it does put them one step closer to reaching the NCAA tournament.

UF currently has 19 tallies in the win column for 2015-16. Notching even just one more victory to give Florida 20 wins on the season, especially given its tough non-conference schedule, could be just enough for the selection committee to include the Gators in the four-lettered tourney.

Unfortunately for Florida, that win will have to come against the No. 1 seed Texas A&M Aggies in Nashville.

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The Aggies defeated the Gators 71-68 in College Station back on Jan. 12 in their lone meeting this season. In that outing, Florida went just 4-for-12 from the charity stripe compared to A&M’s 20-for-30.

That can’t happen this time around if UF is to pull off the upset and advance to the conference tournament semifinals.

Prediction: Florida 68, Texas A&M 75

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