A popcorn break from Boogie Fland shows just how badly Florida buried LSU

For the first 12 or so minutes of Tuesday’s contest, Florida allowed LSU to somewhat hang around as the familiar bugaboo of three-point shooting prevented the Gators from pulling away. Florida led the entire way and clamped down on defense, but the Gators had just 24 points with four minutes to play in the first half.

Once the shots started falling, it wound up being a night so easy that even Boogie Fland had time for a popcorn break as the Gators rolled 79-61 to win their 5th straight game and move to 14-5 on the season.

Boogie Fland eats popcorn as Florida beats LSU

To give an idea of how Florida is coming together in 2026, the leading scorer on Tuesday night wasn’t a starter. That honor went to Urban Klavzar, who came off the bench to score 18 points off 5-9 shooting from three. Ruebe Chinyelu continued his dominant play with 15 points and a staggering 21 rebounds, 11 of which were offensive rebounds. 

So on a night when Thomas Haugh had an off night and was just 2-11 shooting, the Gators were so free and easy that Fland had time to sneak a snack from a fan. The lighthearted moment came in the second half when Fland fell out of bounds into the crowd and took a couple of bites from a fan.

Beyond the viral moment, it was Chinyelu and Florida’s defense as a whole that was the real story from this game. One game after giving up 94 points to Vanderbilt, the Gators gave up 61 points as they relegated LSU to just 42% shooting overall and 27% from three. Thanks to Chinyelu’s 21 rebounds, Florida outrebounded LSU 50-30 on the night.

Florida came into the night No. 16 in the AP top 25 and as a No. 4 seed in ESPN Bracketology, but they are playing like a team that could easily be a top two seed by the time March rolls around. Next up for the Gators is a rematch from last year’s Final Four as Florida will host Auburn on Saturday at 4 PM.