When ESPN descended upon Gainesville for a top-ten basketball matchup between Florida and Tennessee, they were probably hoping for two hours of gripping TV. The Gators were coming off a thrilling game against Kentucky, and all indications pregame were that Tuesday would be an intense and memorable matchup.
Well, it was memorable for Florida, at least, as the Gators delivered a beatdown of historical proportions to safely wipe the taste of the Kentucky game out of everyone's mouth.
Florida Basketball: Rocky Flop
When Tennessee beat Arkansas on Saturday, one of the subplots was how the Razorbacks didn't exactly take morning shootaround, and in turn, their shooting was abysmal.
No idea if Tennessee took a shootaround on Tuesday, but Florida made them look like an overmatched JV team begging for a running clock. The Gators held the Volunteers to a grand total of 12 made shots and hled them to 21% shooting overall.
According to OptaSTATS, Tennessee is the only D1 team since 2000 to shoot 30% or worse on 2-pointers, 15% or worse on 3-pointers, and 60% or worse on free throws.
The end result was a 73-43 victory by the Gators, which also created a trivia question:
Florida's win is the largest margin a #1 ranked team has been beaten since 1968 when UCLA beat Houston 101-69. It's the third-largest win over a #1 ranked team ever in college basketball history.
For Florida specifically, it's their third-ever win over a #1 ranked team and first since beating Ohio State in 2007. It's the fewest points Florida has allowed to a ranked opponent since 1951, and the 12 shots Tennessee made are the fewest Florida has given up to anyone since the 2004/05 season.
Up next for Florida is Arkansas on Saturday on the road.