![]() 8 in the NET), will boast the Florida postseason resume, but more work needs to be done. One such win, albeit a significant one (Auburn came in No. The win improved the Gators to 2-7 in "Quadrant-1" games, as it relates to the NCAA Evaluation Tool. UF began the day 0-10 all-time in home dates against teams ranked either No. WHAT IT MEANS: Maybe the biggest win over Coach Mike White's seven seasons at Florida, given the dire the need for a signature victory, not to mention beating the highest-ranked opponent at home in the program's history. ![]() Johnson (0) during Saturday's game at the O'Dome. (24) looks to pass the ball against Auburn defenders Allen Flanigan (left) and K.D. Then came Florida's charge, a run of 17-4 that awakened the O'Dome crowd and set up the frantic finish. The 21 points was Auburn's first-half season low, but the Tigers also scored the last seven points of the period, then carried the momentum to the second half by extending the run to 21-4 to take a nine-point lead, 35-26, with 15 minutes to go. Single free throws by Phlandrous Fleming Jr.(7 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists) and Colin Castleton (19 points, 8 rebounds, 3 blocks) were the lone points the Gators scored the rest of the way, but their defense on the final possession proved enough. The Gators limited the Tigers, averaging 80.5 points per game, to 33-percent shooting in the first half and led 22-21 despite making just seven of their 27 field-goal attempts. From there, though, Florida had two turnovers and fouled a 3-point shooter, freshman forward/phenom Jabari Smith, who led all scorers with 27 points to go with seven rebounds, part of a 7-1 run that set up the late-game drama. His last long one came with 2:14 to go and put the Gators in front 61-53. Appleby, the fifth-year senior and transfer from Cleveland State, was incredible in the second half, hitting six of his nine field-goal attempts, including four of six from the 3-point line. The ball was tipped away as time expired and the Gators had beaten their highest-ranked opponent in a home game in program history. sped into the front court, but got walled up at the free-throw line, where he tried to force a pass into the low post - to no one. After a timeout, Tigers point guard Wendell Green Jr. Auburn, which trailed by eight with less than two minutes to go, got some help from Florida miscues, including a baseline-out-bounds turnover with 7.5 seconds to play. The game went down to the final possession. WHAT HAPPENED: Point guard Tyree Appleby scored 20 of his UF career-high 26 points in the second half, as the Gators erased a nine-point deficit against the second-ranked Tigers and held on for a wild victory before a sold-out, blacked-out home crowd Saturday at Exactech Arena.
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