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Florida dominates 2nd half to pick up blowout road win at Mississippi State
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Florida and Mississippi State played tight in the first half, but the second half was all Gators. Todd Golden’s 3rd-ranked Florida team leaves Starkville with its third straight win, beating No. 22 MSU 81-68. It’s the first time in program history Florida has back-to-back road wins over AP Top 25 teams.
Things started off rough for the Gators. Before tipoff, starting guard Alijah Martin, the team’s second-leading scorer, was ruled out due to a hip pointer that also sidelined him for the win over No. 1 Auburn. Then, 30 seconds into the game, Florida lost starting forward Alex Condon to an apparent ankle injury.
Mississippi State was a home favorite, and showed why in the first half. The Bulldogs out-rebounded the Gators 26-16 in the first 20 minutes and were more productive in the paint 18-8 for a 34-33 lead at the break.
Florida’s offense came out in the second half, going on a 17-0 run to grab a 50-36 lead. The Gators never looked back.
Denzel Aberdeen, starting in the place of Martin, led the second-half comeback with 14 points. He finished with a team-high 20 points. Florida also got double-figure contributions from Walter Clayton Jr. (19 points), Thomas Haugh (16 points), Will Richard (10 points) and Rueben Chinyelu (10 points).
Mississippi State was led by star guard Josh Hubbard’s 19 points. He made 4 3-pointers in the second half.
Florida will look to keep things rolling against South Carolina on Saturday night in Gainesville. MSU will try to bounce back at Ole Miss.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
