No. 5 Florida upset again, this time by Loyola-Chicago, 65-59 UCLA cancels game due to fires
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Aundre Jackson scored 23 points, Cameron Krutwig added 14 and Loyola-Chicago stunned No. 5 Florida, 63-59, on Wednesday night, handing the Gators a third consecutive loss.
Less than 48 hours after Florida coach Mike White said his team’s performance against rival Florida State was “the epitome of soft,” the Gators delivered another dud.
This one could knock them out of The Associated Press Top 25 next week, especially if they lose to 17th-ranked Cincinnati in New Jersey on Saturday. Arizona went from No. 2 to unranked earlier this season.
The Gators (5-3) shot 36.9 percent from the field, missed 17 of 19 3-point attempts and finished with seven assists.
The Ramblers (9-1) were much more efficient, shooting 52 percent from the field and making half their 12 shots from behind the arc.
White tweaked several aspects of Florida’s approach: Deaundrae Ballard and Keith Stone replaced KeVaughn Allen and Jalen Hudson in the starting lineup, and the Gators pressed more than usual. Allen had started 68 consecutive games.
But nothing White did fixed Florida’s shooting woes.
Allen was 3-of-11 shooting, including 1 of 5 from 3-point range. Hudson was 3 of 11 from the field and 0 of 5 from behind the arc. Egor Koulechov was 3 of 13, including 0 for 3 on treys. Chris Chiozza was 3 of 7 from the field, had a teamhigh nine points and with four assists.
No Florida player reached double digits in scoring.
The Gators also led just 93 seconds.
Loyola-Chicago: The Ramblers have to feel good. They enjoyed their best start through nine games since the 1965-66 season and led Florida for most of the night. Coach Porter Moses has an experienced squad that’s playing without senior guard Ben Richardson (broken hand).
Florida: Since leading top-ranked Duke by 17 points with 10 minutes to play in a championship game of the PK80, the Gators haven’t been the same. Between Duke’s comeback and lackluster losses to Florida State and LoyolaChicago, Florida has been finished outscored by a whopping 44 points in a 90-minute span. The stretch raised questions about the team’s ranking and potential.
FSU 96, Loyola-Maryland 71: In Tallahassee, Florida State didn’t have much time to savor Monday’s win at fifth-ranked Florida.
The Seminoles were playing their second game in three nights but did not have a letdown as they defeated Loyola-Maryland.
The win improves to Florida State to 8-0, which is the first time that has happened since the 2003-04 season, when it won its first 10 games. All but one of the victories has been by 17 points or more.
“Overall I’m pleased,” coach Leonard Hamilton said. “This game gave us what we needed. Part of developing is sometimes you have to overcome the mental challenges of having an emotional victory, recharge and do it again.”
Florida State got off to a fast start, scoring 8 of the first 10 points. It went up by double digits (17-6) on a Phil Cofer dunk with 15:12 remaining and would lead 46-31 at halftime. The Seminoles led by as many as 26 (84-58) on a Cofer jumper with 6:33 remaining.
“I knew we were tired coming into the game but after Monday everyone was focused on the next game and moving on,” said Cofer, who scored 12 points.
Braian Angola led Florida State with 18 points, CJ Walker added 15 and M.J. Walker 14, including four 3-pointers, before fouling out.
It is the second time this season Angola has led the team in scoring. The 6-foot-6 senior guard had 21 points in a win over Citadel on Nov. 24. Despite the quick turnaround, the Seminoles shot a season best 57.6 percent from the field (34 of 59). They also had 11 3-pointers, marking the third time this season they have had 11 or more in a game.
Chuck Champion and Isaiah Hart each scored 15 points for the Greyhounds (1-7), who have lost four straight. Loyola had a 44-34 advantage in points in the paint but was just 29 of 72 from the field, including 3 of 18 on 3-pointers.
“It was a tough matchup for us. You can’t win on the road when we can’t make open shots,” said coach G.G. Smith. “I thought somehow might overlook us but they were ready to go and beat us up pretty good today.”
UCLA canceled Wednesday’s scheduled game against Montana at Pauley Pavilion because of concerns related to the nearby wildfires.
“The health and safety of student-athletes, staff and fans is our top priority,” the school said in a statement.
All scheduled team workouts and practices also were canceled.
UCLA had planned an early morning football practice in preparation for the Cactus Bowl against Kansas State on Dec. 26 at Chase Field in Phoenix. That is now tentatively scheduled for Thursday morning.
Single-game ticket purchases for the basketball game will be automatically refunded, the school announced. Season ticket holders will receive a credit to their UCLA ticket account for the cost of the game.
Boston College forward Deontae Hawkins is out for the rest of the season with a knee injury.
The 6-foot-8, 220-pound graduate transfer was injured in the first half of Boston College’s nonconference game against Nebraska on Nov. 29. He was the Eagles’ third-leading scorer and top rebounder, averaging 12.4 points and 9.1 rebounds in eight games.
Hawkins spent his first three years at Illinois State, helping the Redbirds to the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title last season.
Detroit Mercy coach Bacari Alexander returned to work after a seven-game absence.
The school didn’t say why Alexander missed the games after coaching in the opener and declined to answer questions about his absence.
Titans assistant coach Jermaine Jackson replaced Alexander while he was away.
Detroit Mercy was 8-23 last season in Alexander’s first year as coach..
TCU’s 94-83 win over SMU on Tuesday was its nationleading 14th straight.
The first five wins came during the Horned Frogs’ run to the 2017 NIT championship. News services