Gators stay hot against Bulldogs
Florida won its fifth straight game Tuesday night as Chris Chiozza led UF to a 72-60 win at Georgia. Chiozza had 15 points as UF withstood a Georgia rally and pulled away in the second half.
ATHENS, Ga. — Chris Chiozza scored 15 points and No. 17 Florida recovered after blowing a 16-point lead to beat Georgia 72-60 on Tuesday night.
Kasey Hill had 12 points for Florida (19-5, 9-2 Southeastern Conference), which has won five straight. The Gators began the night one game behind Southeastern Conference leader South Carolina.
Yante Maten led Georgia (13-11, 4-7) with 19 points. The Bulldogs suffered their third straight loss, each to a ranked opponent.
The Gators’ winning streak includes Saturday’s impressive 88-66 win over No. 8 Kentucky.
Florida has made runaway wins look routine in their winning streak, and they appeared ready to pull away from the Bulldogs early.
After Georgia led 5-0, Florida took the lead with a 13-2 run.
Consecutive 3-pointers by Devin Robinson and Justin Leon helped Florida stretch the advantage to 30-14.
Georgia answered with a 15-0 run that included two 3-pointers from J.J. Frazier. The Bulldogs finally pulled even at 31-all on Maten’s fallaway jumper. Florida led 35-33 at halftime.
After Florida scored the first two baskets of the second half, Georgia could pull no closer than five points of the lead.
A 3-pointer by Canyon Barry, who had 11 points, stretched Florida’s lead back to 10 points at 48-38.
Georgia’s rugged stretch of three straight losses to ranked opponents also included a 90-81 overtime loss at Kentucky and a 77-75 setback at No. 19 South Carolina on Saturday.
Big picture
Florida: The Gators had 12 steals, including four by Chiozza. Florida took an 18-6 advantage in points off turnovers . ... Leon was called for his fourth foul and left the game with 10 points with 10:14 remaining. He returned but didn’t score again.
Georgia: Frazier had 18 points . ... The Bulldogs have lost five of six . ... Maten was taken to the locker room with a cut lip with 2:30 remaining in the first half. He returned for the second half.
Poll implications
The Gators, who have their highest ranking of the season, are gaining momentum at the right time of the season. Florida’s NCAA RPI was No. 12 entering the game, leaving the Gators on track for a No. 4 or No. 5 NCAA Tournament seed.
Up next
Florida: Hosts Texas A&M on Saturday. Georgia: Visits Tennessee on Saturday.