[Westside]

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — This one had a weird feel about it, especially in the closing minutes.

Vanderbilt, down 20 at halftime, roared back to bring some holiday drama to the sold-out Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center before host Florida hit just enough shots — and nearly every free throw — to finish off an 81-74 victory in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams Saturday afternoon.

Grad-transfer forward Egor Koulechov broke out of a nasty shooting slump by leading the Gators with 22 points, eight rebounds and a perfect 10-for-10 effort from the free-throw line, including two with 8.3 seconds left to put away the Commodores. Senior point guard Chris Chiozza scored 10 of his 17 points in the second half, including consecutive circus drives in traffic inside the 10-minute mark, each time answering after Vandy crept within single digits. He added a fourth such play with 43 seconds left after a Commodores' 3-pointer by guard Riley LaChance made the score 74-70 and induced a collective groan from the O'Dome faithful.

The Gators (9-4, 1-0) won their third straight, while also snapping a five-game losing streak against the Commodores (5-8, 0-1), all of which came during Coach Mike White's first two seasons.

"I thought we played with some really good poise overall in the second half, offensively, while we were trying to fend off their mad run," White said. "As we know, they're a load offensively and have a number of guys that can make shots. They got some big ones, but I don't think we lost our minds like we've done a couple times this year when [teams] go on a 5-0 run and, 'I've got to hit a big one and put it on my shoulders or put my head down and go make a play,' which leads to a turnover, which leads to more of a run."

The Gators, though, did put their heads down and drive the basketball, which is something the coaching staff has wanted too see all season. This time, their aggression paved a path to the free-throw line, where UF went a sterling 27-for-30 (90 percent), including 15 of 16 over the final 10 minutes.

"Did we set some kind of record?" shooting guard KeVaughn Allen asked.

No, but it was a testament to the work the team puts in during practice in that department.


Chris Chiozza, to no one's surprise, was at his best Saturday when in attack mode. He finished with 17 points, with all but three accounted for on drives to the basket.

Meanwhile, the outcome (and the manner it came about) led to an overall satisfying feeling for a team that was three weeks removed from its last really good win (the one over Cincinnati at Newark, N.J.), and really without one of significance at home. This was the SEC. It was the beginning of the conference slate. And it was Vandy, which swept three from the Gators last season; two by two points and the third in overtime in the conference tournament.

So, this was a good start.

"I feel like we got better today," White said.

Florida scored the game's first nine points and slowly inched the lead out to double figures, with Allen scoring 10 of his 16 points in the opening half by making four of his five field-goal tries. The Gators were up 12 when the finished the final two minutes on an 8-0 run, capped when Chiozza walked up the floor and launched a 3-pointer that swished with one second left in the half.

UF led 40-20, having held Vandy to 7-for-25 from the floor (28 percent) in what was easily the Gators' best defensive effort for a half all season.

Then came the second half.

"We relaxed," Koulechov said. "We tend to do that when we have the lead."

All the Commodores did was hit 10 of their first 15 shots out the locker room to get the lead to single digits. It was 57-48 when the two teams traded six points a piece, with Chiozza scoring all six of UF's points, each time getting a Vandy defender on his hip, driving the lane and finishing in some contorted fashion, with high, arcing shots off the glass.

"He's so fast and when he's making some of the shots he was making tonight he's almost unguardable," Vanderbilt coach Bryce Drew said. "And I thought we played good defense on him."

Probably better than UF's overall defense in the second half, as the Commodores fired away at a 51-percent clip, making 7-for-19 from the 3-point line, to make a game of it late. Forward Jeff Roberson led Vandy with 18 points and seven rebounds, while guard Matthew Fisher-Davis threw in 17 more.

LaChance's 3-pointer came off a missed one-and-one opportunity that was rebounded by the Commodores and kicked out to their senior sharpshooter. After that, the two teams swapped empty possessions — yes, Vandy had a chance to make it a two- or one-point game — at which point Chiozza pushed the lead to six with his clutch basket inside a minute to go.

"I just wanted to penetrate," Chiozza said. "That's what we wanted to do all game."

Hence, the 30 free throws, equaling the second-most the team had taken in a game this season. It was also the first time the Gators had scored at least 80 points since doing it all three games Thanksgiving weekend in the PK80 Invitational at Portland, Ore.

Bottom line: It was Florida's best game in the month of December, while doubling as the most meaningful win, given the SEC stakes.

"It's a new season. We talked about it amongst ourselves, so that's how it felt," said Koulechov, who had missed 30 of his previous 37 shots from the 3-point line, but was 2-for-4 from deep this time and had a far more confident looking about him Saturday. "I think that's why we had a better rhythm offensively. We have to get to that defensively, but it was a good feeling to get back out there in the front of the home crowd and get a win."

http://floridagators.com/news/2017/12/30...eason.aspx