Thomas Haugh posted a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds to lead No. 1 Florida to an 81-72 win over host Florida State on Tuesday night in Tallahassee, Fla.
The Gators (3-0) beat their state rivals for the sixth consecutive time despite the Seminoles (2-1) challenging the nation’s top-ranked team for the entire first half and even leading by five points.
The Gators led 31-29 at the half. Florida threatened to start pulling away with a 6-0 run to start the second half. FSU answered with a 7-0 run to cut Florida’s lead to 37-36 with 16:07 left in the second half.
Clutch free-throw shooting from Haugh, who went 10 of 12 from the foul line in the game, helped Florida open a 70-59 lead with 2:06 left and pull away.
Urban Klavzar went 7-for-7 from the free-throw line and finished with 10 points for the Gators. Alex Condon just missed a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds, and Boogie Fland had 14 points, five rebounds and four assists.
Sebastian Rancik scored 17 of his 23 points in the second half to lead Florida State. Rancik also had five rebounds. Anthony Robinson II scored 11 of his 19 points in the first half to keep the Seminoles in it.
Robinson hit a pair of triples, but Florida State struggled from the perimeter overall, going 4 of 21 (19%) from 3-point range. Kameron Taylor had 10 points and four rebounds.
Shon Abaev totaled 10 points and six rebounds, but he shot 3-for-12 from the field and fouled out with 2:31 left in the game.
The Gators didn’t shoot much better from 3, going 9-for-28 (32.1%), but they more than doubled Florida State’s output from the free-throw line, making 30 of 41 while the Seminoles made 14 free throws in only 18 attempts.
Florida State held its own against the Gators’ talented frontcourt, outscoring them 32-20 in the paint despite being outrebounded 41-29, including 12-9 on offensive rebounds.