Published: Thursday, Dec. 29, 2011 9:35 p.m. MST
PISCATAWAY, N.J. ? On the surface, it appeared No. 10 Florida simply didn't finish off Rutgers.
The Gators blew a seven-point lead in the final 3 minutes of regulation and a three-point lead with less than 20 seconds to go in the first overtime before falling to Rutgers 85-83 in double overtime on Thursday.
Florida coach Billy Donovan wasn't interested in letting the late collapses serve as the reason the Gators' five-game losing streak came to an end against one of the lesser teams in the Big East Conference.
Donovan said Florida (10-3) stopped playing long before that. They opened the game with a 14-5 spurt and then stopped moving the ball and looking for each other.
"I don't think that we were very good on offense," Donovan said, adding that the performance came just a week after his team played an outstanding game against Florida State. "Their kids played the right way and I don't think that our guys played the right way."
While not a big fan of learning from a loss, Donovan felt this game could help his team down the road.
"Our team needs to go through this to reach our full potential, as difficult as that may be," he said. "It's bigger for me than just this game, it's about us getting better."
Rutgers (8-5) was the team that really improved Thursday after struggling much of the season.
Freshman Eli Carter led the way with a career-high 31 points, hitting the go-ahead basket in the second overtime. He also nailed a late 3-pointer in the first overtime to put the Scarlet Knights in position for their biggest win since knocking off No. 9 Villanova at home last season.
Erving Walker had a chance to tie the game for the Gators in the final seconds, but his off-balance attempt from the foul line hit off the rim.
Scarlet Knights fans stormed the court to celebrate in a game billed as the return of former Rutgers star and current Gator Mike Rosario to Piscataway.
"When you're younger and you dream of playing college basketball and you see everybody storm the floor, and for me to be in it was definitely a blessing," said Rutgers freshman Jerome Seagears, who added 13 points. "The floor was shaking it was so crazy. I thought Godzilla was coming through. They put their pants on just like we put our pants on, so in that case they can be beat. And tonight we did that as a team. This is the biggest win of my life.
Dane Miller added 16 points and Myles Mack had 14 for Rutgers, which won its fourth straight game.
Kenny Boynton matched his season high with 26 points for Florida. Bradley Beal added 15, and Erik Murphy had 14 points and eight rebounds for Florida, which was playing its first game at the loud and intimidating Rutgers Athletic Center.
prometheus movie indianapolis colts posterior michelle obama adam lambert arrested shroud of turin barkley
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.