No. 13 Florida cruises past Virginia for 9-0 start

Field Level Media|published: Wed 4th December, 21:47 2024

Dec 4, 2024; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators guard Alijah Martin (15) dribbles past Virginia Cavaliers guard Isaac McKneely (11) during the first half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Walter Clayton Jr. scored 27 points as No. 13 Florida remained undefeated with an 87-69 victory over Virginia in the SEC/ACC Challenge on Wednesday night in Gainesville, Fla.

Alex Condon contributed 19 points and eight rebounds while Alijah Martin added 16 points for the Gators (9-0), who have won each of their games by at least 13 points.

Denzel Aberdeen came off the bench to score 12 points for Florida, which is off to its best start since the 2005-06 season when it won its first 17 games and captured the NCAA championship.

San Diego State transfer Elijah Saunders scored a career-high 19 points and Isaac McKneely added 12 points, all on treys, for Virginia (5-3).

The Gators frustrated the Cavaliers with their depth, quickness and disruptive defense as they forced 15 turnovers while committing just six. Florida outscored Virginia on points off those mistakes 20-4.

In the opening minute of the second half, a 3-pointer by Saunders cut the Gators' lead to 39-38. But after that, it was all Florida.

Clayton scored 10 points in the first 6:05 of the half as the Gators stretched their lead to 54-43.

Then during a span of less than a minute, Condon drained a 3-pointer, made a steal and hit a free throw and a layup as Florida increased its edge to 60-45.

After that, the Gators stretched their advantage to 20 points on three occasions.

Virginia started fast, hitting seven of its first 10 shots, including a pair of 3-pointers by McKneely, as it raced to an 18-9 lead.

But with several of its reserves on the floor, Florida disrupted Virginia's offensive flow. During an 8:50 stretch in the middle of the half, the Cavaliers missed six straight field goal attempts and committed five turnovers.

The Gators responded with a 15-0 spree fueled by a pair of triples by Aberdeen.

Another reserve, Sam Alexis, captured four offensive rebounds in the period and had a putback basket during the run, which transformed a six-point deficit into a 29-20 lead.

Florida stretched its lead to 35-24 as Clayton drained two 3-pointers in a span of 57 seconds before Virginia sliced the deficit to 39-35 at the break with the help of a trey from Saunders.

--Field Level Media

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