No. 8 Florida knocks off Arkansas

Field Level Media|published: Sun 12th January, 03:37 2025

Jan 11, 2025; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks forward Trevon Brazile (4) passes around Florida Gators guard Denzel Aberdeen (11) during the first half at Bud Walton Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

Alijah Martin scored 14 points and Alex Condon notched a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds as No. 8 Florida topped host Arkansas 71-63 on Saturday in Southeastern Conference play at Fayetteville, Ark.

Will Richard added 12 points and eight boards for the Gators, who led by as many as 12. Walter Clayton Jr. had 12 points and five assists. Condon scored all of his points after halftime.

Adou Thiero scored a game-high 17 points to pace the Razorbacks. Boogie Fland followed with 15 points and Jonas Aidoo had 11 points and nine rebounds.

Florida (15-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) overcame two starters fouling out, limiting the Razorbacks to 30 percent from the floor.

Arkansas (11-5) is off to an 0-3 start in the SEC for the second straight season.

Outrebounded by 10 while connecting on only 3 of 16 attempts from long range, the Razorbacks stuck around until the closing minutes. D.J. Wagner punctuated a 7-0 run with a fast-break dunk that drew Arkansas to within 53-50 with 6:11 to play.

Florida neutralized the spurt by scoring seven straight points and 12 of the next 17. The Razorbacks went 3:44 without a field goal after Wagner's dunk.

Arkansas, which was in the bonus for the final 15:50 of the game, finished 24 of 35 from the free throw line.

Florida navigated sluggish beginnings, starting 2 of 9 from the floor while falling behind 11-4. Aidoo contributed four points during the early surge.

The Gators settled in, however, to take a 28-25 edge into halftime that might have been more. Arkansas managed just 12 points before the break following a Karter Knox jumper at the 13:53 mark and were minus-9 on the glass. That advantage came with the frontcourt duo of Rueben Chinyelu and Condon fighting foul trouble; the pair combined for seven boards before the break to match Thomas Haugh's total.

While Florida limited Arkansas to 29 percent first-half shooting, the Gators were only a touch better from the floor, at 31.4 percent. With Florida attempting to run the clock to get the final shot of the half,

Clayton Jr. threw an errant pass that turned into a Trevon Brazile tip-in at the other end just ahead of the buzzer.

--Field Level Media

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