Wake Forest controls second half, beats Florida

Hunter Sallis pumped in 24 points and Andrew Carr tallied 22 points as Wake Forest rallied in the second half to defeat visiting Florida 82-71 as part of the ACC/SEC Challenge on Wednesday night at Winston-Salem, N.C.

A late-game 10-1 run made the difference as the Demon Deacons improved to 3-0 in home games.

Cameron Hildreth added 18 points, including clutch offense down the stretch, and Kevin Miller provided 11 points for Wake Forest (4-3), which has won back-to-back games for the first time this season.

Riley Kugel posted 24 points, draining half of his team's eight 3-point baskets, and Florida teammates Tyrese Samuel, Walter Clayton Jr. and Zyon Pullin all had 12 points. The Gators (4-3) were hurt by 15 turnovers.

The Gators went up 45-36 early in the second half, aided by a couple of Wake Forest turnovers. The Demon Deacons were even at 52 with 10:33 left.

Later, Hildreth's free throw broke a 66-66 tie with 3:35 remaining and his layup extended the lead. Miller made it 71-66, while the Gators were in a stretch of four consecutive possessions with a total of one point.

When Sallis converted a three-point play with 1:32 left, it was 74-67 and that was followed by another basket from Miller.

Wake Forest ended up shooting 49.1 from the field, with Carr connecting on three of the team's six 3-pointers. Hildreth was 8-for-10 on free throws.

Florida led 36-32 at halftime despite shooting 39.4 percent from the field. Kugel scored the last five points of the first half.

Wake Forest scored only two points in the last 4:20 of the half. Earlier, Florida turned a 15-8 hole into a 20-17 lead.

Samuel picked up his third foul less than three minutes into the second half.

The Gators were without center Micah Handlogten because of an ankle injury.

—Field Level Media