ESPN Men's Basketball

While much of the offseason buzz in the SEC has gone to Kentucky, it is Florida that is the defending regular-season champion in the conference. The Gators return their high-scoring backcourt of Erving Walker and Kenny Boynton from their Elite Eight team, providing them with invaluable experience in the lineup.

But who will come up big for Florida in the frontcourt now that Vernon Macklin, Chandler Parsons, and Alex Tyus are now in the pros?

“It’s going to be a little bit of a different team for us than it has been the last two years just because we pretty much lost our entire starting frontcourt,” said Florida coach Billy Donovan, who last week saw Parsons and Macklin get selected in the second round of the NBA draft.

That means Patric Young, the former McDonald’s All-American who showed flashes of his potential as a freshman, can expect to step into the lineup and play an important role. It also means uncertainty as the status of forwards Cody Larson and Erik Murphy remains unclear.

They are suspended while facing burglary charges, and due to the ongoing investigation, Donovan isn’t commenting much on them other than to say they are enrolled in summer school.

The Gators have some other intriguing pieces as well that will give Donovan plenty of options when forming a rotation. Incoming freshman guard Brad Beal is ESPNU’s No. 4-ranked recruit. Mike Rosario will be eligible after transferring in from Rutgers. Scottie Wilbekin also will continue to fight for playing time in the crowded backcourt.

“It’s a young team that I think has got a great attitude.” Donovan said.

Brad Stevens, Billy Donovan and Chandler Parsons talk about Butler's overtime win over Florida.

NEW ORLEANS -- Breaking down the Southeast Regional final:

No. 8 seed Butler (26-9) vs. No. 2 seed Florida (29-7), 4:30 p.m. ET (CBS)

What’s at stake: Butler is attempting to go back to the Final Four for the second consecutive season. The last time a team from a mid-major conference went to back-to-back Final Fours was in 1990 and ’91 when UNLV pulled it off.

Florida is looking for its fifth Final Four appearance. The Gators are 4-0 in regional finals, winning in 1994 (when Lon Kruger was the head coach), 2000, 2006 and 2007, the final two times resulting in national titles.

Rich history: Florida and Butler have met twice before in the Big Dance, and the Gators won both. In 2000, 5th-seeded Florida beat 12th-seeded Butler on a Mike Miller overtime buzzer-beater in the first round, en route to finishing as national runner-up to Michigan State. In 2007, the top-seeded Gators beat 5-seed Butler by eight in the Sweet 16. That matched UF's smallest margin of victory in the tournament, as the Gators won their second straight national title.

Hot streak: After a humbling loss to Youngstown State on Feb. 3, Butler hasn't lost since, winning 12 straight. The Gators have won 13 of their last 15.

Path to the Elite Eight: Butler beat Old Dominion (60-58) and Pitt (71-70) on last possessions before opening up a 20-point lead on Wisconsin and the holding on for the 61-54 win. Florida coasted past UC Santa Barbara (79-51), outlasted UCLA (73-65) and then beat BYU in overtime (83-74).

Experience: Florida returned all five starters from last season’s NCAA tournament team, which lost in the first round to BYU. Butler has four players who played significant minutes on the national runner-up team last season.

Remarkable stat: Florida hasn’t had a player foul out this season -- the only Division I team that can make that claim in 2010-11.

Tough matchups: Butler junior guard Ronald Nored will have to take on Florida’s Erving Walker after guarding Wisconsin’s Jordan Taylor.

“Erving Walker is definitely a lot smaller than Jordan Taylor, but he’s so quick,’’ Nored said. “He can get by you and finish over you at his size. He can shoot the ball really well. In some ways, they’re similar but their sizes are a little different, so you can guard Erving with a hand in the face and make him shoot quicker.’’

Chandler Parsons will be part of a committee with Vernon Macklin and Alex Tyus that will have to defend Butler’s Matt Howard.

“He’s very difficult to guard,’’ Parsons said. “He’s one of the most physical players in the country and he plays smart and just relentless and he doesn’t stop and he’s got a really good motor. So a guy like him, he just battles for 40 minutes and you’re not going to get anything easy with him just because his effort is off the charts.’’

Injury update: Butler center Andrew Smith writhed in pain, clutching his left knee late in the Bulldogs' win over Wisconsin. He said after the game that his left knee was swollen, but he would play Saturday. But on Friday, the Bulldogs said it was his ankle, not his knee. Regardless, he was held out of Friday’s practices and Butler will assess his status for Saturday’s game prior to the tip. But he’s planning on playing in some form.

X-factor: Of course, Butler’s Shelvin Mack and Howard have to score and board, Nored must defend on the perimeter and Smith will need to do the little things up front. But the difference could end up being Khyle Marshall, the freshman forward off the bench. He scored seven points and grabbed seven rebounds, blocked a shot and came up with a steal in 18 minutes against the Badgers. Marshall’s length and athleticism will be needed against the Gators’ frontline. UF has scored 100 points in the paint in three tournament games, while Butler has yielded just 52 points inside.

The Gators will get the requisite production out of their starting five. But keep an eye on the production from two reserve forwards. Newcomers Patric Young and Will Yeguete will be significant factors in this game if they can get key offensive putbacks and defend Howard inside. They offer up a combined 10 fouls to offset Macklin and Tyus, and Young is probably the strongest of the group that can handle the scrappy Howard.

Reality check: For everyone constantly wanting to put the Bulldogs in this tidy little box and say how cute and cuddly it is that they are about to reach the Final Four again, just think about the experience in this moment for both teams.

“Butler has been here before and this is our first time here overall,’’ Florida guard Kenny Boynton said. “They are a physical team and I think it’s going to come down to the wire. We have to play hard for the full 40 minutes.’’

Added Walker, “This is a dream, but you can’t get caught in it. You have to be awake. Butler is a great team we have to come out and play our game. We don’t expect it to be easy and it should be a tough challenge.’’

And from the Butler side:

“This is business,’’ Mack said. “You want to get back to that stage and try to enjoy it.’’

“Last year was more of a whirlwind because we hadn’t done it before,’’ Howard said. “Having been there before, at least to this point, you learn how to manage it and deal with it.’’

NEW ORLEANS -- Florida debated how early to take the last shot of regulation. The differential between the shot clock and the game clock was eight seconds.

The Gators’ coaching staff was adamant that they didn’t want BYU’s Jimmer Fredette to take the last shot.

So when Kenny Boynton lofted a 3-pointer in front of the UF bench with 24 seconds remaining, the staff knew that if it didn’t go in, Florida could be in trouble.

The ball went long. But BYU’s Noah Hartsock and Kyle Collinsworth were confused as to who would chase it down. So no one did. Instead, Florida’s Erving Walker raced to the loose rebound on the opposite side from where Boynton lofted the shot.

“It was so big because they could have easily gone the other way,’’ Boynton said. “Fredette is so good at drawing fouls and taking a last shot. It would have been game over for us. That was a big rebound.”

Chandler Parsons eventually took the game’s last shot of regulation. He missed, but the Gators had done what they had to do -- ensure BYU and Fredette didn’t have the last shot to win the game.

“We had a chance, we got a stop, but we had a chance to get a rebound and they got the offensive rebound and put it out,’’ Fredette said. “And you never know what could have happened if we got that rebound. But they definitely had fresh legs and they were ready to go in that overtime.’’

Florida was rejuvenated in the extra five minutes. BYU was gassed. And the Gators won 83-74 in overtime to reach the Elite Eight for the first time since winning consecutive national championships in 2006 and ’07.

And if the Gators win Saturday here at New Orleans Arena, they might point back to Walker’s hustle play as the reason, or at least an example of the difference between this Gators team and the previous three.

“I was actually kind of lucky because I was supposed to get back after Kenny’s shot, but I just hung around a little bit and I seen the ball go to the corner and I just made a hustle play,’’ Walker said. “I was able to come up with the ball.’’

Hartsock said he saw the ball come off but didn’t react.

“We had stopped them from making a shot, but then we had to play [defense for 14 more seconds]. It was heartbreaking,’’ Hartsock said. “The quick guard picked it up.’’

Said BYU’s Jackson Emery, “That was real big; he shot it early and they were in the position we wanted, but it was tough because we thought we’d have a second chance. It was a big play, and they made winning plays.’’

This Florida team has made a habit of that this season, beating Tennessee twice in close affairs, as well as winning at Georgia and against Kentucky and Vanderbilt on final possessions or within the final few.

“We’ve found ways to make plays,’’ UF coach Billy Donovan said. “There’s an understanding with this group of how much more those things impact winning. I’m not sure they had a clue [earlier]. It took them getting their heart broken a lot to know they had to be more alert and make those plays.’’

Florida’s defense on Fredette wasn’t perfect but it flustered him enough, with the Gators rushing two players at him and running over screens with a big to force him to drive. Fredette’s passing helped the Cougars tie things up tie at the half, and he found the seams to get to the basket by driving.

But Fredette still had to go high volume with 29 shots to score 32 points, making just three of a career-high 15 3-point attempts. His teammates were too 3-happy as well, going 10-of-37 as a team.

The Gators had more offensive balance, with four double-figure scorers to BYU’s one, but the rebounding with Alex Tyus (17 rebounds, 19 points) and Walker (six rebounds), one of the shortest players on the court, proved to be decisive.

“It was a great hustle play,’’ Tyus said of Walker’s rebound.

“We didn’t give them a chance to win it,’’ Parsons said.

And now seniors like Tyus and Parsons are one game away from reaching the Final Four and climbing out from under the shadows of the consecutive titles.

The Gators missed the NCAAs for two consecutive seasons. There were unexpected defections to the pros, such as Marreese Speights and Nick Calathes, and a team that didn’t know how to win big. Yet here they are, winners of the SEC regular season but more importantly, a tougher, grittier team that can finish a game.

The standard for Florida had been set so high with the two titles, a level the Gators couldn’t live up to after losing seven players off the title teams, including three top-10 picks. When the '04s returned for their junior season, Donovan said, recruiting suffered and the staff didn’t back-fill enough to offset the defections.

He crushed his team after that first season for its effort and cavalier attitude. He was frustrated at times with the failure to finish. But he didn’t quit on his players, and they didn’t quit on him or the school.

“It’s been so rewarding for me to see them make the journey they’ve made to this point right now,’’ Donovan said. “It’s been very rewarding and fulfilling for me, and I hope in some way I’ve been able to give them as much as they’ve given me.”

NEW ORLEANS -- The Jimmer show closed its college tour in New Orleans on Thursday night.

Florida outlasted BYU 83-74 in overtime to advance to its first Elite Eight since winning consecutive national championships in 2006 and ’07. BYU’s quest for its first Final Four appearance is over.

Jimmer Fredette was hounded throughout the game, especially in the first half as the Gators continued to rush two players at him at the top of the key, forcing him to drive to the basket. Fredette finished with 32 points but was just 11-for-29 overall, 3-of-15 on 3-pointers. Fredette simply never found a rhythm from long range. The 15 3-point attempts were a career high. There were times when Fredette was forcing his shot and not looking to pass to the rest of the team -- most notably the hot hands earlier in the game.

But the story of the game was the way the Gators made the plays at the end (outscoring BYU 15-6 in OT) and controlled the backboard when it mattered most. Alex Tyus had the game of his life with 19 points and a career-high 17 rebounds. Vernon Macklin may have struggled at the free throw line (1-of-5) but he still came up with a few key buckets.

The Gators’ guards were better than BYU’s when the game was on the line as Kenny Boynton (17 points) and Erving Walker (16) made key buckets down the stretch.

Key play in the game: Walker chased down a huge loose-ball rebound off a Boynton missed 3-pointer at the end of regulation. Chandler Parsons ended up missing the shot at the buzzer, but it prevented Fredette from getting the last shot of the game.

Key stat: Hard to ignore that the Cougars missed 17 3-pointers. Fredette missed 12 by himself, which was three more than he's ever missed in a game.

Miscellaneous: Florida lost to BYU in double overtime a year ago in the NCAA tournament and previously had been 0-3 all-time against the Cougars. ... The Gators are now 13-2 in their past 15 games and advance to their fourth Elite Eight since 2000. Since 1975, they are 9-2 in Elite Eight games and beyond.

What’s next: BYU is done and will join the WCC next season. Florida moves on to the regional final and awaits Butler or Wisconsin.

By now, pretty much every sports fan in the country is familiar with the BYU honor code. It became a national topic of interest earlier this season -- even landing (like our Andy Katz!) on "The Daily Show" -- when BYU suspended forward Brandon Davies for committing the totally heinous act of having premarital sex with his girlfriend. BYU's willingness to damage its own short-term athletic interests in the name of its honor code was seen as valiant by many, even if the honor code itself raised plenty of eyebrows, too.

In any case, BYU's honor code is not something most collegiate athletes have to live by. In fact, one would argue that the whole "college experience" (as it were) is all about breaking the guidelines set forth in the BYU honor code. (Especially the whole "no alcohol" part. Apparently college students drink? Weird, right?)

On the eve BYU's Sweet 16 matchup with Florida, one reporter thought it might be fun to juxtapose BYU's athletes with Florida's. So he asked Florida coach Billy Donovan, as well as forward Chandler Parsons, how they thought Florida athletics would look if the Gators had to play by the same rules as the Cougars. Tremendous awkwardness ensued, both with Donovan:

Q. How hard would it be to recruit to Florida if you had to tell your recruits you can't have premarital sex if you come to Florida?

Donovan: I'm not going to get into that. I mean, I don't know. First of all, I don't really talk about any of that stuff, either. I'll pass on that one.

And with Parsons, who cackled for 10 seconds before settling on the most politically correct answer possible:

Q. Chandler, how shocked were you when you found out that BYU had kicked one of its best players off the team for having premarital sex, and how many Gators would be left on the team if you had that rule?

Parsons: I mean, rules are rules, so he knew what he was doing. I mean, it's something that we can't worry about really because he's not playing in the game tomorrow and that's really none of my business. Yeah, that's it. [Laughter].

To paraphrase: "Oh, man, I really don't how to answer this without making it a thing. Um, yeah. None of my business?"

In the end, Parsons' answer is also correct. It really is none of his business. Florida is Florida. BYU is BYU. Both programs require certain things, both athletically and personally, from their players, and those players know the various rules and requirements when they show up on the first day of fall semester.

Those rules may not be the same, but the essential concept is. I think that's what Chandler was trying to say. Something like that, anyway.

NEW ORLEANS -- During last year's NCAA tournament, the Northern Iowa upset of Kansas dominated the first weekend. Butler’s dramatic wins in Salt Lake City upstaged that effort in the second weekend.

And then Butler did it again by nearly pulling off the improbable against Duke in the national title game with Gordon Hayward’s final two shots just off line in a 61-59 loss.

But there was one game during the NCAA tournament last year that gets lost. Its significance does not.

BYU beat Florida in double overtime in Oklahoma City in the first round.

The Gators were back in the NCAA tournament following a two-year hiatus in the wake of consecutive national championships in 2006 and 2007, when they became the first school to accomplish the feat since Duke did it in 1991 and ’92.

It was also a chance for the mainstream sporting public to grasp onto Jimmer Fredette’s overall talent as he scored 37 points.

Florida used that game as a springboard into this season. The Gators were preseason picks to win the SEC East and the overall conference title, which they did on the way to a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament.

BYU used the momentum of that win, even though it lost to Kansas State in the next round, to build for this season. Fredette was a first-team All-American in the preseason, and then ended the regular season as one of three favorites to win national player of the year. He has already been tabbed player of the year by one publication -- the Sporting News on Tuesday. The Cougars were a top-three team prior to Brandon Davies violating the school’s honor code, and ended up still grabbing a No. 3 seed in the Southeast.

So here they are again, this time meeting in the Sweet 16 with Houston and the Final Four within their sights. The region is wide open since the other game in the bracket is Butler-Wisconsin, both quality clubs but neither unbeatable for the Gators or Cougars.

“We had so many careless turnovers that led to easy baskets in that game,’’ said SEC Player of the Year Chandler Parsons of Florida. “We’ve got a good understanding from playing them last year. It’s not just Jimmer Fredette. The other guys are really good and understand their roles. We’re not just focused on Jimmer."

“Yeah, I think a lot of people lose sight of just how good the other guys are playing off Jimmer,’’ Parsons’ fellow senior Alex Tyus said. “I feel like the key to doing a good job on them is to stop the other guys, too.’’

Parsons said the Gators aren’t focusing on last year at all. He referenced the new personnel on both teams.

Florida coach Billy Donovan raved about Fredette, especially his work ethic, and sees a bit of himself in Fredette’s attention to detail. He also complimented the undervalued role players like Jackson Emery, Noah Hartsock and Charles Abouo.

Donovan stressed that they weren’t playing the same team as a year ago and told his team that the Cougars are a better squad this season.

“We realize going into this game that we’re going to have to play a lot better than we did a year ago in a game that we didn’t win,’’ he said. “Coming out of that game, we can probably at least have a feel of size and athleticism. There is familiarity.’’

BYU coach Dave Rose echoed that sentiment.

“The familiarity in terms of playing them last year allows our guys to understand that it will take a great game for us to come out with a win,’’ Rose said. “We played one of our better games of the year last year and we were able to win by one point in overtime, in double overtime, so we understand the challenge.’’

The Gators were desperate to make the NCAAs last season and did so by the slimmest of margins. The quality showing gave Florida something to build on this season. But as Donovan said in the preseason, this collection of players still hadn't won an NCAA tournament game so it was still motivation for this season.

Falling short to the Cougars in the NCAAs was a huge chip for Donovan to play. For BYU, the win somewhat legitimized the Cougars and Fredette more on the national stage after losing to Texas A&M in two consecutive NCAA tournament first-round games. It was the school's first NCAA tourney win in 17 years.

And now the stakes are even higher. The winner will play for a spot in Houston on Saturday. With two more wins, BYU can make program history with its first appearance in the Final Four and Fredette can elevate himself to iconic status in the Beehive State. Florida’s seniors, Parsons and Tyus, can create their own legacy in Gainesville after coming in under the shadows of back-to-back titles.

The BYU-Florida game a year ago did wonders for both programs.

This rematch can do even more for the winner.

TAMPA, Fla. -- No. 2-seeded Florida held off a feisty UCLA, 73-65, Saturday at the St. Pete Times Forum and will advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time since winning consecutive national championships in 2006 and '07.

In a see-saw battle most of the game, Florida finally pulled away late in the second half, outscoring UCLA 18-10 in the final 6:24. Erving Walker sealed the game with a 3-pointer and four of four free throws in the final 1:12.

Turning point: With 6:43 remaining and the score tied at 55-55, UCLA called a timeout to get center Joshua Smith back in the game and ran an alley-oop play for him. Chandler Parsons blocked the shot, then Florida's Kenny Boynton hit a 3-pointer. Smith then took an ill-advised shot, missed, and Florida's Erik Murphy hit another three-pointer with 5:49 to play, giving the Gators a 61-55 lead -- the largest lead either team had until the final minute.

Player of the game: Walker, Florida. He led the Gators with 21 points and scored 10 in the final 3:52. His 3-pointer with 1:12 to play gave Florida a 69-65 lead, and he then made two free throws to give the Gators a 71-65 lead with 32 seconds to go. He made five of eight shots, including three of five 3-pointers.

Key stat: UCLA made only three of 13 3-point attempts, and the Bruins were one for seven until they started hoisting desperation heaves in the final minutes. Without an outside presence, Florida was able to use its zone defense to limit UCLA's inside game, which produced 32 points.

Miscellaneous: UCLA held a 20-10 rebounding edge in the first half, but Florida crashed the boards hard in the second. The Gators out-rebounded UCLA 22-15 in the second half. Parsons, Florida's leading rebounder, had zero rebounds in the first half, but had five in the second. Florida, which had no offensive rebounds in the first half, had eight in the second.

What’s next: Florida (28-7) moves on to New Orleans to face the winner of Saturday night’s game between No. 3-seeded Brigham Young and No. 11 Gonzaga. BYU defeated Florida, 99-92, in a first-round NCAA tournament game last season.

TAMPA, Fla. -- A look at today's games in Tampa:

No. 5 seed West Virginia (21-11) vs. No. 4 seed Kentucky (26-8), 12:15 p.m. ET (CBS)

Kentucky player to watch: Junior Darius Miller doesn’t get as much attention as freshmen Brandon Knight and Terrence Jones, but he might have been UK’s most important player down the stretch. In the past 10 games, Miller is averaging 15.6 points. He had 17 points on 6-for-11 shooting in the Wildcats’ 59-57 victory over No. 13 seed Princeton in the second round on Thursday, after a solid performance in three games in the SEC tournament. At 6-foot-7, Miller is a tough defensive matchup for opponents. He can shoot from the perimeter, score off the dribble and post up in the paint. WVU coach Bob Huggins might assign John Flowers, his best defender, to guard Miller because he’s a three-way threat.

West Virginia player to watch: Senior guard Casey Mitchell is West Virginia’s leading scorer with 13.7 points per game, but he’s been noticeably quiet over the past few weeks. Mitchell scored only nine points on 2-for-8 shooting in a 67-61 loss to Marquette in the Big East tournament, and then had only four points on 2-for-6 shooting in an 84-76 win over Clemson in an NCAA second-round game on Thursday. Mitchell makes 37.8 percent of his 3-pointers, but he isn’t playing with much confidence right now.

Stat that matters: 1-8: Kentucky coach John Calipari’s record versus West Virginia coach Bob Huggins.

Three things to watch:

1. West Virginia’s defense: The Mountaineers upset the Wildcats 73-66 in the Elite Eight last season, earning their first trip to the Final Four since 1959. West Virginia struggled to guard UK with a man-to-man defense early in the game, so Huggins switched to a 1-3-1 zone. UK never solved the zone, missing its first 20 3-point attempts before finishing 4-for-32 from behind the 3-point line. Of course, West Virginia had longer wing players like Da’Sean Butler and Devin Ebanks to defend the perimeter a year ago.

“[Last year], a lot of their shots were contested, under duress from the 1-3-1,” Mountaineers guard Joe Mazzulla said. “We got them off of the 3-point line and probably a few steps back. That’s just what we’ve got to do tomorrow. We can’t let them get standstill shots and we can’t let them set their feet. If we can make them rush their 3-pointers, and if we can get a hand in their face, then hopefully it’ll be the same result.”

2. Kentucky freshman Brandon Knight: The UK point guard was one of the country’s best freshmen, leading the team with 17.5 points and 4.2 assists per game. But Knight has struggled from the floor over the past couple of weeks, shooting only 32.4 percent in his past six games. Knight hit the winning shot with two seconds left in the victory over Princeton, but missed his first seven shots in the game and never looked comfortable.

“At the beginning of the game [Thursday], guys around me were knocking down shots,” Knight said. “A lot of guys were finishing. Darius was on a roll. So at that point in the game, I didn’t really have to shoot the ball a lot. We were doing just fine.”

3. Kentucky’s bench: The Wildcats really use only six players, with five players averaging 30 minutes or more and senior Josh Harrellson playing about 28 minutes per game. Reserves Eloy Vargas and Jon Hood rarely leave the bench. West Virginia’s bench is about four players deep, as nine Mountaineers average 8.5 minutes or more. WVU’s reserves -- guards Mitchell, Jonnie West and Dalton Pepper and forward Deniz Kilicli -- combined for 28 points in the victory over Clemson.

No. 7 seed UCLA (23-10) vs. No. 2 seed Florida (27-7), approx. 2:45 ET (CBS)

Florida player to watch: Senior forward Chandler Parsons was named SEC Player of the Year without even leading the Gators in scoring. He was third on the team with 11.5 points per game, but led UF with 7.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. During the Gators’ 79-51 rout of No. 15 seed UC Santa Barbara in the second round, Parsons finished three rebounds short of recording a triple-double. In 27 minutes, he had 10 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists.

UCLA player to watch: It’s impossible to miss freshman center Josh Smith, who is 6-10 and 323 pounds. The Washington native lost 40 pounds during the offseason and is averaging about 21 minutes per game. After playing off the bench during the past 10 weeks, Smith started against Michigan State on Thursday and had 14 points, three rebounds and two steals in the Bruins’ 78-76 victory.

“I think when you see somebody that big physically and that strong, the feeling is maybe they don’t move quite as well or they can’t jump as well,” UF coach Billy Donovan said. “But he really does a terrific job moving his feet for a guy that size. I also think the other thing that makes him a special player is he’s got great hands. I think when balls are up on the glass, he’s going to grab it.”

Florida’s big men -- Vernon Macklin, Erik Murphy, Alex Tyus and Patric Young -- will have their hands full trying to handle Smith.

Stat that matters: 0 -- Points scored in NCAA tournament games by UCLA’s players before Thursday night’s victory over Michigan State.

Three things to watch:

1. Malcolm Lee’s defense: The UCLA junior is one of the country’s best defenders and will gladly accept the challenge of slowing down Florida guards Kenny Boynton and Erving Walker. In the Bruins’ narrow victory over Michigan State, Lee harassed Spartans senior Kalin Lucas throughout the game. Lucas missed his first 10 shots and had four turnovers. He finished with 11 points on 4-for-14 shooting in his final college game. Lee is playing with a slight cartilage tear in his knee and even needed staples to close a wound on his scalp on Thursday night.

“I’ve said before I think Malcolm is the best defender at his position in the country,” UCLA coach Ben Howland said.

2. UCLA’s foul shots: The Bruins shot foul shots well at the end of the regular season, but their work at the foul line nearly cost them a victory over the Spartans on Thursday night. The Bruins made only 30 of 47 free ones against MSU, missing 13-of-28 in the second half. In the final 5 minutes, 19 seconds, UCLA went 12-for-22 from the foul line, which helped allow the Spartans to nearly come back from a 23-point deficit. The Bruins are shooting 68.1 percent from the charity stripe as a team, and forward Reeves Nelson and Smith are both shooting about 61 percent.

3. Florida’s experience: The Gators start three seniors, although they hadn’t won an NCAA tournament game until routing the Gauchos on Thursday night. The Bruins, who have been forced to rebuild after losing a boatload of players who helped them reach three straight Final Fours from 2006 to ’08, don’t have a senior on their roster. The Bruins sometimes make mistakes typical of young teams, like turning the ball over and missing foul shots. Can Florida’s veterans take advantage of UCLA’s youth?

TAMPA, Fla. -- Florida’s NCAA tournament drought is over.

The Gators, who hadn’t won an NCAA tournament game since winning back-to-back national championships in 2006 and 2007, blasted No. 15 seed UC Santa Barbara 79-51 in a Southeast Regional second-round game at St. Pete Times Forum on Thursday night.

Florida, the SEC regular-season champion, had their way with the overmatched Gauchos from the start. The Gators shot 54.7 percent from the floor and out-rebounded UC Santa Barbara, 34-22.

No. 2 seed Florida advanced to play No. 5 seed West Virginia in Saturday’s third round.

Turning point: When the teams loaded up the buses and drove to St. Pete Times Forum on Thursday. The Gauchos were overwhelmed from the start, as Florida led by as many as 25 points in the first half. Florida shot 58.1 percent in the first half, including 5-for-14 on 3-pointers, and had a 43-19 lead at the half.

Player of the game: Florida senior Chandler Parsons nearly became the ninth player to record a triple-double in an NCAA tournament game, finishing with 10 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds. Parsons, who was named the SEC player of the year, might have accomplished the rare feat if he hadn’t spent the last several minutes of the game on the bench. Parsons would have joined rare company, including the likes of Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal and Dwayne Wade.

Key stat: 22 assists. The Gators had 22 assists on 29 baskets with 13 turnovers.

Miscellaneous: Four of Florida’s starters reached double figures in scoring. Along with Parsons, guards Erving Walker (18 points, six assists) and Kenny Boynton (13 points, four steals) and center Vernon Macklin (10 points) scored 10 points or more. Starting forward Alex Tyus had eight points. Guard Orlando Johnson led the Gauchos with 21 points on 7-for-14 shooting.

What’s next: Florida’s advances to Saturday’s third round, where it will face the winner of Thursday night’s game between No. 7 seed UCLA and No. 10 seed Michigan State. UC Santa Barbara closes the season with an 18-14 record.

ATLANTA -- Florida and Kentucky will play for the SEC tournament title on Sunday, after the Gators ran away from Vanderbilt 77-66 in the semifinals at the Georgia Dome on Saturday.

The Gators and Wildcats were the league’s hottest teams heading into the SEC tournament. Kentucky is the defending SEC tourney champions; Florida will be aiming for its first SEC tourney title since 2007.

Turning point: The Commodores cut Florida’s lead to 60-59 on Festus Ezeli’s dunk with 5:36 to play. But then Florida guard Kenny Boynton took over, scoring eight points on the next three trips. He sandwiched a pair of 3-pointers around a layup, and his second trey gave the Gators a 65-61 lead with 4:32 to play.

Key players: Boynton scored 24 points on 8-for-16 shooting, and backcourt mate Erving Walker added 17 points on 6-for-14 shooting. Forward Chandler Parsons had 16 points and nine rebounds.

Key stat: 11-21: Florida made 11 of 21 3-pointers, the most it has made in a game this season.

Miscellaneous: Vanderbilt guard John Jenkins scored 10 points on 3-for-15 shooting, including 2-for-12 on 3-pointers.

What’s next: Florida will play Kentucky in Sunday’s SEC tournament championship game. The Gators will be seeking their first SEC tournament title since winning three in a row from 2005-07. The Gators and Wildcats split their two regular-season meetings this season, with UF winning 70-68 in Gainesville, Fla., on Feb. 5 and UK winning 76-68 in Lexington, Ky., on Feb. 26.

A quick look at the player and coach of the year races in the SEC:

Player of the Year

Vanderbilt’s John Jenkins couldn’t get free for a potential game-winning 3-point shot Tuesday at Kentucky. But Jenkins still led the Commodores with nearly 20 points a game this season.

Since preseason SEC player of the year Trey Thompkins had to deal with a high ankle sprain early on and simply hasn’t been consistent or dominant enough for Georgia, the award has been wide-open all season. The conference has plenty of candidates for potential player of the year with Kentucky’s Brandon Knight and Terrence Jones having fabulous freshman campaigns, Alabama’s JaMychal Green leading a Crimson Tide revival, and Florida’s Chandler Parsons doing a little bit of everything for the conference champion Gators.

But my choice would be Jenkins.

He’s come through time and time again for the Commodores this season, leading the SEC in scoring (19.4 ppg) and 3-pointers made (86) while shooting 41 percent from beyond the arc.

The sophomore guard played all 40 minutes and scored 32 in a memorable win against Kentucky the first time the teams played in Nashville. He was great in big games against Alabama (20), at Georgia (21-point second half) and at Mississippi State (21). The award could go to a number of players, but Jenkins seemed to shine the most when his team needed him most.

Coach of the Year

Billy Donovan’s Florida team was the SEC favorite in the preseason. And in the end, the Gators will have at least a share of the title.

The Gators were a frustrating team early on. The home blowout loss to Ohio State early on can be excused, but a neutral-court loss to UCF and home losses to Jacksonville and South Carolina? Huh? But there were still some highs, like beating Florida State on the road, knocking off Xavier in Cincinnati, and Kansas State in South Florida.

Then the Gators really found their stride around mid-January. Donovan had to help mold a team that hadn’t won anything since the Gators took the national title in 2007. This crew of seniors and juniors were living in the shadow of the back-to-back national championships. Yet they found a way to win a highly competitive SEC East, and after crushing Alabama on Tuesday night, will at the very least take a share of the overall title.

The team predicted to win doesn’t always equate to the coach of the year award. And Alabama’s Anthony Grant is certainly a worthy candidate after turning an ugly nonconference season into an 11-4 record in the SEC. But Donovan did his best coaching job since winning the title in 2007 and deserves the honor.

Click here to find out who our panel of 15 experts voted for in each of the nation's 10 best conferences.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- When Chandler Parsons arrived at Florida four years ago, he figured the Gators would be winning championships and rings every season, just like they’d done the previous two years.

“My freshman season was a reality check,” Parsons said. “We thought we knew everything.”

It was a reality check for Florida’s program, too. After winning back-to-back national championships in 2006 and 2007, the Gators haven’t won an NCAA tournament game since.

Until Tuesday night, Florida hadn’t even won an SEC championship since the greatest class in school history left for the NBA draft in 2007.

But after blasting SEC West leader Alabama 78-51 in front of 12,225 fans at the O-Dome, the Gators earned at least a share of the SEC regular-season title. Florida can take it outright by winning its regular-season finale at Vanderbilt on Saturday (or if Alabama loses to Georgia).

“It’s been pretty tough,” Florida senior Alex Tyus said. “We’ve been through a lot. Right now, we’re just trying to enjoy this moment. We’re really excited we left something behind that people will remember. It’s exciting to win a championship and get rings and all that other stuff.”

When Parsons and Tyus arrived in Gainesville in 2007, the Gators were coming off one of the greatest runs in college basketball history. From 2004-05 to 2006-07, Florida went 92-19 and won 12 straight NCAA tournament games to win consecutive national titles.

When Parsons and Tyus arrived in Gainesville as freshmen, there was really only one direction for the Gators to go.

Try jumping into Michael Phelps’ lane after he won eight gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics, or into Jimmie Johnson’s car after he won five consecutive NASCAR championships.

It isn’t easy.

“We came in here after one of the greatest college teams ever,” said Parsons, who scored 19 points with 11 rebounds against Alabama. “I don’t think we had too many expectations, but we learned from those situations. We got humbled and hardened.”

From the start, Gators coach Billy Donovan wondered if Parsons and Tyus would ever be tough enough to lead his teams to championships. Donovan knew the pair wouldn’t be as good as departed stars like Corey Brewer, Al Horford and Joakim Noah, but he even wondered if Parsons and Tyus would work hard enough.

“I give them credit because they really battled through a lot of adversity,” Donovan said.

Florida missed the NCAA tournament in each of Parsons’ first two seasons, losing in the NIT semifinals in 2008 and NIT quarterfinals in 2009.

Along the way, Donovan butted heads with his players. Former UF point guard Jai Lucas -- who was picked to replace Taurean Green -- left for Texas shortly before his sophomore season in 2008-09.

Forward Adam Allen -- the fourth member of Donovan’s 2006-07 recruiting class -- hadn’t played in a game this season before dribbling out the final seconds of Tuesday night’s blowout of the Crimson Tide. He has been plagued by knee injuries throughout his career.

“I didn’t know three or four years ago if a day like this would be possible,” Donovan said. “For them to walk out of here with a share of an SEC championship is really rewarding. They’ve come such a long, long way as players. I didn’t enjoy the process two years ago, but they really figured things out.”

More than anything, Donovan said, Parsons and Tyus finally figured out what it would take to win a championship.

“I don’t think people understand that just because you’re a year older [doesn’t mean] you’re a year better,” Donovan said. “Part of growing and getting better is that when you make mistakes and don’t do things right, you address it. That was my biggest issue -- as freshmen, they refused to address the issue. My issue was they weren’t competitive enough and didn’t practice hard enough.”

Donovan believes his team turned the corner last season, after high-scoring guard Kenny Boynton and Georgetown transfer Vernon Macklin were added to a nucleus of Parsons, Tyus and guard Erving Walker.

Florida finished 2009-10 with a 21-13 record, losing to BYU 99-92 in double overtime in an NCAA first-round game in Oklahoma City. Cougars star Jimmer Fredette lit UF up for 37 points, including two 3-pointers in the second overtime.

“I thought the last two years the team was really moving in the right direction,” Donovan said. “The two years before that, I didn’t think we were moving in the right direction.”

As for Alabama, its 27-point loss was a potentially devastating blow to its NCAA at-large hopes. The Crimson Tide came into the game with an RPI rating of 87. Bama’s profile has been damaged by its low schedule strength (175) and dearth of quality wins (14 of its 19 victories came against teams ranked No. 120 or worse in the RPI). The Tide also suffered unsightly losses to teams like St. Peter’s, Seton Hall and Iowa.

Then came Tuesday night’s nightmare, which couldn’t have come at a worse time. Alabama might have to win Saturday’s home finale against Georgia and reach the finals of next week’s SEC tournament in Atlanta to have a realistic chance at an at-large bid.

“It’s only one game,” Crimson Tide coach Anthony Grant said afterward.

But it was a game that will be remembered for a long, long time in Gainesville.

“I couldn’t think of a better ending,” Parsons said.

Five observations from the past week:

1. Officials had an interesting week. The out-of-bounds call on Alabama’s JaMychal Green by official Tim Higgins was more than questionable in the Crimson Tide's 81-77 loss at Vanderbilt on Thursday. Green thought he got fouled but the more egregious call was when he was ruled to have stepped out of bounds on a drive along the baseline with Higgins looking down at the line. Alabama coach Anthony Grant was as upset as he has ever been as a head coach. After all, Green was on his way to possibly tying a crucial game for Bama.

The call on Corey Fisher of Villanova against Rutgers’ Jonathan Mitchell was a good call as Fisher bumped Mitchell on a game-ending 3-point shot. Mitchell got to the line, converted the free throw and the Scarlet Knights won on a rare four-point play at the RAC. Fisher had no business being up on Mitchell with the Wildcats up three points. So he put himself in a position for the officials to make a call.

And then late Saturday night in Boulder, Kansas State’s Rodney McGruder hit an apparent game-winning 3-pointer for the Wildcats. But the officials looked at multiple camera angles and the ESPNU shot from the other basket clearly showed the ball was in McGruder’s hands when the clock hit all zeroes. That allowed Colorado to escape with a 58-56 win, leading the Wildcats to go from celebrating to hanging their heads in a matter of minutes. The win for CU came just a few days after Texas A&M won in Boulder by three points after B.J. Holmes hit a 3-pointer with 1.9 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game and send it into overtime.

2. Utah State’s margin of error is always incredibly thin. The Aggies are probably under the most pressure of any mid-major power to win every conference game. Well, Utah State was on national TV Wednesday night and lost at Idaho, a team that turned around and lost to Boise State over the weekend. Utah State is 23-3 overall, 12-1 in the WAC and has a strong chance of going 15-1 in the league with three remaining games. Utah State got an at-large berth last season after finishing 14-2 in the WAC. So there is a precedent for the Aggies to get an at-large berth without running the table in the conference. Yet there is a perception that they almost have to do so. To expect a conference team to win every road game is asking quite a bit. Utah State is a target every time it goes on the road. Losing one or two road games a season is quite an accomplishment and if there are no egregious losses, it’s hard not to include a team in the field that has such an outstanding record.

The NCAA is charged with putting the best 37 at-large teams in the field. But the NCAA also looks to reward conference champs that win convincingly. If the Aggies do so again, it will be interesting to see how the committee handles them. The two key nonconference games the Aggies played they lost -- at BYU and at Georgetown. USU coach Stew Morrill has always said that he doesn’t need to change his scheduling philosophy since the Aggies have earned at-large berths with the current plan. He did tweak it a bit this season by going to Georgetown. He still needs to do more and get into a key neutral-site tournament in the coming years. But he might sneak into the tournament again, doing it his way if Utah State finishes with a 15-1 WAC mark. Beating Saint Mary’s on the road in the BracketBusters on Saturday would certainly help.

3. Some coaches have resurfaced quite well this season and are proving that they can check their egos at the door and be successful at a lower level. Cliff Ellis, who had his share of success at Clemson and Auburn, is leading quite a run at Coastal Carolina with the Chanticleers atop the Big South (15-0) and holding the longest win streak in the country at 22 games. Dan Monson was pushed out of Minnesota after seven games of the 2006-07 season and resurfaced the next season at Long Beach State. He now has the 49ers at the top of the Big West with a 10-2 record and looking at a No. 1 seed in the conference tournament. Bobby Cremins, who left Georgia Tech -- where they named the court after him -- in 2000, has led a resurgence at the College of Charleston. The Cougars have a 12-2 mark and stand atop the South Division in the Southern Conference and are in a position to get to the NCAA tournament. And in the Sun Belt, the home of so many second and third chances, the two division leaders are led by former big-time coaches in Mike Jarvis (St. John’s) at Florida Atlantic in the East and John Brady (LSU) with Arkansas State in the West.

4. I’m guilty every season of overreacting to early-season losses. UCLA and Florida are the two latest examples. The Bruins lost at home to Montana and didn’t look good in New York in November. Now the Bruins are in position to possibly win the Pac-10 with a 9-3 league record and nonconference wins over BYU and St. John’s that may make the Bruins an at-large lock fairly soon. Meanwhile, Florida has assumed its place atop the SEC East with a two-game lead, finishing off close games at home and on the road because of its experienced perimeter and inspired play from Chandler Parsons, who played 37 minutes with a bruised hip/thigh that will likely keep him out of practice all week (Florida doesn’t play again until Sunday at LSU). How Florida lost at home to Jacksonville and South Carolina is still hard to fathom. But it happened and the Gators are hardly worse off for it now that they’re 20-5 overall and 9-2 in the SEC. When will I and others learn to chill over odd losses in November and December? (Remember St. John’s losing to Fordham and St. Bonaventure in back-to- back games?) Well, probably never.

5. Long Island University hasn’t been to the NCAA tournament since 1997. But the Blackbirds are atop the Northeast Conference with a 12-2 record and are 20-5 overall. The main reason is the return of Julian Boyd. The 6-7 sophomore sat out last season with a heart condition that was being reviewed and examined. Well, he has come back, and has been the leader of the LIU revival with 12.2 points and 8.7 rebounds a game. Boyd’s return to the Blackbirds has transformed the team and the NEC race. Boyd had a monster effort earlier in the season when he scored 34 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, one of his seven double-doubles on the season. The turnaround of Boyd and LIU is one of the hidden gems of this season.

This Saturday saved the best for last.

We got some entertaining hoops early in the day. We got some important bubble implications, too. But none of this afternoon's games held a candle to what came this evening, both on the East Coast, in Florida's 70-68 win over Kentucky, and on the West Coast, where Arizona beat Cal in a triple-overtime classic -- final score: 107-105 -- that most of the nation (and most of California, if the complaints on Twitter are any indication) didn't get to see.

But the "College GameDay" matchup in Gainesville, Fla., was the feature presentation of the day, and it didn't disappoint. Florida and Kentucky played a tight, closely contested slugfest for 40 minutes. Florida built a lead. Kentucky battled back. In the end, Billy Donovan's team outlasted the Wildcats after Brandon Knight's 3-point attempt with two seconds on the clock fell short and Kenny Boynton grabbed the rebound as the clock wound to zeros. The Gators got another huge win over a ranked team, held serve on their home court and -- perhaps most importantly -- put themselves in the SEC East driver's seat as we enter the conference season stretch run. Great game, great environment, huge win.

How did Florida make it happen? To the bullets!

• To paraphrase Oscar Hammerstein II, let's start with Chandler Parsons; he's a very good place to start. Parsons has always been talented, and he's always been versatile. But Saturday, he had the best, and most important, game of his career. Parsons scored 17 points on 6-of-10 from the field, including a 2-of-4 mark from beyond the arc. He also added 12 rebounds, five assists and a block. But the numbers don't really do Parsons' performance justice. The senior forward was the most consistent -- probably the only consistent -- source of points down the stretch for Florida. His crash-the-glass tendencies gave Florida two huge buckets on missed shots late in the second half. (Any time one of his teammates shot the ball, Parsons flew to the rim; it was a remarkable thing to watch.) His dribble penetration gave Florida its best looks all game long and yielded one of the best passes (an impossibly perfect, blind behind-the-back dropoff) you'll ever see. And his clutch free throw down the stretch -- free throws being easily the worst part of Parsons' game -- helped hold off Kentucky's late run. What do you want from a star? Consistent productivity, a healthy dose of flair, some defense-challenging versatility and clutch plays when they matter most. Parsons delivered on all counts Saturday night. Florida will celebrate as a team, but in many ways, this win was his.
• [+] Enlarge
  AP Photo/Phil SandlinFreshman Brandon Knight almost keyed a Kentucky comeback and finished the night with 24 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
  It nearly wasn't, though. The Wildcats never played particularly well on offense Saturday night, but the real surprise was how lenient they were with Florida for the first, oh, 30 minutes of the game. As detailed below, Florida's offense was in rhythm for much of the night; the Gators spent most of the first half getting good medium-range looks. But Kentucky shored up the defensive end in the second half, partly thanks to John Calipari's decision to switch to an extended zone. That was a smart play: Florida struggled (per the usual) from beyond the arc -- the Gators were 6-of-19 from 3 -- and once Kentucky ratcheted up the pressure in the second half, it was able to force the Gators to either take long shots or face the Wildcats' supreme athleticism around the rim. That allowed Kentucky to quickly chip away at Florida's 13-point second half lead. Then, with 5:43 left, Terrence Jones made his only 3 of the night to give the Cats a 59-58 lead. It appeared Kentucky had finally solved the Gators on the defensive end. Parsons and Florida got those key buckets and free throws to hold on, but the defensive performance that preceded the final minutes was impressive. If only the Cats had defended like that for 40 minutes, eh?
• Florida has struggled on offense for much of the season, but it appears to be improving in a variety of important ways. The most important? The Gators move. Billy Donovan's spread pick-and-roll offense requires lots of movement, not just from the players on the ball, but from weakside players and post men screening the opposite block under the hoop. When Florida is at its best on offense, it has five players moving, cutting, screening, flashing the post and squaring up for open jumpers. The Gators did that Saturday night, and it's one reason they were able to keep pace with what has been one of the nation's best defenses for much of the season.
• Of course, it wasn't all good. Florida is still far too reliant on 3-pointers in its offense despite the fact that the Gators shoot a mere 33.7 percent from 3 as a team. The Gators are much better served getting the ball into the block, or getting into the teeth of the defense with dribble penetration. The Wildcats' athleticism makes them tough to beat off the dribble, but still: Florida is a bad team behind the arc and a good one (50.5 percent on the season) inside it. Shoot less, drive more. Shoot less, drive more. Mantra, Gators. Mantra.
• Boynton remains a frustratingly inefficient player. This is not a new observation, but it remains a salient one. Boynton is fully capable of creating his own shot, and if he can get to the rim against Kentucky -- as he did numerous times Saturday night -- he can probably get to the rim against anyone. But Boynton still settles for too many 3s. What's worse, it's not a matter of which 3s Boynton takes. Boynton struggled to knock down both challenged and wide-open 3s against Kentucky -- he was 1-of-6 from beyond the arc and 4-of-12 from the field -- and those struggles aren't anything new. Boynton is shooting 29 percent from long range. This appears to be who he is. When you're shooting 30 percent from 3, it's probably a good idea to put the ball on the floor a little more often. But because Boynton has those hot streaks -- and because opposing defenses, or at least the Wildcats, seem content to leave him open on the perimeter -- the sophomore is likely to keep firing away.
• Speaking of frustrating players, it's easy to see why Kentucky's Jones occasionally draws the ire of his coach. Jones is as talented as any player in the nation -- though he would probably benefit from being a bit less reliant on his left hand -- but he still makes plenty of plays that scream "freshman!" in flashing neon lights. He can also be lured into taking 3s, where he is not a particularly effective player. (Jones is shooting 31 percent from beyond the arc this season.) A perfect example: In the first half, Jones caught the ball in traffic, stopped on a dime (all that athleticism comes in handy), fought off a handful of Florida defenders, cleared his own space, dribbled the ball out and appeared ready to reset the offense ... before launching a 3 from the wing. None of this should take away from how consistently productive the freshman has been this season, or the talent that will make him a very rich man in a few months. And, hey, he scored 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds Saturday. Not too shabby. But Jones does have his freshman-esque flaws, and those flaws are emblematic of the struggles that afflict this Kentucky team so frequently on the road.
• Are Kentucky's road woes something to worry about? Maybe. I don't think you can worry too much about a two-point loss at Florida, especially when that loss came after a gutty second-half comeback led by a lockdown defensive effort. This was, despite the final score, an impressive effort. But given that Kentucky has now lost three SEC games on the road, you wonder if this Kentucky team's youth will keep it from reaching the heights its freshman talent makes it capable of in the first place. (Is this the unsolvable conundrum of the one-and-done recruiting strategy? Maybe. Maybe not. This was just one game, in the middle of one season. But it is food for thought.)
• We should probably mention Knight's ruthlessly efficient 24-point performance, which included a 4-of-5 mark from 3. Knight had four turnovers to go with his four assists, but in every other regard he was the catalyst for much of Kentucky's offense, especially when Calipari's hybrid dribble-drive broke down and someone had to make something happen. Frequently, that someone was Knight. No surprise there; Knight has been this good pretty much all year. If there is a flaw in his game, it's that he doesn't get to the rim quite enough, and Kentucky could probably benefit from more 10 foot pull-ups and fewer 3s. But if Knight's hitting his shots, it's hard to complain too much.
• We should probably also mention Ted Valentine's late call on Kentucky forward Josh Harrellson. As Doug Gottlieb noted on "ESPN's College Basketball" Final Saturday night, Valentine was on the opposite side of the floor when Florida guard Erving Walker tried to split a high screen double-team and ran into Harrellson and Kentucky forward DeAndre Liggins. The play looked like a clear tie-up and jump ball, but Valentine sprinted into the play and called a reach-in foul on Harrellson. It's never fun to criticize referees; those guys have as tough a job (at least in terms of mental pressure and split-second demands) as anyone in the country. But Valentine looked wrong there, and his reputation as a referee who likes to be part of the show -- "TV Teddy V" is a well-earned nickname -- probably showed through on the Harrellson foul.
• Florida guard Scottie Wilbekin hasn't been much more than a spot reserve for the Gators this season, and he hasn't been the most efficient spot reserve at that, but if Saturday's game was any indication, he has the ability to contribute when opposing defenses collapse on the diverse batch of scorers around him. That's precisely happened in the first half Saturday night. Kentucky left Wilbekin open in a variety of situations, and when the Gators found him, he converted (2-of-2 from 3-point range). Wilbekin also flashed a bit of floor game, drawing a foul early in the half, followed by a nice hanging finish at the rim with about six minutes remaining. Those might seem like minor contributions, but if Wilbekin can add even the threat of scoring, Florida's improving half-court offense will be even more difficult to defend. Plus, if we know anything about these Gators, it's this: They could use a consistent outside shooter.
• Finally, if you're possibly interested in any more bubble talk, Florida now appears to be an NCAA tournament lock. The Gators just added a sixth top 50 RPI win to their already impressive résumé. Their computer numbers are strong. Their bad losses (to Jacksonville and UCF) shouldn't matter much. And perhaps most importantly, they're now in the driver's seat to win a regular-season SEC title. Home win or not, close test or not, make no mistake: This was a huge win for the Gators. And well-earned, too.