Gator Men’s Basketball Finishes With 14 Unanswered Points to Beat Ole Miss

A seesaw of a game with a lot of action throughout, but in the end, the Florida men’s basketball team takes care of business at home against the Ole Miss Rebels on Tuesday night, winning 72-63.  .

A back and Forth Game

Florida pulled out to a 10 point lead 10 minutes into the game on the hands of seven points and two blocks by junior forward Colin Castleton.  In the first half, the Gators led by as much as 11, but Ole Miss climbed back to just a two point deficit at halftime.

Ole Miss continued the momentum from the first half into the second. The Rebels had a nine point lead with just under seven minutes to go in the game. Florida, however, played with more passion and finished those last six minutes on a 20-2 run including 14 unanswered points to end the game. The Gators won 72-63.

How Did the Gators Pull Off the Comeback?

The Gators were led by Colin Castleton’s 21 points, 10 rebounds (five offensive) and a monster seven blocks. Castleton becomes the first Gator to have seven or more blocks in a game since Al Horford in 2005 which was also against Ole Miss.

Seven blocks for @Castleton_ are the most by a Gator since @Al_Horford 2/16/05 vs Ole Miss.

— Denver Parler (@denverparler) January 13, 2021

Tre Mann and Noah Locke also contributed 17 and 15 points, respectively, including a combined 12 of 12 free throws. In all, the Gators took 26 free throws to Ole Miss’s 15 attempts.

After the game, Gator head coach Mike White, when asked if the team planned on drawing fouls or if that came with what Ole Miss gave them.   “[We like to] take what the defense gives us, he said.  “They put a lot of pressure on the ball, cut off the passing lanes.”

Tre Mann said about the team’s mentality to go on a 20-2 run in the final seven minutes, “Me and my brothers wanted to win.”

The Gators are now 3-2 in SEC play and will next play at Mississippi State on Saturday January 16.