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The Florida Gators men’s basketball team has been particularly fortuitous avoiding injuries throughout the 2024-25 season. However, when Florida guard Walter Clayton Jr. suffered a left ankle injury against Tennessee Saturday, it forced the Gators to utilize their first unique starting lineup this season.
Florida junior guard Denzel Aberdeen started in place of Clayton Jr. and while it was largely a back-and-forth first half, the Gators pulled away in the final 20 minutes due to the phenomenal play from their guards.
The No. 6 Florida Gators (19-3, 6-3 SEC) defeated the Vanderbilt Commodores (16-6, 4-5 SEC) 86-75 Tuesday night at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
Inside the Gators’ Instant Analysis takes a quick look at how the game unfolded.
IT WAS OVER WHEN: The Gators hit 12 of their final 14 shots of the game, closing the curtains in a contest that was mostly back-and-forth before then.
THEY STOLE THE SHOW: Florida senior guard Will Richard was quiet throughout most of the first half but came alive in the first few minutes of the second, setting momentum for Florida to eventually take the lead and cruise toward victory.
Richard began the half landing a triple and earning a two-point finish at the rim. A few minutes later, the senior guard hit two threes and took over from that point on.
Richard finished the contest with 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting and landed five three-pointers.
THESE STATS DON’T LIE: Without Clayton, the Gators were unable to build any momentum in the first half.
There were just three instances where Florida recorded consecutive baskets without allowing a score on the defensive end. It didn’t help that senior guard Alijah Martin also exited the contest due to what appeared to be a stinger on his left hip and missed nearly 10 minutes in the first half before returning in the final moments.
Once Martin returned to the court, Florida outscored Vanderbilt 55-39. The Gators scored 16 more points in the second half and shot above 65% from the field, three-point range, and from the free throw line.
THIS MATCHUP PROVED KEY: Vanderbilt is a team built around an array of shifty guards who are taller than most but struggle to shoot beyond the arc.
While the Commodores’ backcourt is taller than most, their frontcourt is significantly undersized compared to most in the Southeastern Conference. Vanderbilt relied on sophomore guard Jaylen Carey to handle Florida sophomore center Alex Condon below the basket. Standing at 6-foot-8, 265 pounds, Carey had the advantage in weight but is three inches shorter than Condon.
This allowed UF’s starting center to dominate below the rim, scoring 19 points and snagging nine rebounds.
WHAT A PLAY: Florida guard Urban Klavzar hasn’t received much playing time so far this season, but with Clayton out and Martin missing much of the first half, the Slovenian guard received meaningful minutes against the Commodores.
Heading into the matchup, Klavzar had just three makes on 18 attempts from beyond the arc. But in the second half, the sophomore hit back-to-back triples, sending the crowd into a frenzy. It extended the Gators’ lead to 63-54 before the Commodores were forced to call a timeout.
UP NEXT: The No. 6 Florida Gators (19-3, 6-3 SEC) will go toe-to-toe with No. 1 Auburn (20-1, 8-0 SEC) at 4 p.m. Saturday at Neville Arena. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
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