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BOX SCORE
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Notes & quotes courtesy Florida Sports Information
QUOTABLE
Head Coach Todd Golden
Opening Statement…
“I think this is a really systematic win for our program. I’m really pleased. Could have been prettier, could have shot the ball better from the line, but we defended, we rebounded, and we took care of the basketball. Those are the three things that we talk about and stress all the time. And credit to Urban (Klavžar) in the second half hitting some big shots, allowing us to extend the lead a little bit. But a good, balanced effort, I don’t think there was one thing we did exceptionally well, but we did a lot of things well and I think this LSU team is really good. They’re talented, they’re long, they’re athletic, they’re physical. They gave us problems in the first half that way, but I think we did wear them down over the course of 40 minutes and really proud of the way our guys performed tonight.”
On Rueben Chinyelu’s fourth straight double-double and his growth…
“I think you’re seeing a guy just continue to grow and get better in real time and he’s impacting the game tremendously. I think he’s just playing with such good balance, toughness, there. He’s obviously difficult to officiate because I think he gets fouled on every play. There’s sometimes when he doesn’t get those whistles but he’s just really come into his own, kind of gotten really comfortable offensively. He just impacts the game so well defensively and on the glass that he’s become a real stalwart for us in the front court.”
On the ability of other guys to step up when shots aren’t falling for Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon…
“I think that’s how we’re built; the goal is not to have to rely upon good shooting to win, and I know that sounds funny, but you said they went, what, 5-for-20 combined? We were 14 for 27 from the line also, so we left a lot of points on the board that way. So should we have won by 25? I don’t know, but again, this formula works and it’s a good feeling to know that we have such a high floor.”
On how Urban Klavžar’s continuity on the team has grown this season…
“He’s settled into the role that we hoped he would this year, just being in that little spark plug on the bench, being able to come in and make shots and give a little offensive lift, once we got our bench in there. Last year, it was a little difficult for him to break in the rotation, and I think some people are like ‘Oh, what is Klavžar looking like?’ He only had three NBA guys in front of him, and once those guys got out of the way he started plating a little bit and doing some good things. But, he’s awesome. He has the respect of his teammates. They know he’s going to go to war with them and fight. And you know, when a guy has the ability to step up and hit big shots on the move like that, it’s a weapon and he’s been big for us all year.”
Junior C Rueben Chinyelu
On what changed at half for him…
“Just coming out, I know that it’s another day, it’s a new half, you can just go out there and play with your brothers and enjoy it and get everyone involved to make the most. Pay attention to the scouting report and tendencies and just enjoy doing that and I think that’s just what happened.”
On if he can feel himself wearing down opponents…
“I just feel myself going out there and playing basketball. Enjoying it with my teammates. If my opponent gets winded, they do, so I just go out there and enjoy it. It’s basketball you know, a lot of things are gonna happen, there’s gonna be ups and downs, but most importantly just coming out there and being you and not paying attention with anyone else or your opponent’s things. Just going out there and playing every moment like it’s the last moment, just knowing that it’s OK, we got the next one. So that’s the mentality, next play, next play, so that’s all for me. If it affects anyone, that’s on them, but I’m just gonna go out there and do that and repeat each repetition.”
On being the first Gator with four straight double-doubles in over 20 years…
“Anytime that’s a good thing, but just trying to go out there and play and if that happens, it happens, I’ll take that, but most importantly just making sure that we get the W. Getting all my teammates involved and enjoying the process, and if it happens to happen, it happens, but the most important thing is making sure all of my brothers are involved and they are enjoying the moment because without them it can’t be possible because it’s a collective, it’s a team game so they help me be me and I help them be them so they’re part of this success, this progress. They create the opportunity for me, so I’m just feeding off that.”
Sophomore G Boogie Fland
On what changed in the 2nd half…
“It’s a 40-minute game. First 20 minutes we felt like we played OK, second half we wanted to come out with some intensity, pressure them, get on them and I feel like we did that and it led to points in the fast break, just playing with more intensity.”
On the ability of other players to step up…
“It just shows the depth we’ve got. It shows the competitiveness we got. It shows we don’t have to play our best basketball to still have a 20-point (win), so imagine if we do play our best basketball, what that looks like. We still haven’t hit our peak yet, we still have more room to grow, got more things to do. Imagine if we hit more shots. The ceiling’s high for us, I’ll say that much and we’re just gonna keep getting better.”
Junior G Urban Klavžar
On his performance tonight and connecting from 3…
“It feels great. At Vandy I didn’t shoot the ball that well, so I just tried to be aggressive again and just shoot the ball and it feels great when it goes in, so really happy.”
On the team starting to heat up from 3 over the past two games…
“Definitely a little bit. We work on it every day so I think we’re finding it every day more and more, so it’s gonna be very good for us. When you shoot the ball that well, it’s tough to beat us.”
NOTEABLE
- Florida earned its fifth straight win behind 15 points and 21 rebounds from Rueben Chinyelu, as the big man tied the O’Connell Center rebounding record for the second time this season (21 vs. Merrimack, 11/21/25). Urban Klavžar added a game-high 18 points with five 3-pointers, while Boogie Fland and Alex Condon added 10 points each.
- Chinyelu became the first Gator since David Lee in 2005 to earn four straight double-doubles. The Gators are 11-0 this season when Chinyelu posts a double-double.
- UF dominated the glass again, posting a +20 margin (50-30).
- Florida ended the first half on a 10-3 run to take a 12-point lead into the break, 38-26, capped by Thomas Haugh’s 3-pointer at the buzzer.
- Chinyelu became the first Gator since Chip Williams in 1975 to have multiple career 20-rebound games. He’s the sixth player in program history to notch multiple 20-rebound games, joining Neal Walk (seven), Williams (four), Cliff Luyk (three), Gary Keller and Jim Zinn (two each).
- Chinyelu made his first three free throw attempts of the game, extending his personal-best streak to 15 straight makes before he had a miss.
- Chinyelu is now averaging 14.8 points and 11.8 rebounds in SEC play.
- Klavžar’s five 3-pointers were the most by a Gator this season, also the first UF player with five in a game since Walter Clayton Jr. hit five in the Final Four vs. Auburn. Klavžar also drew an offensive foul, his team-leading 10th of the season.
- Thomas Haugh extended his streak to 14 straight games with a 3-pointer. He also nabbed three steals and has multiple steals in four of the last five games.
- Isaiah Brown had productive minutes off the bench again, adding eight points and five rebounds in 13 minutes, posting a +16 plus-minus.
- Florida earned its 16th straight home win and 10th consecutive SEC home win.
- Ten straight SEC home wins marks the Gators’ eighth all-time double-digit home SEC winning streak and longest since a program-record 20 in a row from Jan. 9, 2013, through Jan. 15, 2015.
- Sixteen straight home wins ties for the eighth-longest in team history, most recently matching the 16 in a row from Jan. 13, 2024, through Jan. 7, 2025.
- Todd Golden earned his 90th win as Florida head coach, the most through four seasons for any coach in program history. Golden surpassed Mike White’s previous record of 89.
- The Gators have a 5-1 start in SEC play for the first time since the 2017-18 season.
- Florida improves to 5-0 vs. LSU under Golden, also closing the all-time series gap to 55-66. UF is 34-22 at home against the Tigers, including 3-0 under Golden.
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