Tennessee fans were quickly reminded Saturday night that coach Bruce Pearl brings out the worst in the Florida Gators.
The game wasn't even three minutes old before Florida All-SEC point guard Nick Calathes was whistled for his second foul. It was an ominous beginning for the Gators, who needed a victory to take sole possession of first place in the SEC East.
They never came close. UT hit eight of its 12 3-pointers in the first half to take a 17-point halftime lead en route to a 79-63 victory.
"They just played better than we did," Calathes said. "We could have done some things better. We made some stupid plays."
That's how it usually goes for the Gators against Pearl, whose Vols have won six of seven games against Florida.
While the game was characteristic of the series, there was nothing typical about UT's 3-point shooting.
The Vols, who rank 11th in the SEC in 3-point shooting, made 12 of 28 3-point attempts. Freshman guard Scotty Hopson, who has struggled in his outside shooting, hit four of six 3-pointers.
"We knew he was a good player," said Calathes, who finished with a team-high 21 points. "But we obviously didn't think he would hit that many 3s."
Florida forward Chandler Parsons didn't blame his team's defense for UT's shooting.
"I don't think we played poorly defensively," he said. "We got out on them and got a hand in their face."
Offense was a different matter for the Gators, who were out of sync from the outset. It didn't help that Calathes missed 11 minutes of the first half after drawing his second foul.
He was surprised by the second foul, which was a charge.
"I didn't think I even touched the guy," Calathes said. "But those are good refs."
Parsons admitted that the Gators struggled without their floor leader.
"He's our general out there," Parsons said. "It was kind of awkward without him."
The UT crowd sensed Florida's vulnerability and responded accordingly.
"They definitely don't like us," Parsons said of the crowd. "They were loud and rowdy."
The loss was only Florida's third in 21 games. Last year's team also started 18-3 but lost eight of its next 11 games in playing its way out of the NCAA tournament.
"We're a totally different team than last year," Parsons said. "We're a 10 times better team."
But not against UT.
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Tennessee defeats Georgia 3-2 in…
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Comments » 42
SmokeyWazHere writes:
Being 1st on a Basketball column is not a great accomplishment.;)
VOLorado writes:
hope the recruits enjoyed it as much as I did
SmokeyWazHere writes:
Dont get your panties in a wad, like you said its just basketball.;)
Volinsider writes:
Somehow we own the Gators in B-ball. Now it's your turn coach Kiffin! What a game!
VAvolfanRON writes:
already a argument.....
wow....
huntined#565710 writes:
Calathes is a good player but their team depends on him for everything-points-steals-rebounds..He is good but not that good. Fla is just now starting into some tough games ahead
Got to admit their coach has class..It was just good to get a win over them..There is a lot of games to be played and the SEC East is about even with about 4 teams. So the team that plays hard and wins from here on out will win it..
1vol writes:
Funny,why isn't gatorzz on here yet?
VAvolfanRON writes:
1vol.....who cares???.....come on...show some class!!!!
VAvolfanRON writes:
the article is about ut winning.....and we are so obsessed with who is one here...
VAvolfanRON writes:
I think you are right.....sometimes it builds your ego....but can hurt you
VAvolfanRON writes:
scotty....your man was an animal tonight!!!!!
love it
VAvolfanRON writes:
UTfan....i have to agree with you...
ORANGEAND2 writes:
gators few stupid plays?? -- vols gel! -- get WIN!! ORANGE2-U! GO VOLS!!
VOLS85 writes:
well we can't all be as cool as dc and flaunt our domination over a lackluster team, even though that's what he feels like that's his only subsistence...btw nick has a serious problem with looking supremely special ed.
PoochPuntOn3rdDown writes:
Where's gatorzz? Probably taking a zzzzzzzzzzzzz like his haphazard, undermanned basketball team..... GO BASKETVOLS!!!
murrayvol writes:
So, does that mean the Vols are actually gelin'? We can hope.
Stokes44yrs writes:
"the first shall be last"
Just look at the polls.
Stokes44yrs writes:
Shut-up!!!!
(kidding)
Yea Vols!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Greer_Vol_22 writes:
dude, don't forget to thank you parents for not aborting.
99gator writes:
congrats. told y'all. as long as tennessee wanted to play defense, they would be fine. sometimes i kick myself for not being a gambler.
tennessee at home, espn, must win scenario. good matchup for tennessee as their strength exposes florida's biggest weakness (athleticism). then, after calathes got two fouls, they had no chance (no, not why florida lost)
florida still hasn't done anything that would tell me they are a good team.
debbie writes:
great game on national tv with recruits what more could we want
givehim6 writes:
Man did I sleep good last night! Had a dream Smokey was chaseing gators without teeth. It was a sad thing to see a toothless gator cry. GO VOLS!
TommyJack writes:
Surely KNS staffers get at least one day off.
marinevol writes:
I'm sure Billy Donovan is a very good coach, but that was one of the worst coaching jobs I've ever seen. Can't believe he stuck with that zone defense when UT was shooting the lights out and bombing in 3 pointers. He stuck with that defense through the whole game, too stubborn to make an adjustment. He really got schooled by Bruce Pearl, IMO.
bugman (Inactive) writes:
correction Nick, You made all the stupid plays!!!
TotalPackage1 writes:
You do win something...you are now part of the SORORITY,
AAA...Alpha, Alpha, Alpha.
Hazing IS allowed.
easleychuck writes:
You really hate LOSING to the Vols, don't you little fella.
easleychuck writes:
Excellent.
gohawks1 writes:
"Stupid is as stupid does." - Forrest Gump
illinoisvolfan writes:
He's leaving thought-provoking, tasteful, and fun-loving comments elsewhere about football recruiting.
Stokes44yrs writes:
Didn't you guys beat S. Car.?
Vandy? The SEC isn't as week as ESPN wants to make us. I think you'll see a surge this year from Tn, Kentucky, S.Car.,Ark. all potential sweet 16. Jody Meeks may take Ky. to the great 8 if Meeks gets hot. Fla. may win a 1st or sec. round.
I may be dreaming...
illinoisvolfan writes:
Congratulations...you can tell time.
I was enjoying the game and the post-game festivities and didn't log on until today. And, sorry Mr. Perfection, I didn't happen to notice your posting time. You've got a great sense of humor there. Glad to see you take it as well as you dish it out.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Every reasonably decent team has at least one guy they rely on for production and leadership. The Vols seldom do well in games in which Tyler or Wayne get in early foul trouble. In previous years, if Lofton was out or not playing well, it really hurt us. Calathes is a good player who should make good money in the NBA--if we had him, we would be a LOT better as a team.
Vol_Jokes writes:
The lowly vols beat an unranked team. Big news, now you are 4 losses and 2 wins at home lately. Guess this means Fla. will win the national championship again. You know when the lowly vols beat you it wakes you up. It happed them to them a few years ago and it happened to Memphis last year. Goo......volunteers.
Now you people will be talking big. It doesn't take much with these people. Guess will be reading about how the vols will win the national championship now.
54-52
johnlg00#206211 writes:
He was just playing the percentages. We haven't shot 3-pointers that well all year. Remember our game at Memphis last year? Remember how they hit several 3-pointers fairly early? CBP continued to keep the defense packed in, sure that UM would cool off in the second half. They did and we won. In the second half, Florida couldn't really come after us defensively because some of their key players--Calathes especially--were in foul trouble. If I were a future UT opponent, I would continue to pack the defense in, especially if I thought we couldn't match up against the Vols inside, which is one reason Donovan went to the zone from the outset.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Whoa, fella! (Slap, slap) Snap out of it! This year, I would be surprised if ANY SEC team makes it to the Sweet Sixteen. Of course, any team could get hot, get lucky with some early matchups, and go on a big tourney run, but no SEC team has so far shown me the consistency to play more than two really strong games in a row against quality opposition.
volwalk writes:
we are still growing---the defense seems to be fairly consistant along with our inside game...if we can hit 6 to 8 3 pointers with a mid to upper 30 %---THIS TEAM WILL MAKE IT TO THE SWEET 16 AND COULD GO DEEPER IF THEY CATCH A BREAK.
Stokes44yrs writes:
Huh? Wha...where am I?
I fell asleep on a Volunteers site and woke up...Hey. quit hittin' me We can to go to the sweet 16.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
I SURELY hope you are right! Sorry if I stomped too hard on your pleasant dream(;-P)!
johnlg00#206211 writes:
I get your point that most SEC teams can beat almost anybody "on a given night". The trouble with that is that ALL SEC teams so far have also shown that they can LOSE to anybody on a given night. Teams that make deep tourney runs play well EVERY night, even if they lose a few. They win all the ones they SHOULD win; EVERY SEC team has failed to win at least one of those they should have won.
shoalcreekvol writes:
Looks to me like Billy D's heart/mind/something wasn't in this game. When NC got those two fouls early they needed BD to step up and coach them through it. Didn't seem to happen. Not sure what's going on there.
shoalcreekvol writes:
I was first on a baseball column once. Three days after the article was posted...
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