What Happened

SAN FRANCISCO — Once the Gators stopped giving away the ball, they put away Maryland on Thursday night.

Florida overcame 13 first-half turnovers and found its grip in the second half, running away from the Terrapins, 87-71, in a Sweet 16 matchup at the Chase Center. The No. 1-seed in the West Region, the Gators won their ninth consecutive game to advance to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2017.

The Gators busted open a close game at halftime (40-38) by dominating the boards and committing only four turnovers after the break. Florida out-rebounded the No. 4-seed Terrapins 42-20, with Thomas Haugh grabbing nine, Rueben Chinyelu, eight, and guard Alijah Martin, seven.

“That’s who we are. That’s our DNA,” Gators coach Todd Golden told TBS afterward. “That’s part of what makes us so good.”

The Gators seized control at the midway mark of the second half. Following a 3-pointer by Maryland’s Derik Queen to trim UF’s lead to 61-54 with 11:07 remaining, the Gators blitzed Maryland for a 13-2 run to put the game away on the way to the program’s ninth consecutive victory in a Sweet 16 matchup.

Florida’s depth was on full display as six players scored in double figures and the Gators’ bench outscored Maryland’s, 29-3. Will Richard led the Gators with 15 points, followed by Martin (14), Haugh and Walter Clayton Jr. (13 each), Denzel Aberdeen (12) and Chinyelu (10).

The Gators’ 87 points are the most surrendered this season by the Terrapins, who entered as the sixth-ranked defensive team in the country.

Florida shot 50% (30-for-60) and made 11 of 28 from distance. Maryland shot 41% (22-for-54) and converted only 6 of 19 from behind the 3-point line. Queen scored a game-high 27 for the Terrapins.

What it Means

The Gators advanced to the Elite Eight for the 10th time in program history. Meanwhile, UF improved to 10-2 all-time in Sweet 16 games and won their ninth in a row, a streak that dates to 1999. 
 

In the Spotlight

Let’s go back to Florida’s bench. The Terrapins, who entered the game with their starters logging 81 percent of playing time, had no answers for Florida’s depth. While Clayton was just 3-of-9 shooting and 2 of 6 from 3-point distance, Aberdeen got hot in the second half and hit 5 of 7 shots, including 2 of 4 from deep.
 

Staggering Statistic

Florida has committed 22 first-half turnovers in the past two games, including 13 on Thursday night that allowed Maryland to score 12 of its 38 halftime points off turnovers. But as mentioned above, when the Gators eliminated the empty possessions in the second half, they pulled away in convincing fashion.
 

Up Next

Florida (33-4) faces the winner of the Arkansas-Texas Tech game on Saturday in the West Region final. No. 10-seed Arkansas (22-13) and No. 3 seed Texas Tech (27-8) tip off at approximately 10:09 p.m. ET at the Chase Center in San Francisco.

Senior writer Scott Carter contributed to this report. Email senior writer Chris Harry at chrish@gators.ufl.edu.