The defense evaporated in a home upset against Missouri but returned to normal on Saturday for No. 5 Florida.
Coming off another standout defensive showing, the Gators will attempt to contain South Carolina on Wednesday night in a Southeastern Conference contest in Columbia, S.C.
The Gators (16-2, 3-2 SEC) are the conference’s third-best scoring defense at 65.6 points, trailing only Tennessee and Georgia. Florida is second in opponents’ field-goal percentage (37.3) and opponents’ 3-point percentage (27.7).
Those figures would be lower if not for an 83-82 loss to Missouri on Jan. 14. The Gators allowed 44.3 percent shooting from the field and 11 3-pointers in that game.
Four days after the Missouri loss, the Gators pulled away for an 84-60 home rout of Texas. Florida improved to 10-0 when giving up 65 points or fewer, allowed 36.4 percent shooting and ended its latest win with a 23-6 run.
“We were not perfect,” Florida coach Todd Golden said. “We had some … silly turnovers in transition, some missed coverages here and there. But when we play with that level of effort, it allows us to make some mistakes and still be victorious.”
The stout defense complemented an offense that has scored at least 80 points in 15 games thanks to the duo of Alijah Martin and Walter Clayton Jr, who combined for 41 points on 15-of-29 shooting Saturday against the Longhorns.
Martin has led the Gators in scoring three times in SEC play after totaling 22 Saturday. Clayton’s 17.9 points per game rank fifth in the league and he is 16-for-29 from the field in his past two contests.
The Gamecocks (10-8, 0-5) along with Arkansas are the only winless teams in SEC play and three of those losses were by at least 20. South Carolina has been held under 70 points in six straight games and under 65 four times in conference play.
Among the issues are a run of quiet performances by leading scorer Collin Murray-Boyles, who is averaging 15.4 points per game for the season but 12.2 against the SEC. In Saturday’s 82-62 loss at Oklahoma, he was held to 11 points in 22 minutes before fouling out.
Other issues for the Gamecocks include holding onto the ball, especially since point guard Jamarii Thomas was lost to a sprained knee. He has missed the past three games in which the Gamecocks committed 50 turnovers, including 25 last week against Vanderbilt.
Despite South Carolina’s struggles to score, Morris Ugusuk is emerging as an option of late. He led the team with 15 against the Sooners after leading the Gamecocks with 20 in the last-second loss to Vanderbilt.
Nick Pringle was held to five points in 18 minutes at Oklahoma due to foul trouble. He had only three points in 23 minutes at Vanderbilt before fouling out.
“Fouls hurt those guys again, so we have to address that and see what it is that’s putting us in harm’s way for those two guys in particular,” Gamecocks coach Lamont Paris said of Murray-Boyles and Pringle. “They have to play, and they have to play well for us. That’s where we are. We’re short-handed.”
