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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- An injury problem is on the verge of
becoming a free fall for No. 7 Florida. Freshman Brendan Plavich
and Vanderbilt pushed the Gators closer to the edge Saturday.
|  | | Despite foul problems, Greg LaPointe led Vanderbilt with 17 points Saturday. |
Plavich, who would be at Georgia Tech were it not for Bobby
Cremins' resignation after last season, hit two 3-pointers over the
last 57 seconds to rally the Commodores to a 63-61 victory.
"I certainly don't know that we deserved to win," Vandy coach
Kevin Stallings said. "Florida controlled the game a lot more than
we did."
But the Gators (11-4, 1-3 Southeastern Conference), down to
seven healthy scholarship players, seem to be perfecting both the
art of the close loss and the blown lead. This was their third loss
by three or fewer points in two weeks. It was the second in which
they led by eight or more going into the final minutes.
While Plavich played a big role in helping Vanderbilt (13-4,
3-2) beat the Gators, they also hurt themselves, missing five of
six free throws down the stretch.
"They made some tough 3s, but I feel like our guys gave that
game away," Florida coach Billy Donovan said. "We played not to
lose. We had guys in certain situations who didn't want to be in
those situations. But that's the hand we've been dealt."
The collapse began after Udonis Haslem hit a short shot to give
his team a 60-52 lead with 4:07 remaining. Vandy's Greg LaPointe
sandwiched four points around one free throw by Florida's LaDarius
Halton to cut the deficit to 61-56
Then, Florida's Brett Nelson, who was 26-for-28 from the
free-throw line this season, missed two with 1:10 left.
Vanderbilt got the rebound and worked the ball to Plavich, who
hit from the left side of the arc, just in front of his own bench,
to cut Vandy's deficit to 61-59.
Halton followed by missing two free throws, then Plavich got his
second shot, from almost the same spot. With Halton in his face,
the freshman from Dalton, Ga., hit the second 3-pointer as he fell
on his back, and Vandy had a 62-61 lead.
"I thought I got fouled," said Plavich, who had committed to
Georgia Tech, but was allowed to change his mind when Cremins left.
"I wasn't sure if it went in until my teammates picked me up off
the floor."
On the next possession, Florida's Major Parker missed a wild
shot. LaPointe hit one free throw to put Vandy ahead by two, then
Orien Greene left a layup on the front of the rim at the buzzer,
and the hurting Gators had their second straight home loss.
"I just missed a shot," said Greene, a freshman. "I should've
taken an angle to the basket. We talk about that all the time, but
I didn't do it."
Thus, Florida had its first back-to-back losses since February
1999, a streak of 60 games. It also marked Florida's first
consecutive defeats at home since February 1998.
The Gators came into the game missing Teddy Dupay, Justin
Hamilton and Brent Wright to major injuries. Despite those ailments
and the latest stunning collapse, Donovan isn't panicking.
"It's not frustrating at all to me," he said. "It's part of
these guys' growing process as players. The faces change but the
incidents don't. In order to have success at this young age, you
have to go through adversity. That's what you have to go through to
be special."
LaPointe led Vanderbilt with 17 points, despite playing the
final 9 minutes with four fouls. Plavich made four 3-pointers to
finish with 12 points.
Haslem led the Gators with 20 points and 11 rebounds, and Nelson
had 17 points and five assists.
The Gators played just eight players, including walk-on guard
David Kliewer, who fired up the crowd and had an assist during an
8-0 run that gave Florida a 20-12 lead in the first half. The
Gators never led by more than nine.
Meanwhile, Vanderbilt had injuries of its own to worry about.
The Commodores had only eight healthy bodies for most practices
last week. Among those ailing are LaPointe, still on the way back
from offseason back surgery, and Plavich, who will have to undergo
shoulder surgery at the end of the season.
"Obviously, Florida is very less than 100 percent right now,"
Stallings said. "We know what it's like, and we certainly
sympathize with anybody that's in that situation."
But it surely didn't dampen the celebration.
"It's still a great win, any road win in the SEC is great,"
Plavich said. "Let's face it, they still have Nelson and Haslem,
and those guys are tough."
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ALSO SEE
Men's College Basketball Scoreboard
Vanderbilt Clubhouse
Florida Clubhouse
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