KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Alex Tyus scored 18 points and turned a steal into a dunk in overtime that helped Florida to an 81-75 victory over Tennessee on Tuesday night.
Tennessee scored the last four points in regulation. A layup by Brian Williams with 1:40 left tied the game at 68, and both teams missed two shots before time expired.
Florida (13-3, 2-0 Southeastern Conference) opened the overtime with a 3-pointer from Kenny Boynton, who had 17 points, and the Gators scored the first six points in the extra frame.
Tennessee cut the margin to 79-75 on a 3-pointer by Cameron Tatum with 23 seconds left, but the Vols wouldn't hit another shot as the Gators made four free throws to close it out.
Chandler Parsons added 16 points for Florida, Erving Walker had 15 and Vernon Macklin had 11.
It was the second game of Bruce Pearl's eight-game suspension from Southeastern Conference play, and the Vols have lost both games without him. It was only the Gators' third win in 11 games since Pearl took over Tennessee in 2005.
Pearl was suspended by the SEC after he acknowledged lying to NCAA investigators during an ongoing probe into Tennessee's recruiting practices.
Tatum led Tennessee (10-6, 0-2) with 21 points, while Scotty Hopson had 20 and Tobias Harris 18.
Florida led by as many as eight points in the second half and had a 62-55 lead when Tennessee went on a 9-2 run. Trae Golden grabbed the ball when Walker lost control of it and drove to the basket for a layup to tie it at 64-all with 3:54 left.
Florida shot 53.3 percent in regulation while Tennessee hit 50.2 percent, but the Vols hit only 2 of 7 in overtime.
Florida (13-3, 2-0 Southeastern Conference) opened the overtime with a 3-pointer from Kenny Boynton, who had 17 points, and the Gators scored the first six points in the extra frame.
Tennessee cut the margin to 79-75 on a 3-pointer by Cameron Tatum with 23 seconds left, but the Vols wouldn't hit another shot as the Gators made four free throws to close it out.
Chandler Parsons added 16 points for Florida, Erving Walker had 15 and Vernon Macklin had 11.
It was the second game of Bruce Pearl's eight-game suspension from Southeastern Conference play, and the Vols have lost both games without him. It was only the Gators' third win in 11 games since Pearl took over Tennessee in 2005.
Pearl was suspended by the SEC after he acknowledged lying to NCAA investigators during an ongoing probe into Tennessee's recruiting practices.
Tatum led Tennessee (10-6, 0-2) with 21 points, while Scotty Hopson had 20 and Tobias Harris 18.
Florida led by as many as eight points in the second half and had a 62-55 lead when Tennessee went on a 9-2 run. Trae Golden grabbed the ball when Walker lost control of it and drove to the basket for a layup to tie it at 64-all with 3:54 left.
Florida shot 53.3 percent in regulation while Tennessee hit 50.2 percent, but the Vols hit only 2 of 7 in overtime.
