GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Senior forward Chandler Parsons (Casselberry, Fla.) recorded his second double-double of the season and ninth of his career with season highs of 18 points and 12 rebounds, junior point guard Erving Walker (Brooklyn, N.Y.) added 14 points and Florida defeated Rhode Island 84-59 Monday night at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
The Gators (11-3) capped their nonconference schedule with a third straight win, including consecutive games against Atlantic-10 teams. Florida won at Xavier on Friday.
Florida led by one at the 11:45 mark of the first half, but used a 22-2 run over the next 7:27 to open up a 21-point advantage. Freshmen Casey Prather (Jackson, Tenn.), Scottie Wilbekin (Gainesville, Fla.) and Patric Young (Jacksonville, Fla.) combined for 10 points, five rebounds, an assist and a steal during the surge while Walker had six points and Parsons chipped in two points along with three rebounds and three assists.
Rhode Island ended the half on a 10-3 burst and the Gators led by 14 at intermission.
After Rhode Island’s Delroy James opened the second half with a bucket, a 14-4 Florida run put the Gators ahead by 22 and they coasted the rest of the way.
Florida won the battle of the boards 49-31 (20-12 offensive) and have now out-rebounded 13 of its 14 opponents this season. The Rams came into the contest averaging 8.3 threes a game, converting 38.2 percent of their attempts but the Gators held them to 4-for-23 (17.4 percent) shooting from behind the arc while making 8-of-18 (44.4 percent) of its triples on the offensive end.
Four Gators scored in double figures—Alex Tyus (St. Louis, Mo.) and Kenny Boynton (Pompano Beach, Fla.) had 10 apiece—and nine of the 10 Gators that played, scored. The Gator bench outscored the Rams 24-8 and Florida had 12 points in transition while allowing no fast break points.
Forward Delroy James paced Rhode Island with 23 points and six rebounds.
The Gators will begin SEC play on Saturday, January 8 as they host the Mississippi Rebels at 8 p.m. ET at the O’Connell Center. The game can be seen on CSS.
