GAINESVILLE,
Fla. -- Bradley Beal scored 19 points, Patric Young made several
crowd-rousing plays and No. 14 Florida beat No. 18 Mississippi State
69-57 Saturday, extending its home winning streak to 17 games.
The
Gators (17-4, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) used an 11-0 run in the
second half - sparked by Beal's third 3-pointer and highlighted by
Young's two dunks - to turn a tight game into a double-digit affair.
Mississippi
State (17-5, 4-3) trailed 62-47 after the spurt and never got the
lead to single digits. The Gators made enough plays down the stretch
to secure their second win in six games against the Bulldogs.
Young,
still battling tendinitis in his right ankle, finished with 12 points
and six rebounds. Erik Murphy added 14 points thanks mostly to 4-of-7
shooting from 3-point range. Erving Walker chipped in 10, including a
3 with 10 seconds remaining.
Florida's
leading scorer, Kenny Boynton, struggled from the field against Dee
Bost and had two points. Boynton was 1-for-6 shooting, including 0
for 3 from 3-point range.
Arnett
Moultrie led Mississippi State with 12 points and 13 rebounds,
notching his league-leading 13th double-double of the season. Bost
also scored 12 points. Moultrie fouled out with 2:04 remaining.
Florida
used pressing, trapping defense to force the Bulldogs into 14
turnovers. But the biggest difference came at the 3-point line.
The
Gators, who lead the nation in 3s, hit 11 of 24 from behind the arc.
Mississippi
State was 7 of 16 from 3-point land, including two from Jalen Steele
in the second half that helped the Bulldogs keep it close.
But
they had no answer for Florida's shooters.
Beal
was 3 of 4 from 3-point range. Murphy proved to be even more
dangerous, hitting several with Moultrie right in his face.
Young
was just as problematic.
The
6-foot-9 center came off the bench and provided all kinds of energy
for Florida. He took two charges, played tight defense on Moultrie
and was even more emphatic in the paint.
Young
had three dunks and a putback in the final 12 minutes that helped
turn the game, playing with the kind of enthusiasm that coach Billy
Donovan has been wanting from him for weeks. Young grabbed a rebound
off Walker's missed 3 and slammed it home. A few minutes later, he
corralled Boynton's miss and dropped it through the net.
