AUSTIN, Texas -- The Gators turned up
their defensive intensity in the second half and that turned off any
chance of Northwestern State pulling an upset Friday night.
Florida, the No. 3-seed in the South Region, cruised to a
79-47 win over the No. 14-seed Demons here in the second round of the
NCAA Tournament. Florida will play the UCLA-Minnesota winner on Sunday
afternoon with a Sweet 16 berth on the line.
The Demons, who led the nation is scoring at 81 points
game, kept it close in the first half by trailing only 40-32 at the
break. Northwestern State shot 13 of 24 in the first 20 minutes (54.2
percent). The Demons shot 19 percent in the second half (5 of 26).
"We played really good defense,'' center Patric Young said
in a radio interview immediately after the game. "It came down to our
mindset. Since we got here Coach has been banging it into our heads to
'let the Junkyard Dog out.' We just kept fighting and fighting."
The second half was a totally different story as the
Gators used a 16-0 run to turn a 52-42 lead into a 68-42 blowout.
Florida's defense went more than seven minutes without allowing the
Demons to hit a field goal.
Erik Murphy led the Gators with 18 points, followed by
Young's 16. Guards Scottie Wilbekin and Kenny Boynton finished with 11
points each.
