Georgia basketball used a late 10-0 run to cut a Florida lead down to 3 points with under 3 minutes left, but the Gators had too much size, depth and talent for the Bulldogs to overcome.
Florida (16-8, 6-5 SEC) closed out Georgia 72-63 on Wednesday night at the O’Connell Center in Gainesville.
“Our guys stayed on the attack when we made the comeback,” Coach Tom Crean said after the loss. “It’s a tough way to lose … our kids are putting so much into this.”
Perhaps, but the Bulldogs (6-18, 1-10) simply don’t seem to have the talent or size to contend since team captains and power forwards PJ Horne and Jailyn Ingram suffered season-ending injuries.
Still, Georgia came within a missed 3-point shot -- or controversial no-call -- of taking No. 1-ranked Auburn to overtime last Saturday.
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Kario Oquendo led Georgia with 22 points and a career-high 8 rebounds, while Aaron Cook scored 14 points including a pair of 3-pointers during the 10-0 run.
Georgia hit 12 of 13 free throws in the second half and made 80 percent from the charity stripe for the game, 16 of 20.
Florida, led by Myreon Jones’ 23 points and career-high seven 3-pointers, built a 38-30 lead after leading Georgia by as many as 16.
The Bulldogs’ second-half comeback may have occurred earlier, but Cook and post player Braelen Bridgesup picked up their fourth fouls within 30 seconds of one another with 12 1/2 minutes left, relegating both to the bench for more than 5 minutes down the stretch.
It was a tough night for that, as UGA dressed only 10 players on account of injuries.
Georgia returns to action at 2 p.m. on Saturday against South Carolina in Stegeman Coliseum.
