Kentucky Wildcats at Florida Gators
· NCAA Men's Basketball
Kentucky wins third straight, 82-74 over Florida
Toppin closed a 15-4 run with a 3-pointer and fast-break dunk to give Kentucky a 74-63 lead with 3:43 left. But Florida scored the next nine points, including six free throws — the last by Kyle Lofton with 1:12 left.
Chris Livingston ended Kentucky's nearly three-minute scoring drought on a three-point play with 49.1 seconds left. Florida missed a shot in the lane and Toppin sealed it with two free throws.
Antonio Reeves added 16 points and Livingston had 10 points and 15 rebounds for Kentucky (19-9, 10-5 SEC). Tshiebwe, who was 12 of 13 from the field, banked in a jumper in the first half to reach 1,000 career points — the 61st in program history to do so.
Tshiebwe scored nine of Kentucky's opening 17 points and Toppin sank a wide open 3-pointer in transition to extend the Wildcats' lead to 20-9. Florida took its first lead of the first half, 37-36, on Riley Kugel’s long 3-pointer with 17 seconds left before the break. The Gators closed the half on a 22-6 run over the final eight minutes after trailing by as many as 15 points.
Kugel made four 3-pointers and scored 24 points for Florida (14-14, 7-8), which has lost five of its last six games. Kowacie Reeves added 16 points. Florida star Colin Castleton was out due to a broken right hand.
FAN INTERFERENCE
The game was delayed with 13:47 left in the second half for an official review after Kentucky guard Cason Wallace was grabbed by fans sitting courtside after chasing down a loose ball on the sideline. The fans were removed from their courtside seats before play resumed tied at 50-all.
UP NEXT
Kentucky returns home to play Saturday against Auburn.
Florida hits the road to play Vanderbilt on Saturday.
How can I watch Kentucky vs. Florida?
Recent Plays
| 2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 82 - 74 |
| 2nd 0:02 | Chris Livingston Defensive Rebound. | 82 - 74 |
| 2nd 0:02 | Riley Kugel missed Three Point Jumper. | 82 - 74 |
| 2nd 0:07 | Cason Wallace made Free Throw. | 82 - 74 |
| 2nd 0:07 | Cason Wallace made Free Throw. | 81 - 74 |
Statistics
 UK |
 FLA |
|
|---|---|---|
| 33-62 | FG | 26-52 |
| 53 | Field Goal % | 50 |
| 4-13 | 3PT | 8-20 |
| 31 | Three Point % | 40 |
| 12-16 | FT | 14-20 |
| 75 | Free Throw % | 70 |
| 40 | Rebounds | 21 |
| 13 | Offensive Rebounds | 2 |
| 27 | Defensive Rebounds | 19 |
| 16 | Assists | 14 |
| 4 | Steals | 9 |
| 4 | Blocks | 1 |
| 13 | Turnovers | 10 |
| 0 | Team Turnovers | 2 |
| 13 | Total Turnovers | 10 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 21 | Points Off Turnovers | 16 |
| 14 | Fast Break Points | 12 |
| 46 | Points in Paint | 32 |
| 13 | Fouls | 15 |
| 15 | Largest Lead | 1 |
Game Information
Location: Gainesville, FL
Attendance: 9,540 | Capacity:
2025-26 Southeastern Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 16-2 | - | 27-8 |
| Arkansas | 13-5 | 3 | 28-9 |
| Alabama | 13-5 | 3 | 25-10 |
| Vanderbilt | 11-7 | 5 | 27-9 |
| Tennessee | 11-7 | 5 | 25-12 |
| Texas A&M | 11-7 | 5 | 22-12 |
| Georgia | 10-8 | 6 | 22-11 |
| Kentucky | 10-8 | 6 | 22-14 |
| Missouri | 10-8 | 6 | 20-13 |
| Texas | 9-9 | 7 | 21-15 |
| Oklahoma | 7-11 | 9 | 19-15 |
| Auburn | 7-11 | 9 | 20-16 |
| Mississippi State | 5-13 | 11 | 13-19 |
| Ole Miss | 4-14 | 12 | 15-20 |
| South Carolina | 4-14 | 12 | 13-19 |
| LSU | 3-15 | 13 | 15-17 |