GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida enjoyed one of the most-prolific 3-point shooting games ever against a Bradley team and the 19th-ranked Gators (2-0) took advantage of some sloppy play by the Braves (1-1) to earn an 81-58 victory in the first round of the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic in front of 10,122 fans Sunday afternoon at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
Florida's 14-3-pointers were one off the record for a Bradley opponent, set by Southern Illinois in a 1996 overtime game, and equalled the most by a Bradley opponent since Wichita State sank 14 against the Braves in the quarterfinals of the 2003 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. Although Bradley limited Florida to 41.5 percent shooting from the field, the Gators worked the boards for 19 offensive rebounds and a 23-2 advantage in second-chance points.
Bradley scored the game's first four points and the lead changed hands five times before Florida used a 13-0 run in a span of 1-minute, 38-seconds to take control of the game. Walter Hodge drained a 3-pointer with 6:43 left in the first half to give the Gators a 22-18 lead and a Dan Werner layup with 5:05 left made it 32-18.
After Florida eventually built its advantage to 17 points, a Sam Maniscalco 3-pointer with 14 seconds left appeared to give the Braves a bit of momentum heading into the break, but Nick Calathes hit a 30-footer at the buzzer to give the Gators a 42-25 halftime advantage.
Bradley shook off the Calalthes shot, however, and hit the Gators with a 10-1 burst to start the second half, pulling to within 45-37 on a David Collins free throw line jumper with 16:27 left. The Braves were still within nine, 54-45, when Sam Singh scored on the block with 12:12 left, but the Gators ended the game with a 3-point exhibition to erase any doubt of a Bradley rally.
After Calathes gave the Gators a lasting double-digit lead on a driving layup with 10:49 left, Florida's final seven baskets came from behind the arc. And while the Gators hit seven of their final nine attempts from 3-point range, the Braves were just 3-for-11 from long range in the game's final 17:49.
In addition to their cold shooting from behind the arc, Bradley committed 23 turnovers, allowing the hosts a nearly deciding 32-14 advantage in points off turnovers.
The Braves, who played their second straight game without leading returning scorer Andrew Warren, will have a week off before resuming play in the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic at the Ft. Myers Sub-Regional. Bradley will take on UMKC Nov. 24 at Florida Gulf Coast's Allico Arena, then will face FGCU Nov. 25 and close the exempt event against Richmond Nov. 26. Warren had a pin inserted in his right foot in September to help repair a stree fracture and has been held out of the season's first two game due to lingering pain in the foot.
