Earlier this week Bruce Pearl challenged Scotty Hopson to take more shots as Tennessee's offense has struggled lately. Hopson came up big when it counted hitting a fall away shot with 21 seconds left to give the Vols a one point lead against the Gators.
Tennessee then turned up the defense and did not give Florida and easy shot, got the rebound and ran out the clock defeating the Florida Gators 61-60.
Hopson's basket gave Tennessee their sixth straight win over Florida and it also kept Tennessee from losing their third straight game in a row. While a win over Florida always makes me happy, Tennessee should have won this game by much more.
Tennessee played a slow and sloppy first half, falling behind by 10 at one point while letting the Gators shoot 57.7 percent. Tennessee got tougher on defense in the second half, holding Florida to only 36.4 percent and outrebounding them 27-12.
What really hindered the Vols in the game was their poor free throw shooting. Tennessee was 4 of 12 from the charity stripe against the Gators. This has become a trend for Tennessee. They have not shot well from the line all season, shooting only 66.4 percent which is ninth in the SEC. If the poor free throw shooting continues, it might cost Tennessee a game they should win.
I don't know man. Florida pretty much had a layup at the end but the guy just rushed it.
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