Florida Beats Kentucky 84-77
No. 5 Florida beat Kentucky 84-77 to end the regular season on an 11-game win streak. The victory, which came on Kentucky's Senior Day, cost the Wildcats in SEC tournament seeding and underscores Florida's surging form ahead of postseason play.
Florida's victory completed their first regular-season sweep of Kentucky since 2018 and marked just their 13th win in Lexington in the history of the series. The Gators, who have already clinched the top seed in the SEC tournament, are also in contention for a No. 1 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. The loss was a significant blow to Kentucky's postseason positioning. A victory would have secured the Wildcats a No. 4 seed and a coveted double-bye in the SEC Tournament. Instead, the defeat drops Kentucky to either the No. 9 or No. 10 seed, forcing them to begin tournament play on Wednesday and needing five wins in five days to claim the title. Florida forward Thomas Haugh, who missed the previous game, led the Gators with 20 points and nine rebounds. Point guard Boogie Fland contributed 16 points and six assists, while center Rueben Chinyelu added 13 points and eight rebounds. The Gators started strong, jumping out to an 11-0 lead and weathering a Kentucky comeback attempt that briefly cut the lead to one point. For Kentucky, senior Otega Oweh was the leading scorer with 28 points in his final game at Rupp Arena. The game was the culmination of Senior Day festivities, which honored Oweh, Denzel Aberdeen, and walk-ons Walker Horn and Zach Tow.
