Wildcats fall to Florida 71-63, await seeding for NCAA tourney

Alex Condon scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and fourth-ranked Florida took the first step toward defending its Southeastern Conference Tournament title by beating Kentucky 71-63 Friday in the quarterfinals.

The Gators (26-6) never trailed and were tied only once while winning their 12th straight game. The regular-season SEC champions, who are seeking a sixth tournament title overall, will play No. 22 Vanderbilt in Saturday’s semifinals.

Thomas Haugh added 13 points for Florida, and Xaivian Lee had 11.

Ninth-seeded Kentucky (21-13) played their third game in as many days after opening the tournament Wednesday morning, a first for a program that last won this event in 2018.

Denzel Aberdeen led Kentucky with 17 points, reserve Mouhamed Dioubate scored 14 and Otega Oweh added 10.

During the Gators’ streak, Kentucky was the only team to lose within single digits and did it twice, including in the regular-season finale at Rupp Arena.

The Gators led by as much as 17 before missing 12 of 13 shots in the second.

Kentucky got within 66-61 on a 3-pointer by Aberdeen with 1:19 left. Lee hit a deep 3 from the top of the arc with 50.5 seconds remaining, then stole the ball from Aberdeen to preserve the win.

Kentucky returns home to rest and wait for its seeding and NCAA Tournament destination.



(AP Photo George Walker IV)