No. 19 Florida uses size to overwhelm Oklahoma
Thomas Haugh scored 21 points to lead No. 19 Florida to a 96-79 win over Oklahoma on Tuesday in Norman, Oklahoma.
The Gators' size, including the 6-foot-9 Haugh and 6-foot-10 Rueben Chinyelu, helped them dominate on the boards and in the paint.
Florida outrebounded the Sooners 43-31, outscored them in the paint 60-22 and on second-chance points 22-12.
Chinyelu tied his career high with 19 points and had a game-high 12 rebounds.
Haugh and Chinyelu combined to go 15 of 24 from the field as the Gators shot 53.5% overall.
Boogie Fland added 15 points, seven assists and five rebounds for Florida.
The Sooners led early after a four-point play by Xzayvier Brown to go up 8-6.
But Brown's 3-pointer would be the last field goal Oklahoma would hit for more than 4:30, as Florida ripped off a 29-7 run to take control.
The Sooners missed seven consecutive shots and 15 of their next 17 as the Gators' big front-line helped them control things on both ends of the floor.
Haugh scored the final five points of the stretch.
Florida's lead didn't get below 18 in the second half until the final two minutes.
The Gators (12-5, 3-1 SEC) have won three consecutive games and seven of their last eight.
Oklahoma has dropped three consecutive games after winning five straight before their recent skid.
Brown led the Sooners (11-6, 1-3) with 24 points while Tae Davis added 17.
Kirill Elatontsev, who was playing just his fifth game of the season after joining the Sooners in late December following an eligibility ruling from the NCAA, had by far his most productive game.
Elatontsev finished with 17 points, going 4 of 4 from beyond the 3-point line. Elatontsev had scored just eight points and hadn't hit a 3-pointer coming into the game.
While Elatontsev had a big game, Oklahoma's leading scorer coming in, Nijel Pack, struggled.
Pack finished with a season-low five points on 2-of-8 shooting.
After shooting just 29% in the first half, the Sooners shot 58.6% in the second half.