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Florida basketball opened up the new year with a 76-74 loss to the Missouri Tigers on the road Saturday night, giving the Gators a 0-1 record in Southeastern Conference play and a 9-5 total tally overall.
The Orange and Blue came out strong in the first 15 minutes, but once the Mizzou started switching to zone defense, things got hairy for Todd Golden's gang. A 3-pointer by the Tigers just before the halftime horn knotted the game up heading into the locker room; Florida fell into a 10-point hole in the second half that it just could not escape.
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Following the late-night finish, Gators skipper Todd Golden offered a few words in review as well as Thomas Haugh. Here is what they had to say.
Todd Golden's opening statement
"Disappointing loss for us tonight. I thought we got off to a good start up 8 in the first half, thought we were playing really well. (Alex Condon) picked up his third (foul), I thought that spooked us a little bit. We didn't finish out the first half the right way, and credit to Missouri, I thought they played well.
"Again, the second half, we didn't guard with enough tension the first eight minutes, allowed them to get a 10-point lead. Then obviously we played well, the last 12 minutes got that thing tight at the end, but not quite well enough to win. I think the things that we'll focus on — disappointed that we played even on the boards tonight. That's an area that we've been really good all year and generally gaining advantage. Didn't do it tonight.
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"On the positive side, I thought we did a really good job taking care of the ball against a team that pressures a lot and turns a lot of teams over. So that was a plus. But the same story for us in terms of not being able to step up and make some shots, 2-for-15 from 3 in the second half. I think 10 or 11 of those looks were really good looks.
"To win on the road, you've got to be able to set up and make some shots. You look at Missouri, (Trent) Burns throws into 3 to end the first half, and then (Anthony) Robinson banks in a 3 with 15 seconds to go. In tight games like this, you look back at plays like that and wonder, you know, what the difference was.
"Disappointing, but listen, this is, as you all know, a great league, and we can't hang our heads. We've got a tough matchup against Georgia on Tuesday."
How Missouri slowed Florida on the offensive glass
"The zone bothered us a little bit, and I think that probably took away a little bit of our ferociousness, our aggression. We were playing on our heels a little bit against the zone, and we weren't able to get six feet in the paint, which is something that we strive to do on every possession. That was kind of the main thing for me.
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"I thought that prevented us from getting more. We got 13 offensive rebounds. My bigger frustration was on the defensive glass. We gave up 11, and I think seven in the second half and some big ones that really cost us."
Thomas Haugh on the turning point in the game
"Just the beginning of the second half. I thought we lost our tenacity, end of the first half, beginning of the second half. We came out really strong and if we decided to play like that the whole game, we might have won by 25. Instead, it was like we lost our fight."
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida basketball's Todd Golden, Thomas Haugh talk Missouri loss
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