National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Florida 66, Middle Tennessee St. 45
When: 4:00 PM ET, Sunday, November 18, 2012
Where: Tampa Bay Times Forum, Tampa, Florida
Officials: # James Barker, # Lee Cassell, # Antinio Petty
Attendance: 11386


No. 10 Florida 66, Middle Tennessee State 45: Kenny Boynton scored 18 of his 20 points during a second-half surge as the host Gators cruised past the Blue Raiders.

Boynton overcame a sluggish first half to score 13 consecutive points - highlighted by a trio of 3-pointers. Will Yeguete had 11 points and Scottie Wilbekin returned from a suspension to score 10 for Florida (3-0), which went on a 16-4 run to start the second half.

Marcos Knight, who posted a career-high 21 points off the bench versus Savannah State, mustered just 12 on 3-of-11 shooting for Middle Tennessee State (2-1).

After clinging to a 29-26 lead at halftime, the Gators went to their transition game to pull away from the Blue Raiders. Wilbekin provided the signature play after converting an alley-oop from Mike Rosario to give Florida a 42-28 lead with 12:34 remaining.

Middle Tennessee State closed to within nine at 48-39, but Boynton hit two free throws and a 3-pointer within a 57-second stretch to put the game out of reach.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Florida's Erik Murphy finished with just six points, one game removed from matching his career high of 24 versus Wisconsin on Wednesday. ... Wilbekin's suspension spanned three games - including the canceled contest against Georgetown aboard the USS Bataan. ... Middle Tennessee State has dropped seven straight meetings against ranked opponents.


Top Game Performances
 
Middle Tennessee St.   Florida
Marcos Knight 12 Scoring Kenny Boynton 20
Trantell Knight 5 Assists Erik Murphy 3
Marcos Knight 5 Rebounds Will Yeguete 13
Marcos Knight 6 Free Throws Made Kenny Boynton 7
Raymond Cintron 1 Steals Kenny Boynton 2
Shawn Jones 1 Blocks Patric Young 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Middle Tennessee St. 45 32.0 2-10 11-16 11 25 1 3 15
Florida 66 46.7 7-21 17-29 14 27 3 5 10