KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Leave it to the man with the rings to make the big shot.
With the score tied 81-81 and the clock ticking down, Walter Hodge pulled the trigger on the ball that would cut through the heart of Washington.
His three with 1:01 left in the game propelled No. 17 UF (4-1) to an 86-84 win against Washington (2-3) Tuesday night in the third-place game of the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic.
"It was going in," Hodge said. "I knew it. There was no doubt in my mind."
When Dan Werner (13 points) fouled out with 1:56 left, the Gators opened the door for Huskies big man Jon Brockman to close the UF lead.
That was until Hodge slammed it shut again.
"That's who we want taking that shot," said guard Nick Calathes, who led the Gators with 21 points and eight assists. "He's a big shotmaker."
Washington would get the ball back trailing 86-84 with 2 seconds left on the clock. UF coach Billy Donovan decided to intentionally foul guard Isaiah Thomas, who made his first shot and purposely missed the second in hopes of an offensive rebound.
Allan Chaney managed to fight off Brockman for the rebound and sealed the game for UF.
"He's a big-time player and, to be honest with you, (Brockman) almost came up with it," Chaney said. "Luckily, Chandler tipped the ball to me, and I got it."
In his first career start, Chaney made Donovan look like a genius.
Chaney, who started in place of sophomore Chandler Parsons, scored 13 points and had two steals.
"This morning, (Donovan) called me over and told me I was going to start," Chaney said. "He said it was a big opportunity for me."
Parsons once again struggled shooting the ball, going 2 for 8 on the night.
"For him to be away from home and come in and give us the boost he did in his first career start was a positive for us," Donovan said.
Donovan hasn't decided if Chaney's move in to the starting lineup will be permanent.
"Chandler is just really, really struggling shooting the ball," Donovan said. "I think he needs to figure out that there's other parts to the game, especially on the defensive end of the floor."
The shots were bound to start falling for Erving Walker.
After struggling to find his range through the first four games of the season, Walker finally rediscovered the touch he teased fans with during the preseason.
The freshman scored 12 points while shooting 4 of 5 from the field and sank four threes.
Walker was at the center of a 3-point shooting revival for the Gators, who dropped 11 from behind the arc.
