With 21 seconds remaining and the game tied at 66, Florida faced the possibility of seeing its 17-game winning streak snap and losing its first home contest in nearly two years.
Not if Patric Young had anything to say about it.
The senior center almost did not play in Wednesday night’s contest due to ailments in his knees, but his play down the stretch powered the No. 2 Gators (24-2, 13-0 Southeastern Conference) to a 71-66 win against the Tigers in the O’Connell Center.
Young posted a team-high 17 points — all coming in the second half — but none were more important than the two he scored at the foul line late in the contest.
After Auburn guard Chris Denson was fouled by forward Will Yeguete on a double team and missed the back end of his two free-throw attempts, Young pulled down the board and drew a foul from Tigers center Asauhn Dixon-Tatum.
With the crowd roaring, Young focused squarely on “striving to be great.”
The late-game situation was a scenario he often simulates when shooting at the free-throw line during practice.
“I just went up there and swished them like it was nothing,” Young said.
“Endorphins kicked in or whatever it might be. I was very overwhelmed. I was on Cloud 9, they would say.”
Following the senior’s key free throws to put UF ahead 68-66, Florida utilized its full-court press and forced AU forward Allen Payne to turn over the ball on an errant inbound pass that sailed out of bounds.
Then, the Tigers (12-12, 4-9 SEC) intentionally fouled Scottie Wilbekin, and the senior point guard sunk his two shots from the charity stripe to lift the Gators to a four-point advantage.
After KT Harrell missed a three-point attempt from the left wing with six seconds left, Florida had the win sealed.
But the first half did not see Florida’s best effort as it trailed 38-30 — its largest halftime deficit this season.
The Gators allowed the Tigers to shoot 56.5 percent with a 6-of-9 clip from downtown as Auburn guard Tahj Shamsid-Deen had a game-high 14 points at the break.
Conversely, UF shot only 34.5 percent in the game’s first 20 minutes.
“It boils down to they were playing harder than us in the first half,” Wilbekin said.
Out of the half, Florida responded with an 11-3 run to climb back into the game. With Young leading the way throughout the second half, the Gators kept it close and eventually pulled away to end the game on another 11-3 run.
Senior forward Casey Prather recorded 16 points and nine rebounds, while Wilbekin added 15 points.
Despite receiving a scare after suffering a wrist injury early in the second half, sophomore guard Michael Frazier II returned to the game and finished with nine points on a 3-of-9 clip from behind the arc.
His biggest shot, a three from the right wing, put UF ahead 66-65 with 41 seconds left in regulation.
The Gators have now won a school-record 18 consecutive games, 30 straight home contests and six in a row against the Tigers.
With No. 1 Syracuse falling to Boston College in overtime 62-59 on Wednesday night, Florida could jump to No. 1 if it earns a win at Ole Miss on Saturday and ‘Cuse falls to Duke on the road.
But despite the increased national attention his team has received during its gradual climb to the top of the college basketball ranks, Donovan does not want UF to get complacent and buy into all the hoopla — especially after a win where he saw his team lack motivation and passion at times.
“Being undefeated in the league, ranking, all that stuff, no question you’re going to get everybody’s best shot,” Donovan said. “But I like to look at it the other way. Are we going to give our best shot?
“And I don’t think today we did that.”
Follow Landon Watnick on Twitter @LandonWatnick
Patric Young goes for a layup during Florida’s 71-66 win over Auburn on Wednesday in the O’Connell Center.
