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Gators Rally Past Alabama

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The Associated Press

Published: January 9, 2008

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Nick Calathes scored 21 points and helped spark Florida's second-half surge for a 90-83 victory against Alabama on Tuesday night in the first Southeastern Conference matchup of the season.

The Gators (14-2, 1-0) trailed most of the way before Calathes scored five straight to break open a 71-all game and start an 11-0 run. Florida then made six of eight free throws in the final 51 seconds to help win its seventh consecutive SEC opener, the league's longest active streak.

Alabama (11-5, 0-1) got a reprieve when Calathes missed a free-throw attempt with 24 seconds left and Florida leading 86-83, but Dan Werner grabbed the offensive rebound and sank two from the line.

The Crimson Tide then missed two straight 3's. Bama has lost five SEC openers in a row.

Calathes scored 17 points in the second half and the Gators made 11 of 22 3-pointers. Jai Lucas added 19 points, Walter Hodge had 17 and Werner finished with 12.

Huge nights by Richard Hendrix and Alonzo Gee weren't enough for Alabama.

Gee scored a career-high 32 points while Hendrix had 24 points and 16 rebounds despite struggling at the line. He made just 12 of 21 free throws but hit six in a one-minute span late to keep Alabama alive.

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