GAINESVILLE — Florida shooting guard Will Richard’s career night was all for naught during the Gators’ no-show at Georgia.
On Saturday night against Texas A&M, Richard’s hot hand carried his team to a much-needed 89-70 win against the Aggies.
“I’m proud of my guys, they’re very resilient,” coach Todd Golden said. “You have to bounce back in this league. It’s a sign of a really good team.”
Richard finished with 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting as the No. 3 Gators (25-4, 12-4 SEC) seized a commanding lead, held off an A&M rally and pulled away from the No. 12 Aggies (20-9, 9-7) to hand them their fourth straight loss.
“For me, it’s just being aggressive,” Richard said. “But the Georgia 30, that doesn’t mean anything, we lost. I’d rather have 0 in a win than 30 in a loss. I’m just trying to win.
“My team is doing a good job finding me, so just taking advantage of that.”
The victory gave UF a 25-win season for the first time since 2017 Elite Eight team went 27-9.
Sophomore forwards Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon supplemented Richard, who matched senior guard Walter Clayton Jr. with back-to-back 25-point games this season.
The 6-foot-9 Haugh recorded 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and a block.
“He’s very comfortable with the ball,” Texas A&M coach Buzz Williams said. “His versatility, it’s pretty good.”
Meanwhile, the 6-foot-11 Condon continued to knock off the rust he displayed at Georgia following a three-game layoff with an ankle injury, tallying 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and a steal against A&M.
“He’s talented and does a lot for the team,” Richard said of Condon. “His passes definitely made it a lot easier on us guards and just easier for us to run on offenses and space the floor.”
Micah Handlogten finished with 8 rebounds off the bench in his fifth game back after he decided against a medical redshirt. , The Gators’ 7-foot-1 junior suffered a compound fracture of his lower left leg during the 2024 SEC Tournament.
“He just made a lot of winning plays off the bench,” Golden said. “I’m thrilled for us that he’s back, but I’m also really happy for him that he’s able to go out there and have some really good success.”
Veteran guards Alijah Martin and Walter Clayton Jr. had their moments, too, but also their struggles. Martin finished with 14 points, highlighted by 4 3-pointers during the first half, and 5 rebounds, while Clayton had 10 points, 4 assists and 3 turnovers while shooting just 3 of 13 to continue a recent slump. He is 13 of 42 shooting the past three games.
“As head coach, it feels a lot better when he’s on the floor than when he’s not,” Golden said. “I’m going to keep him out there and let him rip. It ays a lot about his teammates being able to step up, but also him being able to impact the game in other ways.”
Florida led 51-34, the Gators’ biggest lead, less than two minutes into the second half, but A&M responded with an 8-0 run. From there, the Aggies’ physicality and effort allowed them to eventually trim into the lead to six points three times, but never closer.
Leading 65-59 with 7:34 to go, UF began to pull away behind another 3 by Richard and consecutive dunks by Condon.
The win moved the Gators to 14-1 at home ahead of Tuesday’s visit to No. 6 Alabama, 79-76 losers Saturday at No. 5 Tennessee as the SEC’s top programs jockey for conference tournament seeding and state their cases for a No. 1 seed at the NCAA Tournament.
“It’s special,” Richard said of the O’Connell Center. “Our fans are the best in the country, and they do a great job of coming here and supporting us — just making it fun to play here and hard for other teams.”
The Gators trailed 16-10 early on following a jump shot by Solomon Washington. A trio of Florida 3s, including two by sophomore Haugh, began the long-range barrage.
By halftime, UF led 45-34 behind eight 3-pointers, along with 12 assists, compared with three 3s and just two assists for the Aggies.
“Florida’s talent is elite, some of the best in the nation,” Williams said.
Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com
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