While the East Coast was sound asleep, Florida and Gonzaga played an instant classic in the semifinals of the Motion Bracket at the PK80. The Gators outlasted the the ‘Zags in double overtime, 111-105, in a back-and-forth thriller that will endure as the best game of the young college basketball season.
Florida and Gonzaga played the best college basketball game of the season late into the night at the PK80
Florida won a late night heart-stopper against Gonzaga at the PK80.
Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
Florida and Gonzaga traded haymakers all night in Portland in a game that ended close to 2:30 a.m. ET. There were three lead changes in the last 1:06 of regulation and five in the last minute of overtime before Gonzaga’s Silas Melson forced a second OT with this tough layup with under two seconds remaining:
The Gators locked down the win in double OT behind two threes from Jalen Hudson and the heroic play of Chris Chiozza. Hudson, a transfer from Virginia Tech, finished with 35 points in the win on 8-of-12 shooting from three-point range in a career night.
This triple gave Florida the lead for the final time in the second extra period:
Chiozza was brilliant in his own right as the smallest player (6-foot) on the floor, finishing with 26 points and 10 assists. His biggest bucket was this and-one Eurostep to give Florida the late lead in the first OT period:
Chiozza was also taken to the locker room following the final buzzer after hitting the floor hard late in the second overtime while attempting a tip-in dunk. He drew rave reviews from anyone who watched:
Gonzaga put together a Herculean effort in the loss. Senior forward Johnathan Williams was incredible, finishing with 39 points and 12 rebounds. Every ‘Zags starter finished with at least 12 points.
Florida’s shooting was the difference. The Gators shot 17-of-36 from three-point range (47 percent) on the night while Gonzaga hit only (“only”) 10 threes at a 32 percent clip.
It’s possible Florida has played the two best college basketball games of 2017. This game was every bit as good as the Gators’ overtime win over Wisconsin in the Sweet 16 this past March. You might remember Chiozza was the hero in that one, too.
Florida now plays Duke (who survived in overtime against Texas) in the title game of the bracket on Sunday night. The Gators better get some rest before that.
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