No. 18 Arkansas stays hot, gets 1st win at Florida since '95

Updated Feb. 22, 2022 9:19 p.m. ET

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — JD Notae scored 22 points, including a huge 3-pointer with a little more than minute remaining, and No. 18 Arkansas beat Florida 82-74 on Tuesday night for its first win in Gainesville since 1995.

The Razorbacks won for the 12th time in 13 games and ended a 14-game skid in the O'Connell Center. Notae, Davonte Davis and Jaylin Williams had a lot do with ending the losing streak.

Notae chipped in six rebounds, three assists and two blocks. Davis added 19 points, six rebounds and four assists. Williams finished with 15 points and 10 boards — his 14th double-double of the season and fifth straight — despite spending much of the second half in foul trouble.

The trio combined to score 32 of Arkansas' 45 points in the second half as the Razorbacks (22-6, 11-4 Southeastern Conference) remained the hottest team in the league.

Colin Castleton led the Gators with a career-high 29 points. His layup made it a one-point game, with Florida trailing 72-71 with 1:26 remaining. But Notae hit a huge 3 on other end to give Arkansas some breathing room. He followed with a pair of free throws.

Arkansas outscored Florida 10-3 to end the game. The Gators missed eight of their final 10 shots.

The Gators, coming off a huge home win against then-No. 2 Auburn, hit their first four 3-pointers in the opening 4 minutes and looked like they might coast to back-to-back victories against ranked SEC teams for the first time February 2001.

But the Razorbacks showed why they become one of the SEC's most feared teams. They used a 14-2 run to overcome an early deficit and then went toe-to-toe the rest of the night until Notae delivered the knockout blow.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Arkansas will get a chance to move into the top 15, maybe even higher, in the

BIG PICTURE

Arkansas: The Razorbacks have improved 70 spots in the NET ranking since a three-game losing streak in early January, putting them in line for another high seed in the NCAA Tournament. They were a No. 3 seed last year and currently rank 23rd in the all-important NET. They should move up a few more spots following another win.

Florida: The Gators lost for the third time in four games, putting their NCAA Tournament hopes in jeopardy. They haven’t missed the tourney since 2016, the longest current streak in the SEC.

UP NEXT

Arkansas hosts No. 6 Kentucky on Saturday at Bud Walton Arena, where the Razorbacks have won seven straight.

Florida plays at Georgia on Saturday. The Gators have won five straight in the series and 28 of the last 35.

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More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

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