National Championship: No. 3 Florida completed a dominant run to the school’s first national championship with a 73-57 victory against No. 2 UCLA. The Gators took the lead early in the first half and never trailed after the Bruins opened a 4-2 lead. By halftime, Florida had stretched the lead to 11, and the Gators pushed it to 20 a couple of times in the second half. The Bruins’ defense could not contain the combination of size and athleticism of Joakim Noah, Al Horford and Corey Brewer. The three forwards combined for 41 points.
Noah was all over the court for the entire game, serving up a record seven blocks. He finished with 16 points and eight rebounds, and his impact extended well beyond the stat sheet. When the Bruins pressed to force turnovers, Noah helped the Gators initiate fast breaks that more often that not resulted in easy dunks. The well-prepared Gators committed only six turnovers against a team that had frustrated opponents throughout the NCAA Tournament. Florida was the first UCLA opponent to hit 60 points in the tournament. Florida flew past the mark en route to 73.
In the losing effort, only Jordan Farmar was able to crack Florida’s defense, scoring a team-high 18 points. But he was only 8-of-21 from the field. The Bruins’ two other stars — Arron Afflalo and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute — struggled throughout the game, finishing with 16 points combined. As a team, the Bruins hit only 36 percent of their shots, though Florida’s extended, tenacious defense was the cause for that statistic. The championship loss drops the Bruins to an 11-2 record in 13 championship game appearances. The Gators won their first ever championship in the team’s second try. Coach Billy Donovan led the Gators to the championship in 2000 when Michigan State and Mateen Cleaves beat the upstart Gators. [4/03/06]
