Charting the Gators: Second-Half Comebacks

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The scoreboard at Tucker Center pretty much taunted the visiting Florida Gators for about an hour Friday. With less than a minute to play in the first half, the Gators were down by 19 points before forward Colin Castleton tossed in a bucket down low with 27 seconds to go. 

The number was 17. 

“We dug ourselves a pretty big hole, honestly,” Castleton said. 

And when that happens, especially on the road, a team can either wallow it that hole or start trying to dig out of it. 

The Gators, of course, did the latter, did it quickly and now have reference point from which to operate when adversity strikes. Call it “The Rally in Tally.” Thanks to rapid-fire trio of double-digit shutout runs — all over the first nine-plus minutes of the second half — UF retook the lead with 13:40 to play and never gave it back, running away for a 76-67 victory that represented the second-largest halftime comeback in UF basketball history. 

So what about the first-largest?

Consider this a history lesson. 

It happened nearly 30 years ago when UF went to South Carolina and was down by 22 points with 1:50 to play the first half and left Columbia with an 80-73 victory in Coach Lon Kruger’s third season. Kruger, by the way, was inducted Sunday night into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in Kansas City. 

The Gators in that one trailed 46-28 at the break, but outscored the Gamecocks 52-27 in the second half by opening the period with a 17-2 that basically erased the deficit. The UF defense limited USC to just nine field goals after intermission, with senior forward Stacey Poole leading the way with 16 points and seven rebounds, followed by 14 points and a trio of 3s from junior guard Craig Brown. Senior guard Scott Stewart hit six straight free throws over the final 31 seconds to ice the game. 

It was a richly satisfying night in the Palmetto State for that UF team, just like Friday night gave Todd Golden his first signature victory as Florida’s coach. In further historical teams, it was 182nd time the Gators won a game when trailing at the half. 

Here’s a closer look at their biggest comebacks. 

 

CHARTING THE GATORS 

The comeback Friday night at Florida State marked the fourth-largest deficit (down 19 in the first half) overcome in a victory during Florida’s basketball history. The 17-point halftime deficit made for the second-largest…