Florida lead most of the way but had trouble closing out Butler in the final minutes, a problem so many teams have had before with the Bulldogs.

The Gators too often found themselves chucking up three-point attempts early in the shot clock.

There was little doubt that Florida had the more talented players, but Butler had the better coach and smarter team.

The loss means head coach Billy Donovan misses out on guiding the program to his fourth Final Four.

Florida’s balanced scoring attack was a challenge for the defensive-minded Bruins.

The Gators finished with seven players who scored seven or more points in the contest. Erving Walker lead the team with 21 points.

Florida shot much better at the foul line and behind the three-point arc than UCLA, and that was the difference in the game.

Florida moves on to the Sweet 16 where Jimmer Fredette and the BYU Cougars await their arrival.

Some thought that the Gauchos might have a chance to pull off the upset, but Florida wouldn’t allow the thought to even cross their minds.

Chandler Parsons nearly recorded a triple-double, finishing with 10 points, 10 assists and 7 rebounds.

The Gators allowed just 19 points in the first half in building a 24-point lead and rolled the rest of the way.

The Gators advance to the next round where they will square off against a familiar foe in the UCLA Bruins.

With two victories in the NCAA tournament, the Florida Gators have their sights set on the Sweet 16. They also get a shot at sweet redemption.

The Gators pulled away from UCLA on Saturday in the third round of the Southeast region in Tampa, winning 73-65 to move into the regional semifinals. Awaiting the Gators will be BYU on Thursday night in New Orleans.

BYU knocked Florida out of the NCAAs in the first round last season. The matchup might be one of the better ones of the round of 16: the two teams are a combined 60-11 on the season.

Florida did its part in setting up the rematch. Erving Walker, as he’s done all season, came up huge for the Gators. His 3-pointer with 1:14 remaining highlighted a stretch where the guard scored 10 of the Gators’ final 12 points. He finished with 21 points, including four free throws in the final 33 seconds.

Florida shot 50 percent from the field and converted 6 of 14 3-point attempts (42.9 percent). Alex Tyus pulled down 13 rebounds.

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The No. 2 seed in the Southeast regional and playing in its home state, the Florida Gators looked right at home in their NCAA tournament opener on Thursday.

Erving Walker led a balanced scoring attack with 18 points, and the Gators were never seriously challenged in a 79-51 blowout of UC-Santa Barbara at Tampa, Fla.

Kenny Boynton added 13 points for Florida, which rebounded from Sunday’s loss to Kentucky in the Southeastern Conference title game. Vernon Macklin scored 10 points, and Chandler Parsons added 10 points and 10 assists as the Gators shot 54.7 percent from the field.

The Gators are considered a likely contender to win the regional and advance to the Final Four. Playing their first two games in Tampa certainly helps. The Gators next will face either UCLA or Michigan State in the third round on Saturday.

Florida hit 11 of its first 15 shots and built an early double-digit lead. The Gauchos shot just 36.2 percent.

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Florida made a game of it in the first half, but it was all Kentucky and their young players after halftime.

The Gators really struggled with their shooting, which is partly due to Kentucky’s tough defense.

Despite the loss, Florida somehow earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament in the same bracket as the weakest No. 1.

It’s a tremendous opportunity for the Gators to make some noise and possibly a run at the Final Four.

As the SEC tournament begins next week at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, the Florida Gators look every bit like a championship contender.

The Gators have overcome some of the inconsistencies that dogged Florida early this season. The Gators are the SEC overall regular-season champion and won the Eastern Division, giving the Gators a first-round bye entering the tournament.

No. 14 Florida capped the regular season with an 86-76 victory Saturday at No. 20 Vanderbilt, the third victory this season by the Gators against a ranked team.

With all five starters back from last season and a strong recruiting class, a lot has been expected of Florida this season. The Gators enter tourney play winners of eight of their past nine games.

The Gators are 24-6 overall and finished 13-3 in SEC play. Florida opens play in the conference tournament at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

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Kenny Boynton lead the way with 21 points and four assists. Chander Parsons stuffed the stat sheet with 15 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.

The Gators shot well from the field and from the three-point line, but just not quite as good as the Wildcats.

Florida’s defense just wasn’t up to the challenge on this day, and they only forced six Kentucky turnovers.

Florida became just the latest team to go into Rupp Arena and come away with a loss.

Kenny Boynton knocked down a big three-point shot and then helped get a defensive stop to secure the win.

After hitting a three to put Florida up two, Boynton forced John Jenkins into shooting an air ball from behind the arc.

Boynton admitted after the game that he got a good piece of the shooter, but was lucky it wasn’t called a foul.

Head coach Billy Donovan said the pesky Commodores deserve credit for continuing to fight back from significant deficits.

Leading by just six with a minute to play, Ahmad Black intercepted a pass and returned it 80 yards for a touchdown.

Quarterback John Brantley struggled again and split time under center, but the Gators were still able to prevail.

Florida forced five Penn State turnovers, and that ultimately proved to be the difference in the game.

The Gators were able to send head coach Urban Meyer out on a winning note, something he will never forget.