Gainesville, FL – Mike Rosario netted a game-high 18 points as No. 2 Florida cruised past Mississippi State, 83-58, at the O'Connell Center.
Erik Murphy added 17 points and five rebounds, while Casey Prather dropped in 12 points, Michael Frazier II scored 11 and Kenny Boynton contributed 10 for the Gators (19-3, 9-1 SEC), who rebounded from a loss to Arkansas on Tuesday.
Gavin Ware posted 16 points and Colin Borchert followed with 14 to pace Mississippi State (7-15, 2-8), which dropped its eighth straight game.
Mississippi State held an early 5-4 lead before Frazier connected on three shots from beyond the arc during a 22-5 run to hand the Gators a 26-10 advantage with 9:49 left in the first half.
Borchert and Trivante Bloodman halted the run with back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the Bulldogs' deficit to 10, but they would get no closer as Florida scored the game's next seven points to reopen a 33-16 lead.
The Gators held at least a 13-point edge for the remainder of the first half and carried a 42-26 advantage into the break.
Florida then scored the first 10 points of the second half to put the game away while holding Mississippi State without a basket over the first four minutes.
The Bulldogs got no closer than 19 the rest of the way as Florida cruised to the victory.
Game Notes
Florida leads the all-time series between the teams, 60-49 ... Mississippi State has now dropped eight straight conference games ... The Gators improved to 11-0 at the O'Connell Center this season ... Florida shot 53.4 percent from the floor. The Gators have shot 50 percent or better in nine of their last 12 games ... The Bulldogs connected on 42.6 percent of its shots ... Florida scored 21 points off 16 Mississippi State turnovers.
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