By Greg Wiley
The Phanatic Magazine
Al Horford led a balanced attack, scoring 18 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, as the Florida Gators repeated as national champions with an 84-75 win over Ohio State in the title game of the NCAA Tournament.
Taurean Green added 16 points and six assists, and Lee Humphrey scored 14 for the Gators (35-5), who became the first back-to-back national champions since Duke accomplished the feat from 1991-92. Corey Brewer tallied 13 points and eight rebounds for Florida, which used an 11-3 run down the stretch to end its season with 10 straight wins.
"I'm so proud of my guys," said Florida head coach Billy Donovan, who is rumored to be offered the job Kentucky any day now. "I think this team should go down as on the best teams in college basketball history. Not as the most talented, and not on style points. But because they encompassed what the word 'team' means. They did it the first year with no expectations, then they did it again with all the expectations."
Greg Oden had 25 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks to lead the Buckeyes (35-4), who suffered the same fate as its football program -- a loss in the championship game to Florida.
Mike Conley Jr. added 20 points, scoring 14 in the second half, for Ohio State, which failed to capture its first national title since 1960 and had a 22-game winning streak come to an end. Ron Lewis had 12 points, as the Buckeyes were within striking distance for most of the game but could never get over the hump.
Oden carried the Buckeyes all night and his two free throws with 5:03 left drew his club within 66-60. However, like they did all night, the Gators had an answer. The next time down the floor Green hit a three-pointer to extend the lead to nine points and start an 11-3 run that secured the game for the Gators. A pair of Joakim Noah free throws with 1:33 ended the burst for a 77-63 cushion.
"This game came down to making plays," said Ohio State head coach Thad Matta. "A couple of plays (Florida) made down the stretch were key. We got it to six. We just couldn't overcome it."
Green's trey was his first bucket of the second half. He had scored 11 first- half points. Noah ended with just eight points as he played in foul trouble all night.
"I feel like we've accomplished something special," said Noah. "So many people doubted us, but we're in the books now."
Ohio State had trouble with its perimeter game, hitting only 4-of-23 three- pointers for the game compared to Florida's 10-of-18 shooting from beyond the arc. The Buckeyes also hit only 11-of-17 free throws, while the Gators hit 22- of-25.
"Greg really did a tremendous job of scoring the ball, finishing the ball," said Matta of Oden. "They chose to go with single coverage. When teams do that...we need to make a couple more shots from the outside. It just didn't happen for us."
Ohio State held an early 9-5 lead, but the Gators scored 18 of the next 24 points to take the lead for good. A pair of Green free throws with 12:16 left put Florida in front and Horford later ended the surge with a layup for a 23-15 cushion with 7:41 on the clock.
Ivan Harris managed to draw the Buckeyes within 24-22 with a three-pointer at the 5:39 mark, but three straight jumpers from beyond the arc for the Gators gave the club an 11-point lead, 33-22. Humphrey, Brewer and Green all hit threes for the Gators, who used that run to cruise into halftime with a 40-29 lead.
Ohio State hung around for most of the second half, drawing within 53-46 on a Conley layup with 11:06 left, but the Gators always seemed to have an answer and this time was no different. A Horford dunk started an 8-1 run that helped Florida regain its double-digit lead. Chris Richard's three-point play with 8:59 left ended the surge, giving the Gators their largest lead to that points, 61-47.
***Photo courtesy of The Associated Press***
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