Blackshear’s 20 lift Florida to 78-58 win over Miami

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Kerry Blackshear Jr. had 20 points and 11 rebounds as Florida beat state rival Miami 78-58 Friday to advance to the Charleston Classic championship.

Blackshear, the Virginia Tech grad transfer, has a chance at a second straight tournament crown here after helping the Hokies take the title a year ago. He also bounced back from an awful first game Thursday where he picked up two quick fouls and sat for most of the half before getting ejected for a flagrant foul early in the second half.

This time, Blackshear showed why the Gators (4-2) are so highly regarded with him in the lineup with his fourth double-double this season.

He scored Florida’s first eight points. Blackshear’s 3-pointer later in the period closed the Gators’ 20-2 run.

Still, Miami (4-2) rallied to tie things at 45-all in the second half on Chris Lykes’ high-arcing 3-pointer. Noah Locke, though, followed with a 3-pointer to start a 15-4 run that put Florida ahead to stay.

The Gators will take on No. 18 Xavier or UConn on Sunday night for the tournament crown.

Miami, whose perfect 8-0 record at Charleston ended, will vie against the Xavier-UConn loser for third place Sunday.

This game had a higher intensity given the schools’ long athletic history and position as two of the biggest, most successful programs in the Sunshine State. The teams have met 69 times, but only seven of those games have come since 1990. Their last meeting was also an early-season tournament, the Advocare Invitational in Orlando, Florida, where the Gators topped the Hurricanes 65-56.

Whenever one side threatened to gain control, the other fought back in a first half that seemed more like a game near the end of a season instead of the beginning. At one point, Blackshear looked behind as he went back on defense and saw four bodies on the floor after fighting for a rebound.

Lykes had 16 points to lead Miami.

BIG PICTURE

Miami: The Hurricanes had few answers for Florida’s inside game and were outrebounded 34-25. And when Miami’s shots were not falling in the second half (the Hurricanes made just 3 of 17 attempts), the Gators took advantage. It was Miami’s largest loss to the Gators since falling 101-81 in 1988.

Florida: The Gators started the season No. 6 in the rankings and fell out after falling to Florida State and UConn in its first four games. Florida, though, has made strides in looking like the Top 10 team it was projected to be this season.

UP NEXT

Miami will face either No. 18 Xavier or UConn in the third-place game here Sunday night.

Florida plays for the championship against No. 18 Xavier or UConn to close the tournament Sunday night.

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