Gators Escape Upset vs. George Washington Behind Strong Games from Haugh, Lee

Thomas Haugh scored 19 points with seven rebounds, while Xaivian Lee had 24 points in the Gators' 80-70 win over George Washington.

Florida Gators forward Thomas Haugh, seen here against Duke, had a strong game against George Washington. | Matt Pendleton / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The No. 18 Florida Gators escaped an upset on Saturday in their Orange Bowl Classic matchup with George Washington, taking down the Revolutionaries, 80-70, in Sunrise, Fla. 

Thomas Haugh and Xaivian Lee’s performances on the day were the deciding factors in the game. Haugh finished with 19 points and seven rebounds while Lee contributed a team-high 24 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals. 

Haugh got the ball rolling on Tuesday against George Washington for the Gators' offense. The junior knocked down the team’s first 3-pointer and shot of the game. 

Xaivian Lee had a strong beginning, as well, connecting on his first two triples of the game and his first three shots overall, putting the Gators in front 14-6 at the 13:19 mark of the first half. 

That is where things quieted down for Florida, though. The offense went cold over the next four minutes, making zero shots during that span. Haugh ended this cold spell for the offense, though, with his second triple of the game, putting the score at 17-13 in favor of the Gators. 

Moreover, a worrying sign in the early goings for the Gators' offense was that Lee and Haugh were the only ones to put the ball through the hoop for the team’s first 17 points of the game.

George Washington took advantage of the suspect offense, too. After clawing their way back into the game, the Revolutionaries took an 18-17 lead over the Gators following a layup from big man Rafael Castro. 

It became a back-and-forth contest from here between the Gators and Revolutionaries for the next final eight minutes of the half. By the final whistle of the first, the Gators were clinging to a 30-27 advantage.  

The first 20 minutes of the Gators' offense were a rough watch. It shot 11-for-30 overall, 4-for-19 from deep and 4-for-10 from the free-throw line. Haugh and Lee were the only standouts from the half, with Haugh supplying 11 points and Lee adding 10 of his own. 

Florida started the second half with much more energy, physicality and pace than the first. Behind strong drives to the basket, forced turnovers and George Washington misses on the other end, the Gators went on an 11-0 run and jumped out to a 41-27 lead within the first three minutes of the half. 

The Gators continued to run the score up on their opponents, extending their lead to 20 points with 12 minutes remaining in the game. However, George Washington answered with a quick 9-0 run over the next couple of minutes to cut the lead back down to 11. 

Luckily for the fans of the Orange and Blue, Haugh and Boogie Fland helped ease concerns with three straight vicious dunks to reclaim an 18-point lead with 6:49 remaining in the game. 

George Washington made it a nervous ending over the final minutes. Their offense slowly chipped away at Florida’s advantage, eventually bringing it to an eight-point game with five seconds left. 

Fortunately for the Gators, with the lead they built up earlier, this late push from their opponents was not enough to hurt them, as they left Saturday with an 80-70 victory. 

Up Next

Florida returns home on Wednesday to host Saint Francis in Exactech Arena. That game is scheduled to tip at 6:30 p.m. and will be televised on the SEC Network.