Florida defeats Butler in Gainesville

Although they already beat the Florida Gators in the Bahamas in November, Butler was unable to replicate that success Saturday evening at the O’Connell Center, falling 77-43 for the home side.

The game was pretty much over right from the start, as the Gators scored the first 21 points and held Butler off the board for the first nine minutes of the game before Jordan Tucker drained a three pointer.

Things really never got better for the Bulldogs, who were down by 25 at the half and mustered just 43 points in the entire game, matching Florida’s first half total. The Gators led by as many as 34 points late in this game.

Butler is a different team away from Hinkle Fieldhouse, as shown in each of their four losses this season. That’s something they’re going to have to get under control as Big East play begins.

Kamar Baldwin led the Bulldogs with nine points.

Butler returns to Hinkle on Wednesday for their Big East opener against the Georgetown Hoyas.

Let’s finish this piece on a positive note.