Enough. Kenny Boynton is free.
After shouldering the weight of an exasperating shooting slump, Boynton broke loose to lead No. 13 Florida to a 61-51 comeback victory Saturday over Alabama in the SEC tournament semifinals. The Gators will face Ole Miss in the championship today at Bridgestone Arena.
The game turned on Florida’s 15-0 run in the second half as it snapped back from a 37-27 deficit. Boynton scored 11 of those points, at one point driving end-to-end for a layup against three defenders, then drilling a three-pointer on the next possession, followed by another layup against heavy contact to put the Gators up 38-37 with 13:07 remaining.
Boynton shot 31.4 percent over the previous seven games and had not hit 50 percent in a game since late January. He finished with 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting against Alabama.
“I was really happy for Kenny, just to see him bounce back and continue to have confidence and belief in himself and to play with that fire that I see him play with so often,” coach Billy Donovan said. “He took good shots, got really hopped up with confidence, did some good things for us.
“When he’s making shots, it livens up our team because our team looks to him in a lot of ways — when he’s got that swagger and that bounce to his step.”
Boynton, a senior, did not believe he played any differently than usual, but acknowledged it was a relief to finally shoot well.
He and Florida (26-6) started slowly. Alabama led 28-25 at halftime, and Boynton was 0 for 3 from the field at that point.
Donovan detected a hint of deflation in Boynton after the first half and challenged him by saying, “You’re a senior in college right now. It’s time to fight. You’ve always fought. Right now I don’t see that fight and that look on your face.”
He saw it in the second half, and Boynton’s passion ignited the rest of the team. The Gators never trailed after their 15-0 run and had at least a two-possession lead in the final 9:54.
If he has reclaimed his shooting touch, it would be tremendous for Florida heading into the NCAA tournament.
“Couldn’t be happier for him,” forward Erik Murphy said. “When he struggles, he always comes out of it with a bang. Maybe this will get him going.”
It was reminiscent of their regular-season game against Alabama (21-12). The Crimson Tide led by eight with 11 minutes remaining two weeks ago in Gainesville before the Gators charged to a 64-52 win.
Donovan, who questioned his team’s enthusiasm earlier in the week, was encouraged by the way his team battled from behind.
“This time of year, it’s not always about the team that plays the prettiest,” he said. “It’s got to be a will and a fight internally to make some things happen.”
Gators center Patric Young also turned up his performance late, scoring nine of his 13 points in the second half. He added nine rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot.
Florida remains likely to get a No. 3 seed or better when the NCAA tournament selections are announced today (6 p.m., CBS). Alabama is on the bubble after squandering a chance to prove it belongs in the field.
The championship game against Ole Miss (25-8) is a rematch of a Feb. 2 meeting at the O’Connell Center that Florida won 78-64. The Gators never fell behind in that game, but had to work to the end for the victory.
They struggled to contain Rebels guard Marshall Henderson, who led the SEC in scoring at 19.9 points per game in the regular season. He hit Florida for 25 points, the second-most by any opposing player this year. He shot 8 for 15, making 7 of 11 three-pointers.
“We played a pretty good game down there and they still kicked our butt,” Henderson said after scoring 23 points in Saturday’s win over Vanderbilt.
The third-seeded Rebels came here needing wins to sharpen their postseason resume.
Reginald Buckner also had 15 points, and Murphy Holloway added 12 for Ole Miss. The Rebels now have won six of seven to reach the championship game for the first time since 2001. Another win would give coach Andy Kennedy his first NCAA berth and the Rebels’ first since 2002.
No. 10 seeded Vanderbilt (16-17) lost for only the second time in eight games. Kedren Johnson had a team-high 12 points.
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