LEXINGTON — It was rough night for Antonio Reeves and Oscar Tshiebwe, who struggled all night scoring for Kentucky.
But teammates CJ Fredrick, Jacob Toppin and Cason Wallace would step up to make up the difference and help lead the Kentucky Wildcats to a 72-67 win over the Florida Gators on Saturday night.
Wallace made seven of his 10 shots from the floor, including his only three-pointer attempt, and was a perfect five-for-five from the line to score a team-high 20 points.
Toppin continued to show himself to be a reliable scorer in recent games, adding a 17 points for his sixth-straight game in double figures. He also hauled in 10 rebounds to earn a double-double.
Fredrick, who had been struggling from the field as of late, went three of six from beyond the arc to 12 add points for the Wildcats.
Kentucky (16-7, 7-3 SEC) struggled with their scoring early on, but thanks to their defense, they were able to grind out a 33-22 lead at halftime. The point total for Florida was the fewest first half points the Wildcats had held an opponent to this season.
In the second half, the Gators fought their way back into the game, using an 11-2 run to get within five points with 3:36 to go.
Florida would eventually cut it to three, 70-67, but Wallace would end the comeback with a pair of free throws with 13 seconds to play.
Florida (13-10, 6-4) got a game-high 25 points from Colin Castleton.
Kentucky returns to the hardwood on Tuesday night, hosting Arkansas at Rupp Arena. Tipoff is set for 9 p.m. ET and the game will be televised on ESPN.
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