GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Dorian Finney-Smith scored 22 points, Chris Chiozza added 17 and Florida beat Arkansas 87-83 Wednesday night for its fifth win in the last six games.
The Gators (15-7, 6-3 Southeastern Conference) also continued their recent dominance in the series, beating the Razorbacks (11-11, 4-5) for the ninth time in the last 10 games and extending their home-winning streak against Arkansas to 11.
The Hogs hit four 3-pointers in the final minute and made it a two-point game with 6.5 seconds remaining. But Florida closed it out from the free-throw line, with KeVaughn Allen hitting both with 5.6 seconds to play.
This one was close earlier and for much of the night — until Finney-Smith and Chiozza took over down the stretch.
Chiozza hit a step-back jumper just before the shot clock expired and then followed that with a step-back 3-pointer on the next possession. Finney-Smith kept it going with a trey of his own with 5:50 to play, capping an 8-0 run that put the Gators up 68-57.
John Egbunu (14 points), Kasey Hill (11) and Allen (10) also scored in double figures for Florida.
Anthlon Bell led Arkansas with 24 points. Leading scorer Dusty Hannahs finished with 20. He was 3-for-7 shooting from behind the arc.
The Razorbacks had won two in a row, including getting one of the league's three wins in the Big 12/SEC Challenge on Saturday. Florida had one, too. But coming off a resume-building win against then-No. 9 West Virginia and with a trip to Kentucky up next, the Gators were wary of this game.
Coach Mike White may have even noticed some issues in practice.
White benched starting center John Egbunu on Wednesday because of his practices, instead turning to freshman Kevarrius Hayes against the Razorbacks. Egbunu sat for nearly 15 minutes before getting on the floor.
Egbunu scored 10 points in his first 11 minutes of action, including consecutive dunks in the second half that put the Gators up 54-46 and prompted Arkansas coach Mike Anderson to call for a timeout.
The Razorbacks responded and sliced into the lead, but Finney-Smith and Chiozza answered.
Florida closed it out from the free-throw line. The Gators finished 30 of 36 from the charity stripe.
TIP-INS
Arkansas: Hit 10 of 21 from 3-point range and finished with 15 offensive rebounds. ... Last won in Gainesville on Feb. 28, 1995.
Florida: Finney-Smith scored at least 20 points for the fourth time in the last five games. He also chipped in nine rebounds. ... Hill, who broke his nose against the Mountaineers, played with a protective face mask. ... The Gators extended their 3-point streak to 818 games.
UP NEXT
Arkansas hosts Tennessee on Saturday.
Florida plays at Kentucky on Saturday.