Everything Bruce Pearl said following No. 12 Auburn's blowout loss at Florida

Bruce Pearl knew things would be tough in Gainesville on Saturday, but he admitted he thought his team would handle things a bit better than they did during the middle parts of the game. No. 12 Auburn lost 81-65, but trailed by as many as 29 points with 14 minutes remaining. Auburn was outshot from three, outshot from the FT line, lost the turnover battle, lost the points off turnovers battle, and finished with just one steal to Florida's 10. "Congratulations to Florida. They were really well prepared. They were more physical, didn't turn the ball over. Defensively, we weren't as effective, only had one steal. We turn people over 13 or 14 times a game score off our turnovers, and only had seven turnovers. What we were doing defensively did not disrupt them," Pearl said. "This was a game that I felt like if we could be close, that maybe there was more pressure on Florida. They needed to win this game. The prize on our head is huge with the math that we came in with ... it's a big win and a big number. They played with great confidence. I knew they'd start well both halves, I just didn't think it would get away from us the way it did. Give Florida all the credit. To blame us would take away from what I think is one of the top-five teams in the league." More from Pearl inside...