Florida's other guys beat Kentucky in Gainesville

by: Drew Franklin02/16/26DrewFranklinKSR

We knew Florida’s frontcourt would be a problem in Saturday’s game. We talked and wrote all about the Gators’ front line in the lead-up, noting that it is the best in the country and how Kentucky could only hope to keep the rebounding margin manageable. Rueben Chinyelu. Alex Condon. Thomas Haugh. You know their names. Big-time players. They all played well in the Gators’ 92-83 win, as expected.

The problem wasn’t that those three had good games. They routinely have good games. It’s that Kentucky let some of Florida’s other players have big games, namely guards Xaivian Lee and Urban Klavzar.

Feb 14, 2026; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators guard Xaivian Lee (1) gestures after making a three point basket during the first half against the Kentucky Wildcats at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Lee provided the early spark in the backcourt. He buried a wide-open three on Florida’s opening possession and later added two more from nearly the same spot, exposing Kentucky’s perimeter defense early. The Wildcats went under screens and let Lee shoot, likely because he entered the game shooting 25.5% from deep and averaging fewer than 2 makes per game. The Princeton transfer, who Pope recruited last spring, added a couple of driving layups for 13 first-half points on 3-3 shooting from three.

The hot hand moved to Klavzar in the second half, when the Slovenian hit four three-pointers to quiet Kentucky’s comeback effort. Klavzar hit five in the game, two more than he’s hit in a game in nearly a month.

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Feb 14, 2026; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators guard Urban Klavzar (7) makes a three point basket over Kentucky Wildcats forward Andrija Jelavic (4) during the second half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Therein lies the problem for Kentucky. Lee and Klavzar were Florida’s two leading scorers, combining for 41 points themselves. Lee led all scorers with 22, while Klavzar set a new personal best in SEC games with 19 points, nearly a new career high.

Mark Pope said it himself afterward. “I thought the difference in the game for them today was their guard play was better. I thought that gave them a real boost, especially early.”

That’s the script Kentucky needed to avoid. Florida’s frontcourt was always going to get its numbers. The Wildcats simply could not afford to let the other guys beat them. To their credit, Lee and Klavzar played arguably their best games all year.