No. 1 Florida rides huge free-throw disparity to win over Merrimack

Alex Condon scored 16 points and Thomas Haugh added 15 to help top-ranked Florida roll to an 83-54 victory over Merrimack on Friday in Gainesville, Fla.

Rueben Chinyelu scored 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting and Alex Lloyd added 11 points for the Gators (4-0).

AJ Lesburt Jr. made four 3-pointers and scored 16 points for the Warriors (1-3). Denver Anglin also made four treys while adding 14 points.

The Gators sank 21 of 22 free-throw attempts, while Merrimack attempted just two, making both.

Florida held a 39-17 rebounding edge in the easy victory. The Gators also had a 14-2 advantage in fastbreak points.

The Gators shot 51.9% from the field, including 8 of 23 (34.8%) from 3-point range. Lloyd made three 3-pointers for Florida.

Florida point guard Boogie Fland (shoulder) missed the contest.

Merrimack shot 40.4% from the field and made 10 of 25 (40%) from behind the arc.

The Gators led 43-26 at halftime, and their biggest advantage was 34 in the second half.

Florida led by four before rattling off nine straight points to take a 26-13 lead. Condon capped the burst with a dunk with 8:31 remaining in the first half.

Merrimack trailed by seven after a dunk by Jacob Moore with 3:46 remaining until the break. The Gators then ripped off nine straight points. Lloyd's steal and dunk made it 39-23 with 1:43 left.

Chinyelu later scored two back-to-back baskets to end the half and give Florida a 17-point advantage.

The margin was 18 early in the second half before the Gators went on a 15-0 surge. Condon hit two free throws to end the run and make it 61-28 with 11:20 left to play.

Florida later led by 34 before Merrimack went on an 11-2 push. Lesburt buried three treys during the stretch as the Warriors pulled within 69-44 with 5:21 remaining.

AJ Brown scored the next six points for the Gators to push the lead back to 31, and Florida closed it out.