CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Little Rock native KeVaughn Allen brushed off boos from Arkansas fans in his return to his home state, equaling his season-high 21 points to lead Florida to an 81-72 win over the Razorbacks on Thursday.
Allen scored 15 of his points in the first half as the Gators (10-3, 1-0) built a nine-point halftime lead to take control en route to winning the SEC opener for both teams. Arkansas cut the lead to three early in the second half, but Florida quickly reasserted itself and rebuffed any comeback attempts, thanks in large part to a pair of timely Allen 3-pointers.