Gators drop third straight to Kentucky, 70-68

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - Tayshaun Prince had 19 points and 10 rebounds as No. 10 Kentucky sent No. 5 Florida to its third straight loss, 70-68 Tuesday night. <br> <br> Prince broke a 63-all tie with a free throw, and his assist led to Keith Bogans&#39; 3-pointer for a four-point lead with 1:28 to go. Bogans had 14 of his 20 points in the second half. <br> <br> On the Gators&#39; ensuing possession, Orien Greene hit a 3-pointer to make it a one-point game. But Prince responded again, as his floating jumper from the left baseline put the Wildcats (14-5 overall, 4-3 Southeastern Conference) up 69-66. <br> <br> Florida (15-4, 4-3) blew repeated chances to close or tie in the closing seconds. Udonis Haslem came up empty on two free throws with 30 seconds remaining and Brett Nelson missed a tying jumper in the final seconds. <br> <br> Nelson led Florida with 15 points, Haslem added 14 and Greene had 13. <br> <br> Kentucky built an eight-point lead early in the second half behind Prince, but Florida immediately rallied to tie. Matt Bonner&#39;s three-point play capped off an 8-0 run and knotted the score at 47 with 11:55 remaining. <br> <br> Nelson made his first four 3-point tries as the Gators built a 22-15 lead with 10:22 remaining in the half. It was the second straight game Nelson was used in a reserve role since breaking an unspecified team rule. <br> <br> Florida&#39;s misfiring offense allowed Kentucky to creep within a point going into the break. Prince&#39;s buzzer-beating 3-pointer cut the deficit to 31-30, and gave him 10 points for the half. <br> <br> Kentucky coach Tubby Smith, stung by Saturday&#39;s 64-61 loss to Alabama, shook up his starting five. Forwards Erik Daniels and Chuck Hayes received their first starts of the season, and center Marquis Estill replaced Jules Camara. <br> <br> Hayes, a freshman, responded with 10 points and seven rebounds.

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