Gator Country

Florida senior forward Dan Werner lays in two points during the Gators' 69-49 win against Georgia Southern on Wednesday at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. / photo by Tim Casey

Freshman Kenny Boynton scored a game-high 22 points and junior Chandler Parsons recorded his third career double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds as Florida overcame a slow start to beat Georgia Southern 69-49 Wednesday night in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center to open the 2009 Legends Classic.

Florida struggled in the first half, shooting 26 percent from the floor and missing all nine shots from 3-point range. The Gators led 26-25 at halftime despite 10 turnovers and two assists.

Senior Dan Werner made a layup with 14:53 remaining in the game to cap a 12-0 run that gave the Gators a 38-30 lead that they never relinquished. UF bounced back with a considerably better effort in the second half, scoring 43 points on nearly 50-percent shooting. They also had eight assists to just three turnovers in the second half.

Redshirt junior Vernon Macklin chipped in 15 points and seven boards for the Gators (2-0). Sophomore Erving Walker added nine points and six assists.

Rory Spencer led the Eagles (1-2) with 13 points.

The win marks the first time since the 1949-50 season that Florida has held each of their first two opponents under 50 points, holding Stetson to 46 points in the 2009 season-opener.

Photo Gallery: UF Men’s Basketball vs. Georgia Southern, 11/18/09 (click here to view gallery)

DIRECTORY OF GATOR COUNTRY PHOTO GALLERIES

About the author

TimCasey67

Tim Casey covered the 2007 BCS Championship Game, 2007 Final Four, 2005 College World Series and 2008 Women's College World Series. He’s had photos published in Sporting News magazine, GQ magazine, SI.com, ESPN.com and nearly every newspaper in the state of Florida. Now he's home as Gator Country's Photography Editor.

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