Midway through the second half, Florida was so, so close to a hammer blow that might well have put away a superb Kentucky team.
Up 42-31 with 13:18 on the clock, Florida executed another of Mike White’s legendarily good baseline out-of-bounds plays and got a lob to the hand of Kevarrius Hayes, skying over Kentucky defenders.
But he was fouled, preventing him from flushing a dunk that would have incited the O’Connell Center crowed.
And he missed the two free throws that followed.
And Kentucky seized control at about that moment, propelling itself to a 65-54 win that will leave Florida fans as frustrated as the Wildcats looked for the first 27 minutes of play.