Gators Chomp No. 5 Cats 75-68; Tigers Upset No. 12 UNC

GAINESVILLE, Fla.--Freshman Mike Miller scored 20 points and coach Billy Donovan's program got its biggest boost in his three seasons at Florida with a 75-68 upset over No. 5 Kentucky last night.

In front of a record crowd of 12,443--some of whom waited outside for nearly 24 hours before tipoff--the Gators (16-4, 7-3 Southeastern Conference) opened up a 14-point lead midway through the second half and withstood a late Kentucky rally.

Miller sealed it with four minutes left, sinking a 16-footer, then following with a four-point play by converting a free throw after he got fouled by Heshimu Evans while taking a 21-foot jump shot. The free throw gave Florida a 65-52 lead.

It was just Florida's second victory over Kentucky (19-5, 8-2) in their last 14 meetings and it marked a drastic turnabout from their Jan. 2 game, a 93-58 Kentucky win in Lexington.

When it was over, security guards kept fans in the student section from flooding the court. But freshman Teddy Dupay went to them, diving into the crowd, then prancing down press row sharing high-fives with the students.

The Wildcats lost for the first time in six games. They saw their 15-game SEC road winning streak snapped as Scott Padgett went 1-for-9 from the floor and failed to score until the last 30 seconds.

Clemson 78, No. 12 N. Carolina 63

CLEMSON, S.C.--Terrell McIntyre scored 25 points, and Clemson ended a six-game losing streak last night with a 78-63 upset of No. 12 North Carolina.

With point guard Ed Cota still slowed by a calf injury, North Carolina committed 17 turnovers en route to a rare loss against Clemson.

The Heels (18-6, 6-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) had won their last nine regular-season games against the Tigers, and lead the all-time series 106-16. But Clemson (13-9, 2-6) started fast and made every big shot down the stretch.

Ademola Okulaja's three-pointer brought North Carolina within 45-41, but Tony Christie hit a 3-pointer with 6:15 remaining that started a 13-2 run that put Clemson ahead 58-43.