STARKVILLE, Miss., Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Justin Hamilton scored 22 points and Matt Bonner added 16 to lead Florida past Mississippi State, 74-66.
The 12th-ranked Gators won their eighth straight by snapping the Bulldogs' 10-game winning streak in the SEC opener for both teams.
Freshman Matt Walsh leads Florida (11-3) with a 16.8 scoring average, but had just four points as he was in foul trouble most of the night.
Hamilton scored 14 points in the first half Tuesday night, and Bonner netted 14 in the second as the Gators won for the third time in their last four visits to Starkville.
Hamilton had a pair of baskets in a 12-1 run to open the second half as Florida built a 43-36 lead. A three-pointer by Bonner extended the advantage to 49-41 with under 15 minutes left.
After a miss by freshman Anthony Roberson, Florida point guard Brett Nelson grabbed the offensive rebound and used a behind-the-back pass to feed David Lee for a 63-54 advantage with 5:44 remaining.
Mississippi State (10-2) pulled to within 70-66 on a three-pointer by Michal Ignerski with 62 seconds to go. The Bulldogs then curiously chose not to foul and Walsh converted a layup with 25 seconds remaining, his second basket of the game, for a six-point lead.
The Bulldogs' streak of 12 straight wins in conference openers came to an end. They fell to 5-1 with star center Mario Austin, who scored 22 points.
