National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Florida 79, Northwestern St. 47
When: 7:27 PM ET, Friday, March 22, 2013
Where: Frank Erwin Special Events Center, Austin, Texas
Officials: # Jeff Clark, # Jerry Heater, # Terry Wymer
Attendance: N/A
By SportsDirect Inc.

Florida 79, Northwestern State 47: Kenny Boynton became the second Gators player to score 2,000 points while third-seeded Florida advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament for the third straight year by dispatching Northwestern State in Austin, Texas.

Erik Murphy had 18 points to lead four players in double digits for Florida (27-7), which will face Minnesota on Sunday. Patric Young added 16 points while Boynton and Scottie Wilbekin added 11 apiece - with Boynton reaching the milestone on a jumper at the 18:45 mark of the second half.

DeQuan Hicks paced Northwestern State (23-9) with 12 points. The Demons, the nation's top offensive team with an 81-point average, were held to their lowest point total of the season.

Florida led the majority of the game, but didn't start pulling away until midway through the second half, when they embarked on a 16-0 run to open a 68-42 advantage with 6:33 remaining. The Demons were held to a field goal over the final 13:13, and made five shots in the second half.

Florida, the nation's third-ranked scoring defense at 53.7 points allowed, has held 13 of its 34 opponents to less than 50 points.

GAME NOTEBOOK: This marked the third time in the past 10 games Florida had four players score in double figures. ... Boynton is 85 points away from surpassing Ronnie Williams as Florida's career scoring leader. ... Florida improved to 10-3 in NCAA Tournament openers during the tenure of coach Billy Donovan.
Top Game Performances
 
Northwestern St.   Florida
DeQuan Hicks 12 Scoring Erik Murphy 18
Jalan West 4 Assists Scottie Wilbekin 4
DeQuan Hicks 8 Rebounds Patric Young 9
DeQuan Hicks 4 Free Throws Made Patric Young 4
Jalan West 1 Steals Michael Frazier II 2
Marvin Frazier 2 Blocks Casey Prather 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Northwestern St. 47 36.0 3-16 8-11 9 21 3 2 15
Florida 79 47.5 7-21 14-23 13 40 2 10 8