As the final seconds ticked away, the sellout crowd inside the O’Connell Center rose to their feet and chanted, “It’s great to be a Florida Gator.” The Gators’ final home game of the season ended the same way it began — in pure joy.

Playing without Thomas Haugh, No. 5 Florida (24-6, 15-2 SEC) secured the outright SEC regular-season title Tuesday with a 108-74 win over Mississippi State (13-17, 5-12).

University of Florida students camped overnight outside the O’Connell Center and filed into the “Rowdy Reptiles” to watch Florida seniors Micah Handlogten and Xaivian Lee play their final home game on Senior Night, which unfolded into a celebratory affair with more than one reason to cheer.

After the seniors were honored before the game, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey presented the SEC regular-season trophy, Rueben Chinyelu tied the program’s single-season double-double record, Xaivian Lee reached 1,500 career points and coach Todd Golden earned his 100th win at Florida. 

Golden became the fastest coach in program history to reach 100 wins, surpassing Billy Donovan’s mark of 154 games at 139 games.

“Just the overall effort of the team,” said Golden, who earned his first victory at UF over Stony Brook on Nov 7, 2022. “We were missing one of our best players that usually gobbles up about 35 minutes a night. So you come into this game late in the season and guys have to step up, maybe play out of position a little bit, shoulder more responsibility and more possessions. With the score we were able to finish with, we didn’t really seem to miss a beat.”

Chinyelu recorded his 18th double-double of the season with 11 points and 16 rebounds, scoring his 11th point late in the game to reach the mark. The double-double ties the program record of 18, set by Bob Smyth in the 1975–76 season. Chinyelu previously passed Al Horford’s 16 double-doubles from the 2006-07 season for the most by a Florida player this century.

But the O’Dome reached its highest decibel when senior Cooper Josefsberg buried a 3-pointer late in the second half. The Florida bench erupted onto the court as teammates jumped to their feet in celebration.

“Seeing the bench reaction was awesome,” Handlogten said. “I picked up Coach (Carlin) Hartman, not a small guy, and he was just sitting there twiddling his little legs. Everyone was going crazy, shows how much of a team we are.”

After Haugh dropped 22 points in Saturday’s 111-77 win over No. 20 Arkansas, the junior guard sat out Tuesday’s game as a precaution. He is set to play Saturday against Kentucky. Handlogten took his place in the starting rotation and finished with 10 points and 9 rebounds, including 8 offensive boards. 

Alex Condon led Florida with a game-high 26 points in 26 minutes, shooting 12-for-19 from the field before picking up his fourth foul early in the second half. Much of his production came in the first half, while Lee took over after the break. Lee finished with 19 points, five rebounds, six assists and only one turnover.

“Alex Condon, can’t say enough about that,” Golden said. “The tenacity and toughness that he played with in the paint and at the rim was just special.”

The Gators showcased team basketball with 25 assists and only five turnovers. Entering Tuesday night, Florida averaged 19.1 assists per game compared to just 9.6 by its opponents.

Six Gators scored in double figures, while Isaiah Brown and CJ Ingram added nine and eight points, respectively, in increased minutes. The balanced scoring reflected the team basketball Florida displayed throughout the season.

Florida dominated scoring in the paint 70-36 and capitalized on Mississippi State turnovers, scoring 22 points off 13 giveaways. The Gators also outrebounded the Bulldogs 53-26.

“It meant a lot just to hear the crowd roar when me and X walked out. Just to have so many people here that have witnessed my story and seeing how I handled my lows, but also how I handled my highs and I think that walking out there and just hearing everybody and just that feeling,” Handlogten said. “It meant a lot and something I won’t forget.”

Tuesday’s game provided a glimpse of the future as Ingram delivered quality minutes off the bench. The freshman from Hawthorne scored eight points on 2-for-3 shooting from three, knocking down back-to-back triples to ignite a 9-0 Florida run early in the first half.

“Just watching guys like Tommy, X and Boogie workout, how hard they go, they’re like role models to me,” Ingram said. “I look up to them so every little thing that they do on their shot, I’m trying to do it to make sure mine go in.”

Lee and Fland combined for 29 points, nine assists and just one turnover, a performance that quieted doubts about the Gators’ backcourt.

“He’s playing fantastically well, and obviously him and Boogie emerging the way they have has allowed us to really take off and become a really good team,” Golden said.

The Gators dominated nearly every statistical category, except poster dunks, but started the game sluggish. Florida struggled early, missing several shots around the basket. By the second media timeout, Mississippi State had built a 10-point lead after making 10 of its last 12 shots, while Florida was just 7-for-17 from the field and 0-for-3 from beyond the arc.

Josh Hubbard got hot early for Mississippi State, scoring eight points in the first nine minutes as Golden picked up a technical foul for the second straight game.

Florida flipped the momentum midway through the first half, going on an 18–0 run over six minutes, highlighted by a Chinyelu block at the rim.

Time with the lead in the first half was nearly identical. Mississippi State led for 9:03 while Florida held the advantage for 9:14. The Gators entered halftime ahead 47-35.

Lee came out strong in the second half, scoring seven straight points for the Gators. The half belonged to the Canadian guard, who tweaked his ankle early but continued to lead Florida’s offense. Lee fouled out with 3:56 remaining and received a standing ovation from the O’Connell Center crowd as he headed to the bench.

Condon punctuated the win with a posterizing dunk and converted the free throw to complete the three-point play.

As Florida wrapped up its last regular season game at home, they looked complete playing the same type of basketball that they have in SEC play, sending them perfectly placed into Kentucky and then into SEC play. 

Condon played like an All-American, the guards had one of their best games of the season and Haugh remained a leader, although reserved to the bench. 

The Gators close the regular season Saturday with a road matchup against Kentucky at Rupp Arena at 4 p.m.