NIELS LANE

Tolu Smith scored a career-high 28 points, including a go-ahead basket in overtime with 4.3 seconds left, and Mississippi State beat Florida 69-68 in the second round of the SEC Tournament.

Florida big man Colin Castleton is returning for a fifth season.

Hassan Diarra drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 0.4 seconds left in overtime to give Texas A&M an 83-80 win over Florida in the second round of the Southeastern Conference tournament.

Myreon Jones had 18 points and five 3-pointers, Tyree Appleby scored all 17 of his points in the second half and Florida beat Missouri 66-65 in a game moved ahead six hours due to a winter storm.

Guard Scottie Lewis became the sixth player to leave Florida’s basketball program in a little more than a week when he declared for the NBA draft Thursday night.

Forward Omar Payne entered the transfer portal Tuesday and became the fifth player to leave coach Mike White's program since the end of the season. The 6-foot-10 Payne joined shooting guard Noah Locke, backup point guard Ques Glover and reserve forward Osayi Osifo in looking to play elsewhere next season. Star point guard and leading scorer Tre Mann entered the NBA draft with plans of hiring an agent, meaning he has no intention of returning to school for his junior season. Payne, a sophomore from Kissimmee, averaged 3.8 points and 3.2 rebounds while playing close to 16 minutes a game this season. Only Keyontae Johnson remains from Florida's 2018 class, which lost talented point guard Andrew Nembhard to Gonzaga last year and now is without Locke.

Florida guard Tre Mann (1) and Tennessee guard Davonte Gaines (0) compete for a rebound during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 19. 2021, in Gainesville, Fla. (AP Photo/Matt Stamey)GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Noah Locke scored 14 points, Tyree Appleby added 13 and short-handed Florida stunned No. 6 Tennessee 75-49 on Tuesday night. Guard Scottie Lewis (COVID-19 protocols) and forward Colin Castleton (ankle) missed the game. But forward Omar Payne, starting for the first time in nearly a year, finished with nine points, nine rebounds and five blocked shots for Florida (7-4, 4-3 Southeastern Conference).

No one on Florida's roster has experienced a victory at Memorial Gym in Nashville, Tennessee. Noah Locke scored 14 points, Tyree Appleby added 13 and the short-handed Gators stunned No. 6 Tennessee in dominating fashion, 75-49 on Tuesday night. “We proved tonight we're not good enough to go through the motions," said Vols coach Rick Barnes, who promised lineup changes moving forward. Florida: White seems to get his best from his guys against top competition.