GAINESVILLE, Fla. _ After back-to-back 100-point games, the Florida Gators were due for a letdown against New Hampshire.
Shooting guard Jalen Hudson was not going to let it become a loss.
The junior transfer from Virginia Tech carried the No. 8 Gators down the stretch to a hard-fought 70-63 win against the Wildcats Sunday night.
With an announced crowd of 9,501 on hand at the O'Connell Center, Hudson finished with a game-high 26 points _ nearly twice as many any of his teammates.
"He's really talented," UF coach Mike White said. "His 26, it seemed like a loud 26. He took over the game for us."
The Gators' needed someone to step up.
Offense came easy during UF's first two wins. On Sunday night, it was a struggle.
The Gators averaged 112 points, 25 assists and shot 55.4 percent from the floor during wins against Gardner-Webb and North Florida.
"[White] said we looked tired," Hudson said. "We have to show up every night and give our best effort every night, regardless of if shots are falling."
New Hampshire (1-2) capitalized behind 6-foot-7, 230-pound center Tanner Leissner and some timely 3-point shooting. The versatile Leissner was a matchup problem for the Gators and finished with 23 points on a variety of shots.
The Wildcats also hit 10 3-pointers, compared with just three for the Gators.
Guard John Ogwuche's 3 with 9:27 left in the game gave the Wildcats a 49-48 lead, their first since a 16-15 advantage nearly 22 minutes earlier.
Hudson quickly followed with a dunk and was off the races. The 6-foot-6, 192-pound Hudson unleashed his offensive arsenal from close to long range to score 17 of his team's next 20 points.
"I just tried to stay aggressive and things starting coming to me," he said.
Graduate transfer Egor Koulechov managed 14 points on just 4-of-14 shooting, but chipped in 10 rebounds, including a key putback of a Hudson's missed 3-pointer. It was the only field goal during the final 12 minutes by a Gator other than Hudson.
"At 6-5 his ability to get that many (rebounds) is impressive," White said of Koulechov. "He has some maturity to him."
Hudson said he hopes the close call against New Hampshire helps the Gators grow as a team.
"It was a smack in the face," he said. "We're not as good as we think we are."
