GAINESVILLE, Fla. _ It might not have been the No. 6 Florida Gators' best effort, but it was a start.
Last season's opener for coach Mike White's team felt more like the beginning of the end.
A year after losing 81-60 at Florida State to tip off a disappointing season in Gainesville, the Gators shook off an ice-cold start before their talent took over during a 74-59 win over the University of North Florida on Tuesday night in the O'Connell Center.
UNF would not be mistaken for the 2018-19 Seminoles, who made a run to the Sweet 16. But with four senior starters and eight of their top nine scorers backs, the Ospreys were no pushovers.
The Gators, though, do not resemble the team that struggled to a 20-16 mark a season ago. Big man Kerry Blackshear Jr. of Orlando is one of the many reasons the Gators are ranked in the top 10.
The 6-foot-11 Virginia Tech graduate transfer led the way with 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field and 10 rebounds. Blackshear also had two steals and three assists, along with a number of passes that showcased his court sense and unselfishness.
Blackshear also showed impressive shooting range, capping an 8-0 run with a 3-pointer to give UF a 12-8 lead after the Gators opened the game missing their first eight shots.
It still took a while for Florida to solve UNF's zone defense and shake the Ospreys.
UF followed Blackshear's 3 with five consecutive misses from the field during a span of four minutes before back-to-back dunks _ an alley-oop by Omar Payne and fast-break slam by Blackshear _ pushed the lead to 18-10 and ignited the O'Dome crowd.
From there, the Gators continued to pull away during a 16-0 run during the span of a little more than seven minutes.
UF led 39-22 at halftime. A dunk by freshman Scottie Lewis stretched the lead to 24 points, at 49-25, with 16:40 remaining.
But the Ospreys scrapped their way back into the game, cutting the lead to 52-37 on a 3-pointer by Ivan Gandia-Rosa. UNF, a 21.5-point underdog, never would get closer than 13 points.
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