College basketball: Will Richard powers Florida to Orange Bowl Classic win over Richmond

SUNRISE — Seated under the basket, where he’d wound up after finishing an acrobatic layup while being fouled, Will Richard triumphantly flexed his biceps.

It was quite a satisfying Saturday for the Florida Gators’ junior guard, particularly the second half.

Richard scored 19 of his season-high 21 points after the break, including three consecutive 3-pointers, as Florida beat Richmond 87-76 in the second game of the AutoNation Orange Bowl Basketball Classic at Amerant Bank Arena. South Florida beat Florida State 88-72 to start the doubleheader.

“Just a huge a win for us, one that I’m really, really happy about and really proud of our group,” said Florida coach Todd Golden. “We did a great job competing for 40 minutes. Defensively, we weren’t great in the second half — gave up 46. But to score 87 against that team is really impressive.”

Forward Tyrese Samuel played a pivotal part in the Gators’ second consecutive win on the heels of back-to-back losses to Baylor and Wake Forest. Samuel grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds to go with 18 points.

Zyon Pullin (12) and Riley Kugel (11) also scored in double figures. And Micah Handlogten had eight points and 10 rebounds for the Gators, who improved to 19-4 all-time at this event.

Then, of course, there was Richard, who was named the game’s most valuable player after nearly tying his career high for points (24).

“This young man next to me just separated the game,” Golden said of Richard, seated to his left postgame. “He stepped up in a moment where we needed somebody to take the game back.”

The Spiders (5-5) scored the first six points of the second half to cut the Gators’ 40-30 halftime lead to two possessions and trailed by seven points with 13-plus minutes remaining.

That’s when Richard drained three consecutive field goals from long range in a span of 1:23. His second 3, from the top of the key, gave the Gators (6-3) their largest lead.

“My man went nuclear over here, hit three or four big shots in a row, gave us our confidence back, and allowed us to finish the game,” Golden said.

“I was just staying aggressive within our offense,” Richard said of his 3s. “I wasn’t trying to force anything. But once I saw the first one go in, I felt a little confidence.”

After those three 3-pointers and Richard’s indelible 3-point play minutes later that prompted his pose, the Gators maintained a double-digit advantage most of the rest of the way.

The Spiders, who led only briefly a few times in the game’s opening minutes, had four players score in double figures — led by center Neal Quinn, who had 17 points, five rebounds and a team-high tying six assists. Mikkel Tyne tallied 16, Isaiah Bigelow had 15, and Jordan King added 14, along with six rebounds and six assists.

The difference, particularly in the second half, was Richard.

“He’s a very good shooter and he’s under control, he’s never really sped up,” said Richmond coach Chris Mooney. “And then he doesn’t force many shots even though he’s aggressive. That control, with his shooting ability, makes him really difficult [to guard] because if he doesn’t shoot, he passes and makes the right play. …He made those three 3s in a row and that really hurt us.”