Florida

Florida 105-87 Alabama (Mar 5, 2024) Game Recap – ESPN

Published

2 years ago

March 5, 2024

Florida 105-87 Alabama (Mar 5, 2024) Game Recap – ESPN

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — — Two weeks after getting bullied by Alabama, Florida refused to let it happen again. Not at home. And not on senior night.

Will Richard scored 23 points, Walter Clayton Jr. added 22 and the Gators handled No. 16 Alabama 105-87 on Tuesday night to stay in contention for a top four seed in the upcoming Southeastern Conference Tournament.

Florida (21-9, 11-6 SEC) made 40 free throws — the program’s most since December 1998 — and won for the 10th time in 13 games. The Gators finished 14-1 at home this season, and equally important to coach Todd Golden, they moved a step closer to potentially landing a double bye in the league tourney.

“We were very physical,” Golden said. “We did what we needed to do to beat the best offensive team in America.”

Tyrese Samuel and Zyon Pullin chipped in 19 points and six rebounds apiece after being honored before their home finale. The graduate transfers helped Florida avenge an overtime loss at Alabama last month and hand the Crimson Tide (20-10, 12-5) a third loss in four games.

“I thought Tyrese was a monster,” Golden said. “And ZP was just a calming influence out there. Both those guys were just a huge, huge reason as to why we won.”

Samuel made all nine of his shots from the charity stripe, and Pullin was 8 for 8.

Florida took 21 more free throws than Alabama and made twice as many.

“It’s not a recipe for winning games when you get doubled up at the free-throw line,” Alabama coach Nate Oats said.

The biggest surprise was how easily the Gators controlled the rematch. They opened up a double-digit lead late in the first half, extended it to 20 midway through the second and never let up.

It was a huge sigh of relief for a team that hadn’t shown a knack for delivering knockout punches. Florida had lost five games after leading at the break, and several of those included double-digit advantages.

“It’s definitely not a good feeling letting a team come back on you,” Clayton said. “We just got to be mentally tough, go up 10 and get your foot on the gas and not let up.”

Added Richard: “I don’t think we let ourselves off the hook (this time). I feel like we can get lazy once when we get up on a team. For us, it’s just staying disciplined.”

Mark Sears led Alabama with 33 points, including 29 in the second half. Aaron Estrada added 17 points, and Grant Nelson chipped in 12 before fouling out late.

Alabama’s Rylan Griffen was helped off the floor and to the locker room with 4;15 remaining after colliding with Florida’s Richard. Oats, who drew a technical foul while arguing it should have been a foul, said Griffen has a calf injury that will require more tests Wednesday.

“They were very physical with us,” Oats said. “We had some offensive frustrations and some defensive letdowns.”

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Florida should have a chance to move back into the next AP college basketball poll.

WRIGHTSELL RETURNS

Alabama guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. returned after missing the last four games following a concussion. Wrightsell finished with two points in eight minutes.

SENIOR NIGHT

Pullin and Samuel were among five players recognized in pregame ceremonies that included family, friends and framed jerseys. The other three were walk-ons Jack May, Alex Klatsky and Bennett Andersen. May’s father is current Florida Atlantic head coach Dusty May.

BIG PICTURE

Alabama: The Crimson Tide lost consecutive games for the first time since dropping three in a row in early December. This was the first unranked team Alabama has lost to since Clemson upset the Tide in late November.

Florida: The Gators have been close to unbeatable at home, with the lone loss coming against Kentucky to begin 2024. They closed the season with eight consecutive wins in the O’Connell Center but will need to bottle that energy and take it on the road for the postseason.

UP NEXT

Alabama wraps up the regular season at home against Arkansas on Saturday.

Florida ends the regular season at Vanderbilt on Saturday.

——

AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll

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Florida

South Florida officers sue Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, claiming details in ‘The Rip’ are too real

Published

1 hour ago

May 11, 2026

Press Room

South Florida officers sue Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, claiming details in ‘The Rip’ are too real

Entertainment

“The Rip” features Affleck and Damon as South Florida police officers who find millions of dollars inside a house. Parts of the movie were inspired by a real 2016 case.

FILE – Matt Damon and Ben Affleck attend the world premiere of “The Rip” at Alice Tully Hall, on Jan. 13, 2026, in New York. Photo by CJ Rivera/Invision/AP, File

By DAVID FISCHER, Associated Press

May 11, 2026 | 6:28 PM

2 minutes to read

MIAMI (AP) — Two South Florida police officers claim Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s recent action thriller “The Rip” used too many real-life details in its fictionalized narrative, causing harm to the officers’ personal and professional reputations, according to a defamation lawsuit.

Jason Smith and Jonathan Santana, sergeants in the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, filed the lawsuit in Miami federal court earlier this month against Artists Equity, a film production company owned by Affleck and Damon. Court filings don’t say how much the officers are suing for, but the civil complaint says they’re seeking compensatory damages, punitive damages and attorney fees, as well as a public retraction and correction.

“The Rip” features Affleck and Damon as South Florida police officers who find millions of dollars inside a house. Parts of the movie were inspired by a real 2016 case, where police found over $21 million linked to a suspected marijuana trafficker in a Miami Lakes home.

An attorney for Artists Equity declined to comment when reached Monday by The Associated Press. But in a March 19 response to the plaintiffs’ demand letter, Leita Walker, an attorney for Artists Equity, wrote that the film does not purport to tell the true story of that incident or portray real people, which had been stated by a disclaimer in the film’s credits.

Although Smith and Santana aren’t named in the film, the lawsuit claims that Santana was serving as the lead detective assigned to the real case, and Smith was the sergeant who supervised the investigative team. The film’s inclusion of real details about the case gives the impression that the characters are based on the plaintiffs, the suit said.

And this, the lawsuit claims, has given friends, family members and colleagues the impression that the plaintiffs committed the criminal acts that appear in the film, which include (SPOILER ALERT) conspiring to steal seized drug money, murdering a supervising officer, communicating with cartel members, committing arson in a residential neighborhood, endangering the lives of civilians, repeatedly violating core law-enforcement protocols and executing a federal agent rather than making an arrest.

Walker wrote in March that the plaintiffs haven’t even identified which particular character is supposed to be based on Smith or Santana, so even if “The Rip” was actually about a real-life narcotics team, there’s no way to connect any of the characters to the plaintiffs.

“The Rip,” directed by Joe Carnahan, debuted in January on Netflix. It’s currently rated 78% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

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South Florida and Miami news today

Published

13 hours ago

May 11, 2026

Press Room

You’re watching the NBC6 South Florida News streaming channel, which plays local South Florida news 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can find the “NBC6 South Florida News” streaming channel on your phone or computer, and on Peacock, Samsung, Roku, Xumo or on our app, so you can watch our local news on your schedule.

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Palm Bay, Florida parents of premature twins held NICU wedding

Published

2 days ago

May 10, 2026

Press Room

Palm Bay, Florida parents of premature twins held NICU wedding

A Florida couple, both with prior health issues, welcomed miracle twin boys nine weeks prematurely.
The couple’s planned wedding was interrupted by the early birth of their sons, Joshua and Rhett.

Ben and Danielle Cassidy were told they likely wouldn’t be able to have children.

But this year they will celebrate Mother’s Day just months after having an impromptu wedding in the AdventHealth for Children hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit shortly after Danielle gave birth to twins prematurely — a week before the Palm Bay couple was scheduled to get married.

Both babies, Joshua and Rhett, are doing well despite arriving nine weeks ahead of schedule on Jan. 19, 2026, just one day after their scheduled baby shower. With a proper wedding out of the question with two premature babies in the NICU, a nurse took action.

Issabel Kenkel, the nurse behind the ceremony, said she was already in wedding planning mode for her own upcoming nuptials when she found out the Cassidy family’s ceremony would be interrupted.

“I couldn’t just let them do something small. They needed decorations and something fun, so I spoke to the music therapist and the chaplain,” Kenkel said. In short order, a wedding was being planned for their hospital room and the couple was saying their vows in the company of their safely delivered newborns.

“When we found out we could request staff members to be on our team, that’s when we requested Issabel and having that kind of consistency from someone who has such a big heart and is so kind,” Danielle said.

The hospital ceremony was all the more special because of the Cassidy family’s own health struggles.

“I have five autoimmune diseases and didn’t really think I would have kids. It’s been a rough journey. When Ben and I met, we were floored at how much a miracle it was to have kids,” Danielle said.

Ben, who battled and beat cancer, said he was worried that his prior treatment would result in negative health outcomes for his future children. Having twins for him was an unexpected blessing.

“When we found out we were pregnant, we found it so shocking. We said, wouldn’t it be great if it was twins? It filled out our hopes and dreams list,” Ben said. “They’ve been miracles for sure.”

The Cassidy couple said there was so much fear and uncertainty when their twins were born nine weeks early. Being able to get married right away just made them feel all the better about the future.

“It was nice getting married because we didn’t have to wait any longer to make it official. It made it that much harder for her to get rid of me,” Ben said.

“The unknown made it scary,” Danielle added. “We had no idea how long we would be in the hospital. Our wedding was going to be at the beach with immediate family and parents. Having NICU babies, we realized we’d never be able to get to the beach. It was really special having the people who care for our babies be part of the ceremony.”

The couple hadn’t even planned to have a band at their wedding ceremony and now the hospital’s music therapist was performing live for them and the chaplain was conducting the ceremony, something nurse Kenkel said was just part of her job.

“The babies are going to have the best outcomes if the families are taken care of and going home happy,” she said. “Being in the NICU is already so stressful. This is just one more thing I could do to take care of my patients.”

Tyler Vazquez is the Growth and Development Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Vazquez at 321-480-0854 or tvazquez@floridatoday.com. X: @tyler_vazquez.

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