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No. 3 Florida hosts Liberty in first-ever meeting

Jan 2, 2007 - 3:51 PM Liberty (6-7) at No. 3 Florida (12-2) 6:00 pm EST

GAINESVILLE, Florida (Ticker) -- Florida coach Billy Donovan has to be pleased with the way his team has performed since its last loss.

The third-ranked Gators can win their sixth consecutive game and remain undefeated in 10 meetings against Big South Conference teams Tuesday when they meet Liberty for the first time.

After a stretch of two losses in three games from November 25-December 3, including a 70-66 defeat to Florida State, Florida has been unbeaten and recorded 12 wins before New Year's Day for the second time in school history.

The Gators are shooting 54.3 percent (438-of-806) from the floor to rank among the nation's leaders. They are also averaging 11.6 offensive rebounds and limiting opponents to 57.1 points.

Corey Brewer scored 19 points, Taurean Green added 18 and Joakim Noah 13 for Florida, which rallied from an 11-point deficit in Saturday's 75-70 triumph over Alabama- Birmingham.

Liberty has dropped six straight games after a 6-1 start, including Saturday's 90-58 loss to Oral Roberts at the BYU Holiday Classic.

Larry Blair made 10-of-17 shots and scored 26 points and Alex Mclean added 11 for the Flames, who committed a season-high 21 turnovers.