# SEC Men's Basketball: Florida Gators Dominates Merrimack Warriors 83-54

**Published:** 2026-11-13 — **By:** Stacy Stanfield
**Category:** games — **Type:** game-recap
**Source:** https://secscouts.com/news/sec-men-s-basketball-florida-gators-dominates-merrimack-warriors-83-54

**Teams:** [Florida](https://secscouts.com/florida/)

**Players:** [Rueben Chinyelu](https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/5174971/rueben-chinyelu), [Alex Condon](https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/5174657/alex-condon), [Thomas Haugh](https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/5080489/thomas-haugh), [Alex Lloyd](https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/5041948/alex-lloyd)


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GAINESVILLE, Fla. (11/12/2026) — The Florida Gators opened the 2026 season with a commanding 83-54 victory over the Merrimack Warriors at Tower Hill Arena on Thursday night, riding balanced scoring, dominant rebounding, and a punishing second-half run to dispatch their non-conference opponent before 10,264 fans.

## How It Happened

The game's early moments offered a brief hint of competition. Merrimack's AJ Lesburt Jr. drained a 26-foot three-pointer off a Todd Brogna assist just 51 seconds in to give the Warriors a 3-2 lead, and Ayden Johnson's 15-foot pullup at the 18:36 mark pushed Merrimack ahead 5-4. Florida reset quickly. Alex Lloyd connected from 25 feet — assisted by Alex Condon — to put the Gators back in front at 7-5, and the lead would not change hands again.

Florida built steadily through the first half. Urban Klavzar's 25-foot triple at 16:05 and Denzel Aberdeen's 31-footer at 15:08 stretched the margin to 15-9. Isaiah Brown's tip-in dunk at 10:18 pushed it to 21-13, and Lloyd's second deep three of the half — this one off an Aberdeen assist — made it 24-13 at 8:58. Rueben Chinyelu delivered two emphatic finishes in the final 40 seconds of the half: a 3-foot dunk off Lloyd's feed, then a 4-footer off Klavzar's assist. Florida took a 43-26 lead into the locker room.

Merrimack's Denver Anglin showed fight — hitting back-to-back three-pointers in the first-half stretch from 8:10 to 6:34 to trim the deficit to nine — but Florida's interior advantage was simply too significant to sustain any run against.

The second half belonged entirely to the Gators. Haugh threw down an alley-oop dunk at the 13:06 mark to push the lead to 54-28, then Lloyd buried another 25-footer off Haugh's assist to make it 57-28. Florida's 15-0 run — turning a 48-28 edge into a 61-30 advantage — was the knockout sequence that turned the final minutes into a formality.

## Turning Point

Florida's 15-0 run in the second half was the definitive sequence. Beginning from a 48-28 lead and stretching to 61-30, the Gators attacked relentlessly in the paint while Merrimack found no answer. The Warriors shot 40% from three on the night — a creditable figure — but were overwhelmed on the boards, where Florida held a 39-17 rebounding advantage. That gap in the glass made second chances nonexistent for Merrimack and kept Florida's possession counts high throughout the second period.

## Star of the Game

Alex Condon was Florida's most complete performer, finishing with 16 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. The big man scored at the rim and facilitated for teammates in equal measure — his assist to Lloyd for a first-half three and his feed setting up a Chinyelu dunk illustrated how effectively he operates at the high post. Thomas Haugh matched Condon with 15 points and 6 rebounds, adding an alley-oop finish in the second half. Rueben Chinyelu contributed 12 points and 6 boards, and Alex Lloyd's 11 points included multiple three-pointers that extended Florida leads at critical moments.

For Merrimack, Lesburt Jr. led all scorers with 16 points on three second-half threes, showing range and shot-making ability against high-major competition. Anglin added 14 points and Johnson distributed 4 assists alongside 8 points.

## What It Means

Florida's performance signals a team built to pressure opponents on multiple fronts. Shooting 52% from the field while generating 19 assists on the night, the Gators moved the ball freely and punished Merrimack with consistent interior finishing — dunks and layups made up a significant portion of their scoring total. Four players reaching double figures in the opener suggests the roster depth to weather minutes distribution throughout a long season.

Merrimack fell to 0-1 facing a significant step up in competition. Lesburt Jr. and Anglin demonstrated they can generate offense against high-major defenses, and the Warriors' 40% three-point shooting reflects genuine perimeter skill. The challenge for Merrimack going forward will be building the rebounding and defensive resistance necessary to stay competitive when shooting nights aren't their best — against Florida, the gap on the boards proved insurmountable.

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*Original article: [SEC Men's Basketball: Florida Gators Dominates Merrimack Warriors 83-54](https://secscouts.com/news/sec-men-s-basketball-florida-gators-dominates-merrimack-warriors-83-54) — SEC Scouts*