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Atlanta • Patric Young scored 16 points and No. 1 Florida turned up the defensive pressure in the second half, rallying for a 56-49 victory over Tennessee in the semifinals of the Southeastern Conference tournament Saturday.
Florida (31-2) extended its school-record winning streak to 25 in a row after trailing by 10 in t he first half. The Gators were down 35-28 at the break, but they wore down the Volunteers (21-12) over the final 20 minutes. After shooting 54 percent in the opening period, Tennessee made just 5 of 20 shots and turned the ball over 11 times, leaving its fate in the hands of the NCAA selection committee.
Florida's Scottie Wilbekin added 14 points and Casey Prather had 12.
Jordan McRae led Tennessee with 15 points, while Jarnell Stokes had 13 points and eight rebounds.
The Gators, improving to 20-0 against SEC opponents, will face Kentucky in the championship game Sunday, after the Wildcats beat Georgia 70-58 in the other semifinal.
No. 6 Virginia 51, Pittsburgh 48 • In Greensboro, N.C., Anthony Gill hit two free throws with 8.5 seconds left to help Virginia hold off Pittsburgh in the semifinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
Gill was shooting 63 percent from the line for the Cavaliers (27-6) but calmly made both free throws after James Robinson's hanging layup had brought the Panthers to within 49-48.
Pitt had a chance to tie with 4 seconds left, but Justin Anderson tipped Robinson's 3-pointer to Gill with 0.5 seconds left. Joe Harris scored 12 points to lead the Cavaliers, who shot 47 percent against the fifth-seeded Panthers (25-9) to earn their first trip to the final since 1994.
The Cavaliers earned their first outright regular-season title since 1981 and only their second No. 1 seed.
No. 7 Duke 75, N.C. State 67 • In Greensboro, N.C., Jabari Parker scored 20 points and Duke advanced to the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championship.
Rasheed Sulaimon added 16 points for the third-seeded Blue Devils (26-7) while Rodney Hood had 14 points and keyed the defense against ACC player of the year T.J. Warren. —
Automatic NCAA qualifiers
Albany (N.Y.) • East Conference
American • Patriot League
Coastal Carolina • Big South Conference
Delaware • Colonial Athletic Association
Eastern Kentucky • Ohio Valley Conference
Gonzaga • West Coast Conference
Harvard • Ivy League
Iowa State • Big 12
Louisville • American Athletic Conference
Manhattan • Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Mercer • Atlantic Sun Conference
Milwaukee • Horizon League
Mount St. Mary's • Northeast Conference
New Mexico • Mountain West
New Mexico State • WAC
North Carolina Central • Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
North Dakota State • Summit League
Providence • Big East Conference
Texas Southern • Southwestern Athletic Conference
Tulsa • Conference USA
UCLA • Pac-12
Weber State • Big Sky
Western Michigan • Mid-American Conference
Wichita State • Missouri Valley Conference
Wofford • Southern Conference —
Saturday's scores
No. 1 Florida 56, Tennessee 49
UCLA 75, No. 4 Arizona 71
No. 5 Louisville 71, No. 21 UConn 61
No. 6 Virginia 51, Pittsburgh 48
No. 7 Duke 75, N.C. State 67
No. 8 Michigan 72, No. 24 Ohio St. 69
• No. 20 New Mexico 64,No. 8 San Diego State 58
• No. 22 Michigan State 83,No. 12 Wisconsin 75
Providence 65, No. 14 Creighton 58
No. 16 Iowa State 74, Baylor 65
No. 23 VCU 74, George Wash. 55