GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP)-- Florida has been the Southeastern Conference's worst free-throw shooting team all season.
It's cost the Gators several games. So this was nothing new.
It was, however, nearly a new low.
Dorian Finney-Smith scored 12 points before fouling out in the closing minutes, and Florida held on to beat Texas A&M 65-62 Tuesday night despite more free-throw woes.
The Gators (15-15, 8-9 Southeastern Conference) led by 14 with 1:58 to play, but missed 9 of 14 from the charity stripe before Eli Carter and Kasey Hill closed it out.
"It's happened to our team a lot this season: we have these mental lapses," said coach Billy Donovan, whose team finished 20 of 38 from the free-throw line.
Carter made a pair of free throws with 13.4 seconds remaining, and Hill sank an even bigger one that put Florida up 66-62 with 6.3 seconds to play.
A&M's Antwan Space missed a 3-pointer on the final possession with Florida playing not to foul.
The Gators won their second straight after losing six of seven and improved their chances of making the NIT. The Aggies (20-9, 11-6) had been looking to strengthen their NCAA Tournament resume, but instead lost for second time in three games.
Alex Caruso led Texas A&M with 20 points. Jalen Jones added 15 points and nine rebounds. Kourtney Roberson added 11 points, eight boards and four assists, and leading scorer Danuel House was scoreless for the first time this season.
"I thought Florida's defense was tremendous," A&M coach Billy Kennedy said. "They did a good job with Danuel House. It threw us out of our game. ... They doubled him and they were aggressive. They didn't leave him."
The Aggies scored the game's first 10 points, but went cold from there. Florida evened it midway through the first and took control with a 14-0 run in the second.
Alex Murphy and Devin Robinson came up big in the spurt.
Murphy scored seven consecutive points, hitting a 3-pointer, making two free throws and then throwing down a dunk on a fast break. Murphy's up-and-under layup -- which was sandwiched between Robinson's three-point play and 3-pointer -- was even more impressive.
Murphy finished with nine points. Robinson had 10. Carter chipped in 11, and Chris Chiozza had 10. Chiozza, though, was 4 for 12 from the free-throw line, missing most of his in crunch time.
"Obviously we didn't make the amount of free throws we wanted to," Murphy said. "That's something we have to improve on, free-throw shooting. You can't win at this level like that. Obviously, we got lucky and had a lead tonight, and that helped us down the stretch. In a close game, 20 for 38 is not any good."
But Florida had a big enough lead to make them somewhat meaningless.
The Gators played their seventh consecutive game without leading scorer Michael Frazier II. The junior guard badly sprained his right ankle against Kentucky last month and is having significant pain while starting, stopping and cutting.
Making Florida even thinner against the Aggies, starting forward Jacob Kurtz -- one of two seniors honored on "Senior Night" -- got poked in the right eye late in the first half and didn't play until after Finney-Smith fouled out.
GAME NOTES
● Texas A&M fell to 20-9 on the season with an 11-6 record in SEC games following the 66-62 loss to Florida at the O'Connell Center on Tuesday night.
● The all-time series record between the schools now stands at 5-2 in favor of the Gators.
TEAM NOTES
● The Aggies shot just 35.6 percent from the floor in the contest with a 31.8 percent mark from beyond the 3-point arc … The Gators, meanwhile, shot 47.5 percent from the field.
● A&M held a 40-29 advantage in rebounding, pulling down 16 offensive rebounds on the night.
● The Gators owned a 26-23 halftime lead and took control of the game with a 17-2 run midway through the second half which turned a one point lead into a 16-point advantage at 47-31.
● Texas A&M started the game on a 10-0 run, hitting three of its first four shots from the field.
● The Aggies used the starting lineup combination of Alex Caruso, Jordan Green, Danuel House, Jalen Jones and Kourtney Roberson for the 20th time this season (14-6).
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
● Junior guard Alex Caruso made 7-of-8 field goal attempts in the contest, including 3-of-4 from long distance, to lead all scorers with 20 points … it marked the fifth career 20-point game for the College Station native.
● Junior forward Jalen Jones also reached double-digit scoring, finishing with 15 points to go along with a game-high nine rebounds.
● Freshman guard Peyton Allen did not make the trip to Gainesville with the team due to illness.
● A&M head coach Billy Kennedy is now 70-58 in his fourth season at Texas A&M and 281-237 in 17 years as a head coach. UP NEXT
● The Aggies conclude the regular season on Saturday when they host Alabama in a 1 p.m. contest at Reed Arena ... prior to the game, the program will honor its two seniors - Jordan Green and Kourtney Roberson.