Guard Sheldon McClellan scored 24 points and his backcourt mate Angel Rodriquez added 16 to lead No. 17 Miami to a 66-55 victory over Florida in an intrastate college basketball matchup in Coral Gables, Fla., on Tuesday.

The Hurricanes (8-1) led for all but a brief moment when the Gators (6-2) took a 6-5 lead in the opening minutes but didn't pull away until the final seven minutes.

Miami took its first double-digit lead early in the second half at 37-25, but the visiting Gators chipped away and cut the deficit to 45-40 midway through the second half.

McClellan countered with a 3-pointer to stem the visitors' momentum, and the Hurricanes worked their way back to a double-digit cushion on another McClellan trey that made it 56-44 with 6:37 remaining.

Miami led by as many as 15 points three times in the final two minutes.

Center John Egbunu led Florida with 14 points. Forward Dorian Finney-Smith scored 12 points and forward Devon Robinson chipped in 11 for the Gators.