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VOLUME 114 ISSUE 52
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2020 Published by Campus Communications, Inc. of Gainesville, Florida
Not officially associated with the University of Florida
MISSISSIPPI ST. 78
FLORIDA 71 TEETER TODDLER
MEN’S BASKETBALL
UF collapses in second half By Brendan Farrell Sports Writer
Coach Mike White has stressed that his team has played better offensively than defensively recently, and it was on full display during his team’s second-half collapse against Mississippi State on Tuesday. Midway through the contest, it seemed as if the Gators were on cruise control en route to their fifth conference win. But an offense that went cold in the second half and a defense that couldn’t stop a nosebleed for much of the night turned the cruising into a tailspin, then to a head-on collision with the guardrail. A 16-point lead in the first half was not enough to prevent Florida from snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. The Gators were outscored 43-26 and failed to make a
three-pointer on seven attempts in the second half in a 78-71 loss to the Bulldogs. Just 10 days after seemingly righting the ship with a big home upset against then-No. 4 Auburn, UF has lost three games in a row. “We were, in the first 20 (minutes) as good as we’ve played probably offensively, downhill in transition, sprinting up and down the court,” White said. “Second half, first five minutes of the second half, I had a pit in my stomach because our level of energy wasn’t close to what it was in the first half, it just wasn’t. “We’re jogging back in transition, getting dunked on, and they’re scoring on us and we’re walking the ball up the court.” At first, facing Mississippi State’s defense after doing the basketball equivalent of head-
SEE MEN’S BASKETBALL, PAGE 12
Lily Strickland // Alligator Staff
Barrett Miller, 2, laughs while being swung by his mom, Hannah Miller, 24, at Depot Park on Tuesday.
Senator resigns during election season UF watches coronavirus
He said he resigned because of school work By Chasity Maynard Alligator Staff Writer
Sen. Zach Amrose (Inspire, UF College of Liberal Arts and Sciences) resigned Monday. He said he is overwhelmed. “I have already stepped away from being the President of Inspire Party and I am stepping away from Senate as I struggle with balancing the weight of serving constituents in Student Government with completing classwork and preparing for a post-graduation life,” Amrose wrote in an email. Amroses’s resignation comes about two weeks after Inspire Party’s first president and longtime leader Ben Lima resigned to focus on his grades and exams. Amrose resigned the same
day the SG Rules and Ethics Committee scheduled a hearing to discuss claims that he unlawfully tampered with public records and failed to comply with lawful public records requests. SG Rules and Ethics Committee Chairwoman Abigail Morris said that because Amrose resigned, the hearing is canceled. Amrose said he helped found Inspire Party and worked in five SG campaigns. He was a senator from Spring 2019 until his resignation on Monday. He’s known for redrafting a resolution — a written statement with no legislative weight — advocating for blue lights over the Summer. Inspire Party President Kristen Jackson said Amrose was a student who noticed that there were no blue lights on fraternity
UF continues to rely on its SPORTS/SPECIAL/CUTOUT Story description finish comma, pg# underclassmen forwith scoring The trio of Lavender Briggs, Ariel Johnson and Nina Rickards will be key Thursday night against LSU.
row and took some initiative. She said she was honored to work with him. “I am extremely proud of the Amrose work Zachary did for the Student Body by advocating for a more accountable Student Government and improved campus safety,” Jackson wrote in a statement. “I’m happy to see that he is taking his own well-being into account and is doing what is best for him.” Inspire Student Body presidential candidate Matthew Diaz said he supports Amrose. “I support his decision and whatever he feels he needs to do for his own health and his own well-being,” Diaz said. @chasitymaynard0 cmaynard@alligator.org
Earthquake shakes Caribbean
FOUR PEOPLE HAVE RECENTLY TRAVELED FROM CHINA TO GAINESVILLE By Hannah Phillips Alligator Staff Writer
Chinese officials quarantined Wuhan, China, Thursday, but not before 5 million travelers left the city, Mayor Zhou Xianwang reported. The UF Student Healthcare Center received word Sunday that a student’s family member traveled from China to Gainesville before the coronavirus quarantine took effect. UF Health directors of clinical operations are aware of and monitoring the students who were in contact with the family member, said Cecilia Luna, a spokeswoman at the UF Student Health Care Center.
A 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit near Cuba and Jamaica, pg. 3
“As far as we know, none of the students are displaying any symptoms of coronavirus,” Luna said. “We will not be concerned until we know there’s a confirmed case.” At this point, the threat level is still relatively low, she said. There is no confirmed case of the coronavirus in Alachua County, she said. The rumor someone traveled from China to Gainesville reached students through a popular Chinese social media app, WeChat, Thursday — the day the quarantine took effect. A translation of the message read: “Friends in Florida, note that a UF parent flew over from Wuhan for the Chinese New Year. Please be careful. Wear a mask and carry hand sanitizer. If an outbreak occurs, report it.” Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, is where the new coronavirus outbreak was first reported,
SEE CORONAVIRUS, PAGE 3
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As the smoke clears
Here’s how local vape shops are losing business, pg. 5
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