Analysis: Gators Look for Improved Performance Against North Florida
No. 3 Florida men’s basketball started the season on the wrong foot in a loss to No. 13 Arizona on Monday. The 93-87 defeat is disappointing for the reigning national champions, who had gargantuan expectations heading into a hopeful repeat campaign.
Coach Todd Golden, however, will tell you he’s not surprised by the sluggish start. It may even be beneficial.
“I think we need to lean into [the pressure] a little bit because this team at some point is going to fail,” Golden told ESPN before the season started. “I think for us to be the best we can be, we need to, at some point, deal with that — the frustration, the vulnerability, the disappointment — to really grow.”
Knowing how last season went, where Florida only lost twice to unranked teams, it’s not time to hit the panic button after dropping one on the road to a preseason top-15 foe.
The basketball season is long, and Florida has plenty of time to figure things out. The Gators face North Florida on Thursday — an opportunity to improve on some of the problems evident in Monday’s loss in Las Vegas.
The frontcourt
If Florida wants to have a shot at going back-to-back, its frontcourt performance Monday cannot become the norm.
Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu — two starting bigs who returned this season after initially declaring for the NBA draft — struggled on the boards, offensively and in defending Arizona.
In 29 minutes, Condon had 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting. He only amassed eight rebounds and turned the ball over six times, a measly statline for a preseason Associated Press All-America. Beside him, Chinyelu scored four points in 17 minutes, while grabbing just one rebound. Condon and Chinyelu both fouled out in the second half.
Sixth-man center Micah Handlogten was a bright spot in the frontcourt. He had a double-double with 11 points on a 5-for-5 clip and 12 rebounds. Notably, Handlogten totaled more rebounds off the bench than Condon and Chinyelu combined.
The backcourt
Let’s face it: Xaivian Lee and Boogie Fland have big shoes to fill after Florida’s star seniors from last year — Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin and Will Richard — all departed for the NBA.
Lee and Fland have to settle in more, and that comes through more playing time with the team. The two ball-dominant guards will need to figure out how to distribute the ball to put the team in the best position to run a smoother offense.
3-point shooting
Florida shot 7 of 27 on 3-pointers Monday. Lee, specifically, looked out of place with his shot selection, and went 3 of 11 from beyond the arc. That’s not going to cut it.
Against North Florida, the Gators must focus on getting more high-quality looks from the 3-point line. A lower quantity of 3-pointers could help as Florida aims to increase its conversion rate.
Free throws
Florida shot 20 of 30 from the charity stripe and lost by six points. That’s adjustable.
In Florida’s four losses last season, three of them were by a margin in which better free throw shooting would have been the difference. In Florida’s 106-100 loss at Kentucky, the Gators only made 22 of 35 free throws. In an 83-82 loss at home against Missouri, Florida made 21 of 31 free throws. Florida made 18 of 29 free throws in an 88-83 loss at Georgia.
Monday night was just another example of missed free throws costing Florida.
There are plenty of issues to solve, but plenty of games for Florida to solve those issues. The Gators will have their first attempt at fostering those changes against North Florida. Tipoff is at 8 p.m. and coverage will start at 7 p.m. on ESPN 98.1-FM, 103.7-FM/850-AM WRUF.
Category: College Basketball, Gators Men's Basketball
