1 » Florida Gators (16-6, 5-3) vs. Mississippi State Bulldogs (16-6, 4-3) Pre-Game:
Location: Stephen C. O’Connell Center – Gainesville, FL [Capacity: 12,000]
Time: 1:30 p.m. (EST) | TV: SEC Network | Online: ESPN360 | Odds: Florida -3, O/U (off)

- Florida leads the all-time series against Mississippi State 56-47; however, the Bulldogs have prevailed in the last two meetings. The Gators are 9-6 against this opponent under head coach Billy Donovan and have not defeated them since Jan. 24, 2007.
- Florida is 10-2 overall and 3-1 in SEC play at home this year; they have won 36 of their last 44 conference games at the O’Dome.
- The Gators are 5-3 in games decided by five points or less compared to 4-6 in such games last season. Florida is 4-1 in the last five contests that were that close. They are also 5-0 in conference play when out-rebounding an opponent
- Florida has hit at least one three-pointer in 600 consecutive games.
-The dynamic backcourt of sophomore point guard Erving Walker and freshman guard Kenny Boynton is averaging 33.4 points and 8.1 assists per game in SEC play this season. The duo has hit 45 of the Gators’ 56 treys in conference action.
- Junior forward Alex Tyus is dominating the front court, averaging 15.5 points and 7.4 rebounds over the last 13 contests. He has hit double figures in 13 straight games, scored 15+ in eight of those 13 and is averaging 20.0 ppg in his last three outings.
- The triumvirate of Walker, Boynton and Tyus are combining for 48.8 of Florida’s 72.2 points per game in SEC play (67.6 percent).

2 » Jeremy Fowler of the Orlando Sentinel took the initiative to seek out the teams that the Gators need to lose in order to help solidify a spot in the 2010 NCAA Tournament.

Tags: Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Mississippi State Bulldogs, NCAA Tournament, O'Connell Center, SEC

Former Florida Gators forward/center Chris Richard has signed a 10-day contract with the NBA’s Chicago Bulls. Richard, originally a second-round pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2007 NBA Draft, was most recently playing for the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League.

Fellow former Florida F/C Joakim Noah is out through the All-Star break with plantar fasciitis; Richard was signed to fill his roster spot on the Bulls. Richard played for Chicago during the preseason and saw action in six games before being released.

Tags: Chicago Bulls, Chris Richard, Joakim Noah, NBA, NBA D-League, Tulsa 66ers

It took senior forward Dan Werner strongly batting away an in bounds toss with 3.5 seconds remaining on the clock to propel the Florida Gators (16-6, 5-3 SEC) to a 66-65 win over the Alabama Crimson Tide (13-9, 3-5 SEC) on the road at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, AL.

Though Werner made a heads-up play in the final seconds, he preceded it with a major mistake that could have cost his team the game. The Gators were only up four with 1:09 remaining in the game when he inexplicably fouled Crimson Tide guard Anthony Brock to allow Alabama to continue its 9-2 run and cut Florida’s lead to one. A runner by G Mikhail Torrance gave the Tide a 65-64 lead with only 44 seconds left, but a clutch floater by Gators sophomore point guard Erving Walker with nine tickets left on the clock ended up being the game-winning basket.

Read the rest of OGGOA’s Florida at Alabama game story after the jump!
Continue Reading » Walker floats Gators to 66-65 win over Tide

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Alex Tyus, Anthony Brock, Anthony Grant, Billy Donovan, Coleman Coliseum, Dan Werner, Erving Walker, JaMychal Green, Kenny Boynton, Mikhail Torrance, Tony Mitchell

Location: Coleman Coliseum – Tuscaloosa, AL [Capacity: 15,316]
Time: 7:00 p.m. (EST)

TV: ESPNU
Online: ESPN360

Odds: Florida +2.5, O/U 128.5

KEEP AN EYE ON…
-The dynamic backcourt of…sophomore point guard Erving Walker and freshman guard Kenny Boynton who are averaging 33.7 points and 8.4 assists per game in SEC play this season.
- Speaking of Walker and Boynton…they have hit 40 of the Gators’ 49 treys in SEC play, and Walker is shooting 55.8 percent (24-of-43) from downtown in conference action.
- Junior forward Alex Tyus…who is dominating the front court, averaging 15.2 points and 7.4 rebounds over the last 12 contests. He has hit double figures in 12 straight games and scored 15+ in seven of those 12.
- Double-digit scoring by Vernon Macklin…Florida is 10-1 when the redshirt junior transfer center does so.
- Alabama sophomore forward JaMychal Green leads the team with 7.2 boards per game while also contributing 14.6 points. Senior guard Mikhail Torrance is tops on the team with 15.1 points per game.

STREAKS:
- Alabama leads the all-time series against Florida 73-56; however, the Gators have prevailed in 14 of the last 17 meetings.
- The Gators are 15-5 against the Crimson Tide under head coach Billy Donovan and won the last time they visited Coleman Coliseum on Jan. 8, 2008.
- Donovan’s long-time assistant, Anthony Grant, is Alabama’s new head coach; the two will be going head-to-head for the first time.
- The Gators ended a four-game winning streak on Sunday with a loss to No. 14 Tennessee. It was their longest in SEC play since 2007.
- Allowing 95 and 89 points to its first to SEC opponents, the Gators have held teams to 62.4 points per game over the last five. Florida is 10-1 this season when holding opponents to 60 points or less and 120-2 all-time under Donovan.
- The Gators have hit at least one three-pointer In 599 consecutive games.
- The Crimson Tide have upset wins over then-No. 15 Michigan and then-No. 23 Mississippi State this season.
- As a team, Alabama is averaging 68.4 points per game while holding opponents to just 31.7 percent shooting from three-point range.

Read OGGOA’s Florida Gators at Alabama Crimson Tide preview after the jump!
Continue Reading » Gameday: Florida Gators at Alabama Crimson Tide

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Alex Tyus, Anthony Grant, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, Coleman Coliseum, Erving Walker, JaMychal Green, Kenny Boynton, Mikhail Torrance, SEC, Vernon Macklin

1 » When former Florida Gators assistant Anthony Grant left the program a few years ago to take over the Virginia Commonwealth Rams, head coach Billy Donovan wished him luck. When Donovan left the team after the 2007 National Championship game, Grant’s name was the first called by Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley to replace the long-time head coach. However, a change of heart by Donovan thurst Grant back to VCU, where he would eventually be tabbed as head coach by the Alabama Crimson Tide. Mentor and assistant will square-off for the first time Thursday in Tuscaloosa, AL. “You never like to play against one of your friends, but Anthony and I have a great relationship,” Donovan said.

2 » Speaking of Donovan, his frontcourt players from those championship seasons (and even the year after) have been experiencing a lot of success in the NBA recently. Philadelphia 76ers center Marreese Speights spoke with the Philadelphia Daily News about how genuinely happy he is that former teammate and now Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah is finding success in the pros. “He and a lot of the other guys were really good at watching out for me when I first got to Florida,” Speights said. “That meant a lot. It’s good to see him doing so well in the league, but it’s not surprising. He always has had a great work ethic, trying to improve his game in every way. He improved a lot in college, from not playing a lot as a freshman to becoming someone who could have been taken with the first overall pick.”

There are four more BITS waiting for you after the jump!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: Grant, Speights, Tebow, Easley, honors

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Allie Will, Anthony Grant, Billy Donovan, Chicago Bulls, Dominique Easley, field, Jacksonville Jaguars, Jeremy Foley, Jeremy Postin, Joakim Noah, Marreese Speights, NBA, NFL, Philadelphia 76ers, SEC, Shara Proctor, Tim Tebow, track, Uche Nwaneri, Virginia Commonwealth Rams

A missed layup by junior forward Alex Tyus with less than three second remaining resulted in the Florida Gators (15-6, 4-3 SEC) coming just short of upsetting the No. 14 Tennessee Volunteers (16-4, 4-2 SEC) on the road in Knoxville, TN. Tyus, who led the Gators with 18 points and seven rebounds, was hitting shots all game but unable to prevent a 61-60 victory by the Volunteers.

A clutch three-pointer by Florida junior F Chandler Parsons gave the Gators a one-point lead with 30 seconds left in the game. Following a timeout, Tennessee sophomore guard Scotty Hopson hit a long jump shot with 21 seconds remaining to put the Volunteers up by one. It was then that Tyus missed a layup on a pass into the post by sophomore point guard Erving Walker.

Walker and freshman guard Kenny Boynton were limited by Tennessee and shot a combined 5-of-20 from the field and 1-for-11 from downtown. Parsons was the team’s second leading scorer with 14 points; he added eight rebounds (seven of which came in the first half) and was 5-of-6 from the floor.

Read the rest of OGGOA’s No. 14 Tennessee vs. Florida game story after the jump!
Continue Reading » No. 14 Tennessee tops Florida in final seconds

Tags: Alex Tyus, Chandler Parsons, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Scotty Hopson, Tennessee Volunteers, Wayne Chism

Location: Thompson-Boiling Arena – Knoxville, TN [Capacity: 21,000]
Time: 1:00 p.m. (EST)

TV: CBS/CBSHD
Online: CBSSports.com

Odds: Tennessee -8, O/U 141

KEEP AN EYE ON…
-The dynamic backcourt of…sophomore point guard Erving Walker and freshman guard Kenny Boynton who are averaging 37.2 points (almost half of the team’s 75.3 total points) and 8.7 assists per game in SEC play this season.
- Speaking of Walker and Boynton…they have hit 39 of the Gators’ 45 treys in SEC play, and Walker is shooting 62.2 percent (23-of-37) from downtown in conference action.
- Junior forward Alex Tyus…who is dominating the front court, averaging 14.9 points and 7.5 rebounds over the last 11 contests. He has hit double figures in 11 straight games and scored 15+ in six of those ten.
- Double-digit scoring by Vernon Macklin…Florida is 10-1 when the redshirt junior transfer center does so.
- Buzzer-beaters from Chandler Parsons…the junior forward has hit two game-winning three-pointers in January. He is also averaging 10.6 points and 6.5 boards per contest.
- Senior center Wayne Chism…who leads the Volunteers in rebounding (6.9) and blocks (1.4). He also accounts for a solid 11.8 points per game.
- Sophomore guard Scotty Hopson…who is tops on Tennessee in scoring with 13.8 points per game.

STREAKS:
- Tennessee leads the all-time series 68-48, winning 10 of the last 13 meetings.
- Last season, the Volunteers swept the series; they have won the last five meetings against the Gators (since 2007).
- Florida has not won in Knoxville since 2005, and head coach Billy Donovan is 12-14 against Tennessee.
- The Gators are on a four-game winning streak, their longest in SEC play since 2007.
- Allowing 95 and 89 points to its first to SEC opponents, the Gators have held teams to 62.8 points per game during their four-game winning streak. Florida is 10-1 this season when holding opponents to 60 points or less and 120-2 all-time under Donovan.
- The Gators are out-rebounding their opponents by 5.2 boards during their four-game winning streak.
- Tennessee defeated then-No. 1 Kansas earlier in the season and also has a quality win over rival Memphis.
- As a team, the Volunteers are forcing 19.1 turnovers per game, averaging 78.7 points per game and hitting 47.1 percent from the floor.

Read OGGOA’s Gators vs. No. 14 Volunteers preview after the jump!
Continue Reading » Florida Gators vs. No. 14 Tennessee Volunteers

Tags: Adam Allen, Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Brian Williams, Bruce Pearl, Cameron Tatum, Chandler Parsons, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Kenny Kadji, Melvin Goins, Ray Shipman, Scotty Hopson, Tennessee Volunteers, Tyler Smith, Wayne Chism

1 » Former Florida Gators forward/center Al Horford of the Atlanta Hawks has been named as a participant in the 2010 NBA All-Star Game. Though OGGOA is quite pleased with Horford’s accomplishment, we would be remiss if we did not speak out for fellow former Gators F/C David Lee. Lee, who has played with the New York Knicks his entire career, was snubbed by voters after averaging an impressive 19.4 points per game and 11.4 rebounds per game thus far. To his credit, Horford is averaging 13.6 points per game and 9.8 rebounds per game.

2 » The following commits to Florida’s 2010 recruiting class have been named PARADE All-Americans: five-star defensive end Ronald Powell, five-star defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd, five-star safety Matt Elam and four-star cornerback Joshua Shaw.

3 » One aside from the 2010 Under Armour Senior Bowl is that players from the Gators and the Alabama Crimson Tide are playing together on the South team – and they’re having a good time doing it. “We’re getting along really well,” former Florida quarterback Tim Tebow said. “They’re good guys. We’ve had fun, trash-talking back and forth and giving each other a hard time. It’s been a lot of fun. When we break down (after a play), they say, ‘Go Alabama.’ They’ve been trying to get me to say that, but I haven’t yet. It’s been fun.”

Three more BITS including a Florida Gators bobsledder after the jump!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: All-Star, PARADE, Donovan, bobsled

Tags: Al Horford, Alabama Crimson Tide, All-American, All-Star, Atlanta Hawks, Billy Donovan, bobsled, Catholic University, Central Florida Knights, David Lee, Joshua Shaw, Linder Stadium, Matt Elam, NBA, New York Knicks, Olympics, PARADE, Ring Tennis Complex, Ronald Powell, Senior Bowl, Sharrif Floyd, Steve Mesler, tennis, Tim Tebow, track, Under Armour, William Donovan