On a three-game winning streak and looking to be victorious against a long-time rival, the No. 11/12 Florida Gators travel to Athens, GA to take on the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday. Florida head coach Billy Donovan met with the media Friday to discuss his team heading into the upcoming game.

YEGUETE’S ABSENCE CREATES OPPORTUNITIES FOR LARSON, PRATHER

Florida was excited to get sophomore forward Will Yeguete back on Tuesday after the defensive specialist missed just one game after suffering a concussion. The Gators were less enthused when Yeguete (broken foot) got injured in the second half of Tuesday’s game and was ruled out for the remainder of the season.

“No question he’s our most complete defensive player of what he can do because you can press with him in a great way, he can guard other people’s frontcourt players, you can switch with him and he can guard other people’s perimeter players. As a defender and a rebounder, he’s one of our more complete guys,” Donovan said on Friday.

“I’m disappointed he’s hurt. I’m disappointed he’s out. But there’s an opportunity for Casey Prather to grow here and really step up, for Cody Larson to step up, for our team to take on this challenge. A lot of times losing a key player is a great life lesson or teaching lesson for them to come together and try to overcome however you got to do it. It’s a great challenge.”

As Donovan noted, Prather and Larson are the two bench players who will most likely earn addition minutes in place of Yeguete. However, it will be a complete team effort to replace him on the court, something it appears as if the players realize.

“It’s a tough situation for him obviously. He’s a big part of this team. Mentally just knowing you’re not coming back the rest of the season is tough to deal with,” junior F Erik Murphy said. “The players know everybody needs to step up, do more and fill in the [blanks] that he left.”

Though Prather will see some time at the four, it will most likely be Larson who gets the most additional court time as Murphy and sophomore center Patric Young will also be shifted around and played in different lineups. Both Donovan and Murphy are confident that Larson can help Florida – especially on one end of the court.

“He knows what he’s doing defensively and he can physically battle inside,” Donovan said. “He is not totally confident offensively. He’s not really a scoring threat. Cody defends and impacts the game – not necessarily like Will does – but with the things that he can do.”

Murphy added, “Cody’s gotten a lot better since last year and he’s continuing to improve throughout the season as he gets more experience. He’s a physical guy. He plays hard. He puts his body in the right places.”

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Tags: Billy Donovan, Casey Prather, Cody Larson, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, Patric Young, Will Yeguete

The No. 11/12 Florida Gators started slow but pulled away from the Auburn Tigers in the second half of Tuesday night’s game, eventually routing their visitors 63-47.

Down 30-27 at the break after playing “careless” basketball including committing 12 turnovers and making a number of extremely poor decisions in the first half, the Gators received a stern talking to by head coach Billy Donovan in the locker room.

Senior point guard Erving Walker summed it up in three simple words: “You guys suck.”

Donovan was disappointed in his team not only for the turnovers but also because they played poor three-point defense and did not attack the boards on either end of the court.

“In the first half, there was nobody home mentally. We were slow reacting,” he said. “They beat us to a lot of loose basketballs and we were down by three. I think those guys realized that we got to kind of get going here a little bit.”

The first half ended with a microcosm of how the entire 20 minutes played out.

Rather than either trying to create a play or running the clock out as much as possible, Walker threw up and missed a long three-pointer that was rebounded and driven the entire length of the court for a buzzer-beating layup. Florida headed into the half down three, and Donovan knew he had to do something to help change his team’s fortunes.

“I spoke from my heart just how I felt about the way we played and what we did and what we needed to do,” he explained. “Those guys went out there and did it in the second half. They played very well and were able to get things turned around.”

Check out what Billy Donovan had to say to his team…after the break!
Continue Reading » Donovan’s halftime speech lights fire for Florida

Tags: Auburn Tigers, Billy Donovan, Casey Prather, Cody Larson, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Patric Young, Scottie Wilbekin, Will Yeguete

What started out as a potential upset bid turned into an absolute rout as the No. 11/12 Florida Gators (22-6, 10-3 SEC) more than doubled up the Auburn Tigers (14-13, 4-9 SEC) in the second half to pull away with a 63-47 victory on Tuesday night at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center in Gainesville, FL.

Florida outscored Auburn 36-17 over the final 20 minutes and was able to shoot their way past an 18-turnover performance that allowed their opponent to take 15 more shot attempts in the first half alone.

Gators junior guard Kenny Boynton led the way for his team with one of the most efficient shooting performances of his career, hitting 7-of-11 shots from the field and 6-of-9 from beyond the arc for a game-high 20 points.

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Tags: Auburn Tigers, Bradley Beal, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Stephen C. O'Connell Center

Coming off a pair of significant road victories, the newly-minted No. 11/12 Florida Gators are looking to continue their positive momentum Tuesday when they host the Auburn Tigers. Florida head coach Billy Donovan met with the media Monday to discuss his program heading into the upcoming game.

WALKER STEPS UP WITH CAREER NIGHT

Struggling with his stroke for the entire month of February (until Saturday), senior point guard Erving Walker broke out with a career-high 31 points against Arkansas on 9-of-12 shooting (5-of-6 from downtown) with five assists and no turnovers.

Donovan said Monday that a lot of Walker’s issues may have been his fault since he put so much on the veteran’s plate including leading the team on and off the court, corralling some of his tendencies, taking extra care of the ball and recognizing offensive and defensive occurrences during the game.

“Some of it was a lot of things that were built up on him – me being one of them. With him being our only senior and with the ball in his hands, I do think he’s trying to without question please me,” he said. “He hasn’t shot the ball well. He’s trying to run our team. He’s trying to do a lot of different things that maybe over the last couple of years he didn’t have to do.

“I’m trying to get him to think at a different level than maybe he’s had to in the past. The combination of all that stuff probably took away a little bit of him being focused on what he needs to do. In the game he’s done a better job of managing and handling all of that. I’ve also tried to take him to a different level in terms of his thought process and also take him to a different level in what it really means to be a point guard because some of those things are not natural for him. There is a balance between how much I do put on him and how much I take away from him. I do feel like in the game he played with a free mind. He was really focused.”

Junior guard Kenny Boynton was equally supportive of Walker, saying he played a great game and is doing his best to lead UF on the court. “He’s done a great job at it,” he said. “Erv’s not really a talkative guy on the court. He’s done a better job trying to be a leader on this team.”

Donovan added that though Walker may make mistakes or look out of control sometimes, he knows that it is not on purpose. “He really tries to do what I ask him to do,” he said. “He really goes out of his way to do that. I’m never worried about his intentions.”

ROSARIO SHOULD BE BACK ON TUESDAY
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Tags: Auburn Tigers, Billy Donovan, Cody Larson, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Mike Rosario, Patric Young, SEC

The Arkansas Razorbacks were undefeated at home heading into Saturday game, a showdown with the No. 12/14 Florida Gators at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, AR. Florida (21-6, 9-3 SEC) put an end to that 17-game winning streak by demolishing Arkansas (17-10, 5-7 SEC) 98-68 and put a major dent in their NCAA Tournament chances behind a career-best performance from senior point guard Erving Walker,

Walker led the Gators on Saturday with a career-high 31 points on 9-of-12 shooting (5-for-6 from downtown, 8-for-8 from the line) and game-high five assists.

UF utilized exceptional shooting and efficient offensive rhythm by the entire team to silence a raucous crowd that had previously helped the Razorbacks defeat a pair of top-20 opponents this season.

Florida held an early 8-7 advantage before exploding on a 19-4 run (and 25-6 scoring stretch) that included three-pointers on four-straight possessions and vaulted them ahead of Arkansas 33-13 with 8:47 to play in the first half.

Walker started the game 4-of-4 from beyond the arc and led the Gators to a hot 9-of-14 start from downtown. His fourth trey doubled up the Razorbacks, and UF continued their first half onslaught to jump ahead by 26 points at the break.

Florida began the second half by taking a 28-point lead on a three by freshman G Bradley Beal with 17 minutes to play. At one point, the Gators had hit nine-straight treys and 20 consecutive field goals over a 16:05 stretch spanning the half. Florida started 11-for-16 from beyond the arc and 21-of-31 from the floor with 12 assists.

The Gators found themselves ahead 30 points in the second half and took a game-high 32-point lead on Walker’s final trey of the game with 1:36 remaining.

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Tags: Arkansas Razorbacks, Bradley Beal, Bud Walton Arena, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, SEC, Will Yeguete

Looking to continue their winning ways after a decisive victory on Tuesday at Alabama, the No. 12/14 Florida Gators travel to Fayetteville, AR to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks on Saturday. Florida head coach Billy Donovan met with the media Friday to discuss his team heading into the upcoming game.

YEGUETE SET TO RETURN; ROSARIO NOT SO MUCH

Both still recovering from injuries, sophomore forward Will Yeguete (concussion) and redshirt junior guard Mike Rosario (hip pointer) returned to practice on Friday before the team left for Arkansas. However, despite Yeguete passing all five necessary concussion tests and Rosario practicing for the first time in over a week, Donovan was unsure if either would be available on Saturday.

“As it relates to me playing or not playing him, that will always be predicated on what the medical team says and how they feel,” he said of Yeguete. “When you’re out of practice and out of games for over a week, there probably is a level of rust, there probably is a level of timing that needs to get back,” he added when speaking about Rosario.

The Gators announced just under two hours before game time that Yeguete has been cleared to play; Rosario, on the other hand, did not travel with the team and will miss his sixth game (third-straight) this season.

A MEASURE OF REVENGE FOR PELPHREY

Now back with Florida as an assistant, former Arkansas head coach John Pelphrey will return to Fayetteville for the first time since the team fired him one year ago. Though he is still close with many of the players he recruited on the team, Donovan suspects that he will certainly feel something when he steps into the arena on Saturday.

“I’m sure internally there’s probably a lot of emotions there for him,” he said. “Any time there is a change like that, it’s always difficult. [...] I’m sure for him there will be some emotions and some feelings going back there.”

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Tags: Bradley Beal, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, John Pelphrey, Mike Rosario, Patric Young, Will Yeguete

The No. 7/8 Florida Gators should expect the numbers in front of their team name to drop significantly on Monday after being outplayed in both of their games this past week. After being routed 78-58 by the No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats on Tuesday, Florida was stunned at home by the unranked Tennessee Volunteers, which picked up a 75-70 win Saturday. Gators head coach Billy Donovan had plenty to talk about after the game as he looks to right the ship and finish out the 2011-12 regular season strong.

PUT UP OR SHUT UP TIME FOR THE GATORS

Florida has reached a point now where the team must decide how they want the rest of the season to play out. The Gators can either mature, learn from their mistakes, improve and fight their way to a high postseason ranking or falter like the 2007-08 team.

Like that squad, Donovan does not believe this year’s group has been “hardened” enough to understand what it takes to win game-in and game-out. He feels Florida struggles with some of the more minor things in games (getting fouled, missing shots) and instead should be worried about being consistently productive no matter what is happening around them.

“Our guys are not hardened enough right now. We have not been hardened. In a certain respect, there’s a lot of similarities – as much as I hate to say this – when Chandler Parsons was here as a freshman. There was not that hardening,” he said. “It took Chandler a couple of years. I’m using him [as an example], but I’d throw in Nick Calathes, [Marreese] Speights, that whole group. Those guys were not hardened.

“They followed two national champions and had no idea and no clue of what went into it. I think these guys are great guys, but we haven’t been hardened enough. Because of our limited depth there a little bit, we need to practice better. We need to be more on edge. We need to take everything to a different level, and we haven’t done that.”

Donovan let the Gators know just that after Saturday’s game by writing “NIT” in big letters on the board in the locker room, something he did mostly as a warning.

“My point on mentioning that to them was nothing more than the fact that there have been teams that have been here – Chandler and those guys started off the season 18-3,” he said. “We’re in a tough stretch for our team. I was using [2007-08] as an example. We’re 7-3 in our league after 10 games. We have six games left. There’s home games and the SEC Tournament.

“I don’t feel like we don’t have the opportunity to go to the NCAA Tournament. I was using it as an example of don’t take for granted what you have in front of you. We have a lot of work ahead of us. We can’t come in and lose every game. I was using it as an example of: Have an understanding and a respect level of how good you think you are.”

How much is this Florida team like the 2007-08 group? Here are just a few figures to keep in mind going forward:

YEGUETE OUT INDEFINITELY (CONCUSSION)
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Tags: Billy Donovan, Bradley Beal, Erving Walker, Kentucky Wildcats, Patric Young, Tennessee Volunteers, Will Yeguete

The Tennessee Volunteers travelled to Gainesville, FL on Saturday looking to win their first road game of the year while sweeping the No. 7/8 Florida Gators in the season series between the two teams for the first time since 2009. Tennessee succeeded in both of those goals, snapping Florida’s 19-game home winning streak at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center with a dominant 75-70 victory and handing UF back-to-back losses for the first time in two seasons.

The Volunteers (13-12, 5-5 SEC) upended the Gators (19-6, 7-3 SEC) with stellar defense and relentless effort on the offensive glass. Tennessee outrebounded Florida 36-30 (12-6 offensively) and also outscored the home team 36-14 in the paint and 17-8 on second chances. The Gators struggled shooting the ball for the second-straight game, connecting on just 42.6 percent of their field goals and 36.7 percent of their attempts from downtown.

Despite donning special Nike Hyper Elite Platinum uniforms and having an excited crowd behind them, Florida got off to an extremely slow start, hitting just four of their first 14 attempts from the field and falling behind 12 points to Tennessee, which used an impressive 15-2 run to jump out to the early lead.

During the Volunteers’ scoring stretch, Gators sophomore forward Will Yeguete went up for a block and fell down onto the court, hitting the top of his head into the stand supporting the basket. After being checked out by trainers, Yeguete left the game and never returned. He had a cut above his right eye, received stitches in the locker room and may have also suffered a concussion.

Yeguete’s injury forced him to become the third Florida player sitting out for the game as redshirt junior guard Mike Rosario (hip pointer) and redshirt freshman F Cody Larson (illness) did not dress for the contest.

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Tags: Bradley Beal, Cody Larson, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Mike Rosario, Stephen C. O'Connell Center, Tennessee Volunteers, Will Yeguete