Florida Gators senior point guard Scottie Wilbekin has been disciplined by the team for the second time in a seven-month span as the school announced Monday that he has been suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules.

Wilbekin, who spent his first two years with the Gators as a reserve but averaged 9.1 points and a team-high 5.0 assists in a team-most 31.9 minutes per game as Florida’s starting point guard last season, missed the first three contests of the 2012-13 campaign after he was suspended by head coach Billy Donovan just one day before the team opened its season against Georgetown.

That was also termed an indefinite suspension for a violation of team rules.

“Scottie is a great kid who I think made some choices and did some things that I’m not going to have him a part of,” Donovan said on Nov. 8, 2012. “Like all these guys are in college, they’re all growing and maturing and trying to make decisions and get better and find out and discover who they want to be as people. I think Scottie will learn from this; he’ll grow from this. I think he’ll be better from it.”

Wilbekin was likely to enter the 2013-14 season as the Gators’ starter at point guard though some believe five-star incoming freshman Kasey Hill (Clermont, FL) is a better all-around player. Donovan had recently indicated that Wilbekin and Hill could both start, if the latter earned the opportunity, with one of the two playing off-guard.

Should Wilbekin’s latest suspension carry over into the season, he could miss a significant amount of action considering the length of his previous suspension.

The other two point guards on Florida’s roster last season are no longer with the team as Kenny Boynton graduated and Braxton Ogbueze transferred to Charlotte after barely seeing the court as a freshman.

Tags: Billy Donovan, Braxton Ogbueze, Kasey Hill, Kenny Boynton, Scottie Wilbekin

Through the 2013 NBA Draft on June 27, former Florida Gators forward Erik Murphy, the team’s leading three-point shooter last season (.453), will be keeping you up-to-date on his Path to the Draft via a weekly blog entry here on OGGOA.

In the middle of a week that has him working out with four different teams, Murphy got in touch with OGGOA to discuss his first four workouts and the experience he had at a Pro Day hosted by Impact Basketball in Las Vegas, NV, from May 30-31.

Just one day after my last entry, on May 25, I flew out to visit with the San Antonio Spurs. My workout with the team was scheduled for May 26, so the day I got in I just went to the gym to get some shots up and grabbed dinner. Some of the other players I was there with, we ended up watching San Antonio play Memphis that night while still at the facility. The Spurs won 104-93 in overtime, so everyone was in a good mood.

The next morning, I got up around 8 a.m., showered and ate breakfast and then went straight into an interview with members of the scouting department. Next was some on-court testing, which was a nice warm-up for the workout that started around 10:30 a.m. There were shooting drills, three-on-three play and then more shooting and skill drills. It was definitely a good day overall, and the workout went well for me.

Andy [Miller], my agent, got some great feedback from San Antonio and president R.C. Buford, who was there to see my workout.

Continue Reading » Erik Murphy – Path to 2013 NBA Draft: Workouts

Tags: Detroit Pistons, Draft, Erik Murphy, Indiana Pacers, Kenny Boynton, NBA, Orlando Magic, San Antonio Spurs

Through the 2013 NBA Draft, which is set for June 27, former Florida Gators forward Erik Murphy, the team’s leading three-point shooter last season (.453), will be keeping you up-to-date on his Path to the Draft via a weekly blog entry here on OGGOA.

Between workouts in Las Vegas, NV on Thursday, which he is taking part in as preparation for next week’s 2013 NBA Combine, Murphy got in touch with OGGOA to discuss what he has been doing to get ready for the draft over the last month.

After the tournament, I took a little bit of time off, about a week and a half to just hang out, relax and unwind. I did not even meet with any agents during that time. Eventually I met with a couple people – B.J. Armstrong and Art Tellem (Wasserman Media Group), for example – with my dad, who came down, Coach [Billy] Donovan and others were there to help me. I was talking with Mark Bartelstein (Priority Sports and Entertainment) because he’s [the agent for Chandler Parsons, Bradley Beal and David Lee], but I just decided that Andy Miller (ASM Sports) was the best choice for me.

I just felt really comfortable with him. Going through the process of being with the agents, getting to know them a little more, it’s a partnership hopefully for a long time, so you want to be comfortable with the person. They’re all great and do what they do well; it was just a comfort level and getting along with him really well that made the decision pretty easy at the end.

Part of my conversation with Andy was laying out a plan for the entire process. Most of the guys Andy signs, as long as they find it agreeable, he sends them out to Las Vegas to train at Impact Basketball. I’ve actually been out here before when I was young, training for a couple weeks during the summer, but Impact is a different spot, of course. He basically set me up out here with Impact and [founder/president] Joe Abunassar.

I’ve just been out here for the last three weeks, except when I went back to school for graduation, working out every day, lifting, getting in really good shape and getting a good feel for what I’ll be doing during the combine. It’s a good idea to get comfortable with the process, get acclimated before the combine.

Continue Reading » Erik Murphy – Path to 2013 NBA Draft: Las Vegas

Tags: Billy Donovan, combine, Draft, Erik Murphy, Kenny Boynton, NBA

1 » Only one of the two Florida Gators golfers competing in the 2013 Masters moved on to weekend play. After hitting an even 72 in the opening round on Thursday, Brian Gay shot a +2 (74) on Friday and is currently tied for 37th, three strokes above the cut line. Senior T.J. Vogel, who earned a spot in the major as an amateur event winner, was not as fortunate. He shot a +5 (77) on Thursday but was able to bring his score down with a +3 (75) on Friday. Vogel missed the cut by four strokes, ending his special weekend earlier than he would hoped. “I just had a good time,” he said Thursday after his first round. “This experience, I can’t even explain even in words. I’m just having such a great time playing in front of so many people and it’s just a really cool feeling when you know you hita great shot and you got people cheering for you. And I’m not used to that yet. It’s just really cool.”

2 » Former Florida QB Jacoby Brissett sounds more than slightly perturbed that he lost the starting job to Jeff Driskel last season. In a feature penned by Jeremy Fowler of CBSSports.com, Brissett indicates that he did not receive a fair shot to start for the Gators before throwing a barb at Driskel for his performance in the last game of the season. “It wasn’t right,” he said of the competition. “In the saying that God don’t like ugly, it came up to us in the Sugar Bowl when we couldn’t throw to save our life.” He then took a second shot at Driskel, basically questioning his former teammate’s work ethic while explaining why it was Brissett who should have started at Florida. “Just my competitiveness, I don’t think it was matched with that other guy,” he said. “The willingness to put in that extra work to win.”

Read four more Florida Gators news BITS…after the break!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: Masters, Brissett, Booth, Tebow, PIT

Tags: All-American, Brian Gay, golf, Great Floridian Award, Jacksonville Jaguars, Jacoby Brissett, Jeff Driskel, Kenny Boynton, Laura Booth, Masters, Mike Mularkey, Mike Rosario, NCAA, NCAA Championship, New York Jets, NFL, PGA, Portsmouth Invitational, swimming, T.J. Vogel, Tim Tebow

1 » The attendees for the 2013 NFL Draft were officially announced on Wednesday and right at the top of the list was Florida Gators defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd. A guaranteed first-round pick who is expected to go somewhere in the top five overall, Floyd will be sitting at a table at Radio City Music Hall in New York, NY waiting for league commissioner Roger Goodell to call his name on Thursday, April 25. Now all that is left to wonder is which team selects Floyd and whether or not he will give Goodell a bear hug after joining him on stage.

2 » Former Gators quarterback Tim Tebow is set to be recognized by Florida Governor Rick Scott with the Great Floridian Award, the state announced on Wednesday. The ceremony, which will be held on Friday at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Verda Beach, FL, recognizes “outstanding achievements of men and women who have made significant contributions to the progress and welfare of Florida.” Previous honorees include politicians, business leaders, veterans, Supreme Court Justices and philanthropists, among others. Tebow will join the 66 current “Great Floridians” and be honored alongside names like head coach Bobby Bowden, Governor Jeb Bush, inventor Thomas Edison, Stephen C. O’Connell and businessman Ben Hill Griffin, Jr.

3 » Competing in the first day of the 2013 Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, former Gators guard Kenny Boynton finished his opening round game 2-for-6 (1-for-4 from three) with seven points, seven rebounds, six assists, a steal and just one turnover in 20 minutes. Boynton came off the bench for Mike Duman Auto Sales, which fell 90-89 to Portsmouth Partnership. His team plays again on Thursday at 3:15 p.m. Former Florida G Mike Rosario, playing for the Portsmouth Sports Club, takes the court for the first time on Thursday at 7 p.m.

Read three more BITS of Florida Gators news…after the break!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: NFL Draft, Tebow, PIT, Murphy, Brewer

Tags: Aaron Hernandez, Corey Brewer, Denver Nuggets, Draft, Great Floridian Award, Kenny Boynton, Louis Murphy, Mike Rosario, NBA, New England Patriots, New York Giants, NFL, Portsmouth Invitational, Sharrif Floyd, Tim Tebow, TPC Sawgrass

1 » Despite ending their 2013 NCAA Tournament run in the Elite Eight for the third-straight year, Florida Gators basketball was placed at No. 9 in the final USA Today Coaches’ Top 25 poll of the 2012-13 season. Florida was not the only Elite Eight team to fall outside the top eight of the poll, however, as Marquette checked in at No. 11 in the final rankings. Indiana (Sweet 16 loss to Syracuse) and Kansas (Sweet 16 loss to Michigan) took the two other spots in the top eight. The Gators also checked in at No. 9 and No. 10 in 2011-12 and 2010-11, respectively, after losing in the Elite Eight. Florida will likely enter the 2013-14 campaign ranked in the preseason top-10.

2 » No. 2 Gators women’s tennis (17-2, 10-1 SEC) ran through its competition over the weekend, extending their winning streaks to 10 consecutive team matches and 30-straight individual matches. Florida swept the Ole Miss Rebels (10-10, 4-6 SEC) and Mississippi State Bulldogs (7-12, 1-10 SEC) in a pair of home showdowns over the weekend at Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex in Gainesville, FL. The Gators won all 11 matches and had the opportunity to celebrate Senior Day against the Bulldogs on Sunday. Seniors No. 1 Lauren Embree and No. 125 Caroline Hitimana were each unable to finish their singles matches due to Florida registering a quick 4-0 victory but both won their doubles contests. The No. 20 duo of Embree and junior Sofie Oyen picked up an 8-2 win, while Hitimana and junior Alex Cercone won 8-0.

On Monday, head coach Roland Thornqvist praised Embree at his press conference, making note of her incredible career and tremendous work ethic. “You want to know why Lauren Embree is the best college player to ever play the game?” he asked rhetorically. “It was Monday morning at 8:30, and after a weekend full of matches and practices, she runs to the courts, hits serves for 30 minutes, then I show up and we go at it [on the court] for an hour and 15 minutes. By 10:00, she’s done with two workouts already while the rest of tennis America is still sleeping. That’s why we’re good and that’s why she’s good. She sets the tone, the bar is high, and I think everybody feeds off of it. We’ve just been blessed to have that for four years. Frankly, it’s just amazing.” The Gators women’s tennis program is hoping to win its third-straight national title.

Read four more BITS of Florida Gators news…after the break!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: top 25, tennis, Muschamp, PIT, Tebow

Tags: Alex Cercone, baseball, Caroline Hitimana, Detroit Pistons, Draft, Elite Eight, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Lauren Embree, Linder Stadium, Mike Rosario, Mississippi State Bulldogs, NBA, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, New England Patriots, New York Jets, NFL, Ole Miss Rebels, Orange & Blue Debut, Portsmouth Invitational, Ring Tennis Complex, Roland Thornqvist, Seattle Seahawks, Senior Day, Sofie Oyen, softball, St. Louis Rams, Tim Tebow, Vernon Macklin, Will Muschamp, women's tennis

The three-seed Florida Gators (29-8) collapsed in their most important game of the season on Sunday as they got routed 79-59 by the four-seed Michigan Wolverines (30-7) in the Elite Eight of the 2013 NCAA Tournament at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX. After the game, head coach Billy Donovan and a number of his players met with the media to discuss what transpired in their failed Final Four bid.

OPENING STATEMENT

“They capitalized on our turnovers. I thought we dug ourselves a hole very early in the game. … I think in the first half we missed 11 shots within three feet of the basket. They got off to a hot start and us not being able to manufacture enough points I thought really, really dug us a hole. I thought we got the ball where we wanted to go. … But I thought our guys – to start the second half came out – we battled, we fought, but we hurt ourselves with the way we played. … I just didn’t think that we did enough things there on both ends of the floor. I thought our defense in the second half was a little bit more characteristic of the way we’ve played this year. I thought our offense in a lot of ways, because we had some very, very, I thought, good quality looks deflated us around the basket. Especially against a team that’s not a great shot blocking team.”

THIRD TIME IS NOT A CHARM

Florida became the first team in NCAA Tournament history (since the field expanded to 64 teams) to lose three-straight times in the Elite Eight. Yet while the Gators did drop the game, they did not even have the opportunity to choke it away like the previous two years because UF never led at any point in the game. In fact, once Michigan opened the contest on a 13-0 run, Florida never trailed by fewer than 11 points over the duration of the contest. It is for that reason why Donovan was not emotional after the game.

“This is a totally different feel than the last two. The last two to me we gave ourselves every opportunity to win,” he explained.

“The Butler game was an overtime game, the Louisville game was a two point game. This one we didn’t play well enough or deserve to win the game. Michigan deserved this game. They played better than us. They performed better. They did things that were necessary to beat us. The other two games I was heartbroken for our team because we were really, really close. We weren’t that close here [Sunday].”

Asked how, as a coach, it felt to lose in three-straight Elite Eights and not advance to the Final Four, Donovan brushed off those concerns. “Well, it’s not really about me. I’ve been fortunate enough to be there as a player and several times as a coach,” he said. “I feel more upset for [Kenny] Boynton, [Mike] Rosario and [Erik] Murphy, [guys] who don’t get a chance and have come so close. I’ve experienced the Final Four enough. I want our program to continue to experience it and our players.”

To their credit, the players also took the loss relatively well all things considering. Boynton kept his chin up about the situation, expressing his regrets but also his appreciation for what his teammates and coach have done for him.

Continue Reading » 3/31: Florida vs. Michigan post-game report

Tags: Big Ten, Billy Donovan, Cowboys Stadium, Elite Eight, Erik Murphy, Kenny Boynton, Michigan Wolverines, Mike Rosario, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Patric Young, Scottie Wilbekin, Sweet 16

The third time was certainly not a charm for the three-seed Florida Gators, which trailed from wire-to-wire and watched the more athletic and determined four-seed Michigan Wolverines dominate their Elite Eight showdown on Sunday afternoon at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX.

Florida (29-8), which became the first team in NCAA Tournament history to lose in the Elite Eight in three-straight seasons since the field expanded to 64 teams, was taken down 79-59 by Michigan (30-7), which moved on to its first Final Four since 1994.

The Gators put together one of their worst offensive performances of the season, entering Sunday’s game with a game plan that simply did not work against a longer and stronger Wolverines team. UF also played lackluster defense most of the contest, allowing its opponent to do basically whatever it wanted in both halves.

In fact, two of Florida’s starters – senior forward Erik Murphy and junior point guard Scottie Wilbekin – combined to go 1-for-17 from the field and 0-for-2 from downtown with seven combined turnovers. The Gators simply never had a chance to blow its third-straight second-half lead in the round because they never had a lead to begin with.

Continue Reading » (4) Wolverines overwhelm (3) Gators 79-59 as Florida drops third-straight Elite Eight

Tags: Big Ten, Cowboys Stadium, Elite Eight, Erik Murphy, Final Four, Kenny Boynton, Michael Frazier, Michigan Wolverines, Mike Rosario, Mitch McGary, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Nick Stauskas, Scottie Wilbekin, SEC, Trey Burke, Will Yeguete