The Florida Gators traveled to Lexington, KY, with an outside shot at an upset victory over the No. 3 Kentucky Wildcats and possibly a guaranteed spot in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. Though Florida (20-11, 9-7 SEC) was unable to pull out the win, the team showed resilience and a solid all-around effort while falling 74-66 to Kentucky (29-2, 14-2 SEC) at Rupp Arena.

Three Gators – junior forward Alex Tyus (12 points) and freshmen F Erik Murphy (11) and guard Kenny Boynton (11) – scored in double figures, but Florida’s defense was unable to contain the Wildcats. Five Kentucky players posted double-digit points as guards Eric Bledsoe and Darius Miller led the way with 14 points, F Patrick Patterson added 13, G John Wall contributed 11 and G Darnell Dodson posted 10.

Read the rest of OGGOA’s Florida at No. 3 Kentucky game story after the jump!
Continue Reading » Florida puts up a fight, falls to No. 3 Kentucky

Tags: Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, Darius Miller, Darnell Dodson, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, John Wall, Kenny Boynton, Kentucky Wildcats, NCAA Tournament, Patrick Patterson, Ray Shipman, Rupp Arena, Senior Day, Vernon Macklin

Location: Rupp Arena – Lexington, KY [Capacity: 23,500]
Time: 12:00 p.m. (EST)

TV: CBS/CBSHD
Online Video: CBSSports.com
Live Updates: OGGOA on Twitter

Odds: TBD

KEEP AN EYE ON…
» Junior forward Chandler Parsons…who has scored in double figures in seven of his last eight games and has two double-doubles in those contests. He has also helped run the point while averaging 15.9 points and 7.6 rebounds and shooting 55.4 percent.
» Double-digit scoring by Vernon Macklin…the Gators are 13-4 when the redshirt junior transfer center finishes in double figures. Macklin has scored in double figures in five of the last six games, averaging 14.2 points and 7.7 boards in that span.
» The backcourt combo of sophomore point guard Erving Walker and freshman guard Kenny Boynton…who are averaging a combined 28.2 points per game in conference play this season. The duo has hit 65 treys in SEC action.
» Kentucky’s John Wall…who leads the SEC in assts and is tops on his team in points with an average of 17.0 per game.
» The Wildcats’ DeMarcus Cousins…who compliments Wall perfectly with averages of 15.9 points per game and 10.1 rebounds per game.

STREAKS:
» Kentucky leads the all-time series against Florida 87-32, though the Gators have won eight of the last 11 meetings. Billy Donovan is 12-17 against the Wildcats and only 3-10 when facing them at Rupp Arena.
» Florida has won nine of its last 13 conference games; the Gators hope to reach 10 league wins for the ninth time in the last 12 years and first time since 2007.
» UF is 5-3 on the road and can reach six road wins for the first time since 2005-06.
» Parsons needs just 15 points to reach 1,000 for his career.
» The Gators are 13-3 in 2009-10 when out-rebounding their opponents.
» Kentucky has clinched the SEC regular season crown with a 13-2 conference record. They are undefeated at home, 17-0.
» The Wildcats are first in the SEC in scoring offense (79.9 points per game) and fourth in the nation in rebounds (41.9 board per game).

Tags: Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, DeMarcus Cousins, Erving Walker, John Calipari, John Wall, Kenny Boynton, Kentucky Wildcats, SEC, Vernon Macklin

Opening BIT » Congratulations to forward/center Al Horford of the Atlanta Hawks for a career-high 31 points in his 200th NBA game on Wednesday! “In the fourth quarter, I looked up at the scoreboard and I was pretty excited about it,” Horford said. “Obviously, I’m more concerned about winning. But when you’re able to do something like that individually, it always feels good.”

1 » Coming through with two titles, one Southeastern Conference record and one school record on the first day of competition, Florida Gators swimming and diving completed its second of four days of competition in the 2010 SEC Championships by taking home three more individual conference titles as well as a relay title. Junior Conor Dwyer and seniors Shaune Fraser and Gemma Spofforth all won individual SEC Championships, while the Gators women’s 200 free relay team defended its title. Florida now has six SEC titles in the first two days of the meet. The Gators men’s and women’s teams each led their respective fields going into Thursday’s events; however, both fell to second by the time the day was over. UF also achieved numerous NCAA qualifying times throughout the day. Day three of the SEC Championships begins Friday at 10 a.m. from the Gabrielsen Natatorium at the University of Georgia.
Men: Auburn (291 points), Florida (282), Georgia (205)
Women: Georgia (300 points), Florida (266), Auburn (248)

2 » While the men’s team bounced back with a win Thursday against Auburn after suffering consecutive losses, Florida women’s basketball (13-13, 6-7 SEC) fell to their third-straight ranked opponent on the road against the No. 16 Kentucky Wildcats (22-4, 10-3 SEC) in the Memorial Coliseum. A three-pointer by senior guard Lonnika Thompson with 9:04 remaining in the game brought the Gators within two points of the Wildcats (47-45), but Florida would allow Kentucky to outscore them 30-6 in the remaining time to pull off a 77-51 victory. Dooming the Gators were 23 turnovers and poor defense – the Wildcats shot 66.7 percent from the floor. Florida will try to bounce back against another ranked opponent, the No. 20 Georgia Bulldogs, who they host in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center on Sun., Feb. 21 at 5 p.m. The game will air on ESPN2.

Tags: Al Horford, Atlanta Hawks, Conor Dwyer, diving, Gabrielsen Natatorium, Gemma Spofforth, Kentucky Wildcats, Lonnika Thompson, Memorial Coliseum, NBA, NCAA, SEC Championship, Shaune Fraser, swimming, University of Georgia, women's basketball

1 » Originally a second-round pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2007 NBA Draft, former Florida Gators forward/center Chris Richard was most recently playing for the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League. That was until Feb. 5 when he signed a 10-day contract with the NBA’s Chicago Bulls. In fact, the Bulls have been so impressed with his limited work that they have decided to sign Richard to a second 10-day contract as fellow former Florida F/C Joakim Noah continues to nurse his plantar fasciitis injury. Richard also played for Chicago during the preseason and saw action in six games before being released.

2 » It is tough to question new Kentucky Wildcats head coach Joker Phillips’ football credentials, seeing as he has coached Division I college football for over 20 years. But when he goes out of his way to call former Gators quarterback Tim Tebow a “goon,” well, OGGOA can certainly question his vocabulary. Asked by CBS if he senses “an opening at Florida with Urban Meyer’s status up in the air,” Phillips responded that the loss of Tebow is the real key. “Obviously, Florida won’t be the same,” he said. “They had a goon at quarterback. Usually the goon is the offensive or defensive lineman. They’ve had a goon at quarterback. That guy is a great leader. He could play anywhere. He’s a coach on the field. He’s one of those guys who rarely comes around. Now with him being gone, you hope that they take a step back. They will, definitely, in leadership.” If you want to get technical, there is a definition of goon (a man hired to terrorize or eliminate opponents) that fits Phillips’ usage…but it is a stretch to say the least. You could also argue that this BIT is a stretch. Well…so be it.

Tags: Chicago Bulls, Chris Richard, Joakim Noah, Joker Phillips, Kentucky Wildcats, NBA, NBDL, Tim Tebow, Tulsa 66ers, Urban Meyer

After Charlie Strong was officially hired as head coach of the Louisville Cardinals, the Florida Gators took a month to replace him with former Miami Dolphins inside linebackers coach George Edwards. Now, after less than a month on the job, Edwards has left to be defensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills leaving head coach Urban Meyer and, more specifically, interim head coach Steve Addazio with another staff position to fill. Assistant head coach, defense/defensive line coach Dan McCarney and assistant defensive coordinator/safeties coach Chuck Heater are currently the Gators’ leading replacement candidates, though the team may hire someone from the outside.

Check out some potential candidates to replace Edwards after the jump!
Continue Reading » Replacing Edwards as defensive coordinator

Tags: Buffalo Bills, Charlie Harbison, Charlie Strong, Chuck Heater, Dan McCarney, Everett Withers, George Edwards, Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, North Carolina Tar Heels, Ole Miss Rebels, Steve Addazio, Steve Brown, Tyrone Nix, Urban Meyer

1 » After losing its opening match, the No. 4 Florida Gators gymnastics team (2-1, 2-0 SEC) won its second straight contest of the season Friday. Florida traveled to face the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats (3-2, 1-2 SEC) in Lexington, KY, and took home a 196.05-195.35 victory at Memorial Coliseum. Freshman sensation Ashanée Dickerson won her third-straight all-around competition with a total of 39.25. Overall, the Gators finished the day with at least a share of four of five event titles. Florida continues its streak of facing ranked SEC opponents when it hosts the No. 16 LSU Tigers on Jan. 29 at 7 p.m. for the fourth annual Gators Link to Pink meet in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center to raise awareness about breast cancer.

Learn about three more big Gators victories, injury updates on a football and basketball player and David Lee’s season-high night after the jump…
Continue Reading » FOUR BITS: Gators take home four wins Friday

Tags: Alexandre Lacroix, Antoine Benneteau, Ashanée Dickerson, Auburn Tigers, Central Florida Knights, Claudio Romano, Conor Dwyer, David Lee, Dee Finley, diving, gymnastics, Kenny Kadji, Kentucky Wildcats, Linder Stadium, Marc Rocafort, Memorial Coliseum, NBA, New York Knicks, Omar Pinzon, O’Connell Center, Ring Tennis Complex, swimming, tennis

1 » If you were watching the basketball game Tuesday night between the Florida Gators and No. 2 Kentucky Wildcats, you may have seen this clip of head coach Urban Meyer and his wife Shelley smirking while checking their respective phones:

2 » The Tennessean points out that former Tennessee Volunteers head coach Lane Kiffin “decided it was included in his job description […] to annoy Urban Meyer.” Unfortunately, as the article puts it, “a good feud was just ruined.” Similarly, the Orlando Sentinel recounts Kiffin’s top 10 most memorable moments as coach of the Volunteers.

3 » The brand new 2010 ESPNU 150 and 2010 Rivals100 both list Gators five-star defensive end commitment Ronald Powell (Moreno Valley, CA) as their respective No. 1 prospect in the country. Other top Florida recruits ranking high on both lists include five-star DE Dominique Easley (3/7) five-star safety Matt Elam (9/25), five-star defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd (25/4), four-star cornerback Joshua Shaw (28/28), four-star tight end Gerald Christian (35/81), four-star wide receiver Chris Dunkley (37/77), four-star offensive tackle Ian Silberman (41/71), four-star CB Jaylen Watkins (50/47) and four-star DT Leon Orr (81/95). Others who made the ESPNU list but not Rivals’ include: S Jonathan Dowling (10/NR), S Demar Dorsey (12/NR), RB Mack Brown (34/NR), CB Cody Riggs (79/NR), WR Solomon Patton (106/NR). ESPNU ranks four Gators in its top 10.

4 » “If Florida is to be an NCAA tournament team again — if it’s to snap a two-year hiatus after consecutive NCAA titles — the Gators must start a roll Saturday against LSU,” writes ESPN senior college basketball writer Andy Katz. Read his entire blog entry on the Gators and their hopes to earn a spot in March Madness this season.

Tags: Chris Dunkley, Cody Riggs, Demar Dorsey, Dominique Easley, Gerald Christian, Ian Silberman, Jaylen Watkins, Jonathan Dowling, Joshua Shaw, Kentucky Wildcats, Lane Kiffin, Leon Orr, Mack Brown, Matt Elam, Ronald Powell, Sharrif Floyd, Shelley Meyer, Solomon Patton, Tennessee Volunteers, Urban Meyer