Florida Gators head basketball coach Billy Donovan met with the media on Wednesday to wrap up the 2012-13 season and look ahead to next year.

A MESSAGE TO THE TEAM: “WE GOT TO GET NASTIER.”

Donovan has not yet met with the Gators as an entire team for a postseason send-off into the summer (that will happen soon enough) but does have plenty on his agenda as it pertains to helping Florida improve in the offseason.

“We need to get better as a team in every area. I thought we did make some really good strides this year on the defensive end of the floor. … We didn’t score the ball as much or as well as I think we’re capable of for whatever reason. We’ve got to continue to try and get better there in that area,” he said. “[I’m] trying to figure out what we can do better in practice, what we can do better coaching staff-wise, what we can do better coaching these guys all the way around.”

One other area in which Donovan stressed that the Gators need to improve is overall team mentality. Basically, he wants Florida as a team to be tougher and more resilient. In other words, he envisions the Gators playing like one of the program’s greatest players did on a consistent, night-in, night-out basis.

“I didn’t create Joakim Noah’s passion, energy, intensity, heart, toughness. I didn’t create that. That was in there. I think as a coaching staff we fostered it. That’s an area our guys need to get better,” he explained.

“We need to be more relentless. We need to be tougher. We need a mental will. We have to be better there. When adversity hits and those things hit, we got to get tougher, we got to get more competitive, we got to get nastier, we got to have more of that internal drive and will in those moments. I think we displayed some of that [this year]. I think there were games where we really displayed that. … I think we got the capability, but we got to be more consistent doing that.”

Read much, much more from Donovan on Florida basketball..after the break!
Continue Reading » 4/10: Donovan wraps up season and speaks about Young, Yeguete, transfers, freshmen & more

Tags: Billy Donovan, Chris Walker, Damontre Harris, Dorian Finney-Smith, Kasey Hill, Patric Young, Scottie Wilbekin, Will Yeguete

A position of relative weakness for men’s basketball over the last two seasons has suddenly become one of immense strength as the Florida Gators officially announced on Monday that center Patric Young will return to school for his senior season.

“I have the chance to finish my degree and play another season for Coach [Billy] Donovan with great teammates and friends at a place I love,” said Young in a school release. “These first three years have gone by in a flash, and I can’t believe it is my senior year already. I have gotten better as a player and better as a man at the University of Florida. I believe God has my future in his hands, so all I am worried about now is getting better this summer and making it the hardest I have trained in my life.”

After spending his first year with the Gators as a reserve, Young has served as Florida’s starting center over the last two seasons, averaging 10.2 points and 6.4 rebounds in 26.5 minutes per game in each campaign. Donovan has chided Young for his consistency on occasion in order to get the absoulte most out of him on a game-to-game basis but the two have a great player-coach relationship.

“We’re excited that Patric will continue with us for his senior season,” said Donovan in the school release. “This was Patric’s decision to make, and he ultimately had to do what he felt was best for himself and his future.”

Young likely would have been a second-round pick in the upcoming 2013 NBA Draft had he declared and left school early.

Though stretch-four Erik Murphy (6’10″, 238 lbs.) had started alongside him, Young (6’9”, 249 lbs.) has been the Gators’ true big man and the only player on the team who could legitimately play center for an entire game.

That will not be the case next season as, with Young returning, Florida will boast arguably the best frontcourt in the nation.

Joining Young, the two-time SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, will be junior transfer Damontre Harris (6’10”, 228 lbs.) and five-star freshman Chris Walker (6’9”, 220 lbs.). Forwards Will Yeguete (6’7” 240 lbs.) and Casey Prather (6’6”, 208 lbs.) will both return for their senior seasons, and Florida will finally get to see sophomore transfer Dorian Finney-Smith (6’8”, 205 lbs.) in action.

The Gators will be able to rotate at least six players in their three frontcourt positions but will need to develop the backcourt after losing starting guards Kenny Boynton and Mike Rosario to graduation. Point guard Scottie Wilbekin will be the only other returning member of Florida’s starting five aside from Young.

Photo Credit: David J. Phillip/Associated Press

Tags: Billy Donovan, Casey Prather, Chris Walker, Damontre Harris, Dorian Finney-Smith, Draft, NBA, Patric Young, Scholar-Athlete of the Year, Scottie Wilbekin, SEC, Will Yeguete

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

Location: Cowboys Stadium – Arlington, TX [Capacity: 42,614]
Time: 2:20 p.m. EDT

TV: CBS (Marv Albert, Steve Kerr, Craig Sager)
SiriusXM: 91 | Radio: Gator Radio Network [Affiliates]
Online Video: NCAA.com | Mobile Video: NCAA March Madness Live
Live Updates: @OnlyGators on Twitter and SportsYapper app

Odds: Florida -3 | O/U 135

PRE-GAME READING MATERIAL

» Notes & Quotes: Florida and Michigan prepare for Elite Eight

HISTORY / STREAKS / STATS

» Florida is 31-10 in 13 NCAA Tournaments under Donovan and has reached at least the Elite Eight in five of the last eight (two national titles). The Gators advanced to the Elite Eight for the third-straight year with a 62-50 win over FGCU on Friday. Florida has lost consecutive Elite Eights and, should it lose on Sunday, would be the first team in the history of the tournament to drop three-straight regional finals since the event expanded to 64 teams. The Gators have not advanced to the Final Four since 2007.
» Donovan’s 31 NCAA Tournament victories are the most by any SEC coach.
» UF Is looking for its third 30-win season in school history.
» Florida is 1-1* all-time against Michigan with Donovan holding a 1-0 mark. He is also 9-8 against current members of the Big Ten (4-2 in the NCAA Tournament). [*Vacated]
» The Wolverines are in their third-straight NCAA Tournament but are making their first Elite Eight appearance since 1994. Michigan has not been in the Final Four since 1993*. [*Final Four appearances in 1992 and 1993 were vacated. UM has not been back to the round, according to the record books, since 1989.]
» Florida is 54-7 since the beginning of the 2011-12 season when holding opponents under 71 points in a game (28-6 in 2012-13).
» The Gators and Wolverines each have four starters that average in double figures with Michigan having two that average 14.8 points per game or more. No one on Florida averages more than 12.6 points per contest.
» UF is 4-1 against top-25 opponents this season after going 3-5 against ranked adversaries last season with all five losses coming to top-three teams.
» Florida is 0-6 this season in single-digit decisions while UM is 8-6 (2-1 in overtime).
» The Gators are ranked first nationally in scoring margin (+18.1), third in scoring defense (53.7), seventh in field goal defense (.379), 13th in field goal percentage (.480), 18th in three-pointers per game (8.3) and 24th in assist-turnover ratio (1.32). Florida is also seventh nationally in fouling (14.1) and 214th in free throw percentage (.681).
» The Wolverines are first nationally in assist-turnover ratio (1.55), sixth in field goal percentage (.486), 12th in scoring margin (+12.4) and 23rd in scoring offense (75.4) and three-point percentage (.381). Michigan is also second nationally in fouling (12.7) and 13rth in free throw percentage (.705).

Read the rest of the Florida-Michigan gameday preview…after the break!
Continue Reading » NCAA Tournament Gameday: (3) Florida Gators vs. (4) Michigan Wolverines

Tags: Big Ten, Billy Donovan, John Beilein, Kenny Boynton, Michigan Wolverines, Mike Rosario, Mitch McGary, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Patric Young, Scottie Wilbekin, SEC, Trey Burke

The three-seed Florida Gators (29-7) advanced to the Elite Eight for the third-straight year and seventh time in team history with a 62-50 take down of the 15-seed Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (26-11) in 2013 NCAA Tournament action 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 on Friday in the Sweet 16.

UPCOMING OPPONENT

The four-seed Michigan Wolverines (29-7) stunned one-seed Kansas in the first game from Arlington on Friday and advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1994. The Wolverines came from behind to force overtime and eventually took down their foes 87-85 behind 23 points from Trey Burke (all of which came in the second half and overtime). Florida holds a 1-1 record all-time against Michigan, pulling off a 79-63 win in a neutral site game on Dec. 27, 1998. (The teams met previously on March 19, 1988 – a game UF lost 108-85 at a neutral site – but the victory was vacated by the NCAA.)

Sunday’s showdown will commence at 2:20 p.m. (EDT) and air live on CBS. Marv Albert (play-by-play), Steve Kerr (color commentator) and Craig Sager (sideline reporter) will be on the call for the contest.

DIGGING IN AND OUT OF AN EARLY HOLE

Florida opened Friday’s game as cold as a team could be shooting-wise, hitting just four of its first 20 shots while watching FGCU explode out to an early 15-4 lead mostly due to a pair of wide-open three pointers. The Gators not only missed open jumpers but also saw layups roll around the rim without going into the net, an incredibly frustrating situation considering UF was executing its game plan in the early going.

“I felt like we really got a lot of good looks. Obviously the focus was to go down inside to [Erik] Murphy and Patric Young. Those guys had really good looks inside. I thought from the perimeter, I think Mike [Rosario] started off 0-for-5. He had pretty good looks. We couldn’t get anything to fall for us,” Donovan said.

There was no panic from Florida, however. Donovan called a timeout, the Gators composed themselves and got right back in the game in a nick of time.

“I don’t think we panicked at all as a team. We’ve been there before. The main thing with us was starting to get defensive stops. We put together a couple defensive stops. Offense, it wasn’t our best day, but it came along,” senior guard Kenny Boynton said.

Added junior point guard Scottie Wilbekin: “We had a game to win. We had everybody encouraging each other, keeping each other’s head in the right place. When you have that, you’re not going to get that frustrated.”

“We were too determined to win this game so we just fought through, stayed together and picked it up as a whole,” Young concurred. “We had to fight through human nature in the sense of feeling sorry for ourselves that we were down. We really had to fight through. It’s easy to lay down and give up, but we were able to fight as a whole through adversity and stay together.”

Read the rest of the Florida-FGCU post-game (including videos)…
Continue Reading » 3/29: Florida vs. FGCU post-game; Gators set to face Michigan in Elite Eight + videos

Tags: Brett Comer, Casey Prather, Elite Eight, Erik Murphy, Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, Kenny Boynton, Michael Frazier, Michigan Wolverines, Mike Rosario, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Patric Young, Scottie Wilbekin, Sweet 16, Will Yeguete

Despite struggling in the early going and trailing by 11 points late in the first half, the three-seed Florida Gators (29-7) triumphed in a game that was lasted until early Saturday morning and advanced to the Elite Eight for a school-record third-straight season with a 62-50 victory over the 15-seed Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (26-11) at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX.

Florida has now been victorious in its last six appearances in the Sweet 16 and faces a short turnaround as it is set to take on the four-seed Michigan Wolverines in the finals of the South Region of the 2013 NCAA Tournament at 2:20 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.

The Gators used a 16-2 half-ending run to turn an 11-point deficit into a four-point halftime lead and never trailed again. Redshirt senior guard Mike Rosario led the way with a game-high 15 points, team-high five rebounds and three steals and was supported by stellar play from some of UF’s reserves.

FGCU opened up the contest red hot, jumping ahead 15-4 after an 11-0 run as Florida started 2-for-10 from the field and 0-for-5 from downtown.

The Gators’ cold shooting and tight play continued deep into the first half as the Eagles maintained their double-digit lead. Through the first 12:47 of the game, Florida trailed 19-9 while going 4-for-20 from the floor, 0-for-5 from beyond the arc and just 1-for-4 from the free throw line.

Suddenly, the Gators found their shooting stroke and hit three-straight triples including two from freshman guard Michael Frazier II as part of a 16-2 half-ending run that gave them a 30-26 lead at the break. Energy and suffocating defense from junior forwards Casey Prather and Will Yeguete helped UF hold FGCU scoreless for nearly five full minutes and played a big part in its resurgence.

Continue Reading » FG-CU Later: Florida Gators roll into third-straight Elite Eight with 62-50 victory over Eagles

Tags: Brett Comer, Casey Prather, Cowboys Stadium, Elite Eight, Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, Kenny Boynton, Michael Frazier, Michigan Wolverines, Mike Rosario, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Patric Young, Scottie Wilbekin, Sweet 16, Will Yeguete

Location: Cowboys Stadium – Arlington, TX [Capacity: 42,614]
Time: 9:57 p.m. EDT

TV: TBS (Marv Albert, Steve Kerr, Craig Sager)
SiriusXM: 93/191 | Radio: Gator Radio Network [Affiliates]
Online Video: NCAA.com | Mobile Video: NCAA March Madness Live
Live Updates: @OnlyGators on Twitter and SportsYapper app

Odds: Florida -14 | O/U 136.5

PRE-GAME READING MATERIAL

» Story: While FGCU soaked up praise, Florida worked on getting better in Dallas
» Notes & Quotes: Florida and FGCU prepare for Sweet 16
» Notes & Quotes: Odds and ends from Florida Gators in Texas

HISTORY / STREAKS / STATS

» Florida is 30-10 in 13 NCAA Tournaments under Donovan and has reached at least the Elite Eight in four of the last seven (two national titles). The Gators advanced to the Sweet 16 for the third-straight year with a 78-64 win over Minnesota on Sunday. Florida advanced to the Elite Eight in each of its last five appearances in the Sweet 16. The Gators have not fallen in the Sweet 16 round of the tournament since 1999.
» UF is 1-0 all-time against FGCU (94-60 on Dec. 8, 2010).
» The Eagles (2-0) are currently the only undefeated team in NCAA Tournament history. FGCU is also the first 15-seed to win two games and advance to the Sweet 16.
» Enfield (as an assistant at Florida State) was 3-2 against Donovan in his five-year stint with Florida’s in-state rival.
» Florida is 53-7 since the beginning of the 2011-12 season when holding opponents under 71 points in a game (27-6 in 2012-13).
» The Gators have four starters that average in double figures, while the Eagles have three including two that average more than 14.5 points per game.
» UF is 4-1 against top-25 opponents this season after going 3-5 against ranked adversaries last season with all five losses coming to top-three teams.
» Florida is 0-6 this season in single-digit decisions while FGCU is 9-3.
» The Gators are ranked first nationally in scoring margin (+18.2), third in scoring defense (53.8), fifth in field goal defense (.378), eighth in field goal percentage (.482), 14th in three-pointers per game (8.4) and 24th in assist-turnover ratio (1.32). Florida is also eighth nationally in fouling (14.2) and 214th in free throw percentage (.681).
» The Eagles are 15th nationally in steals per game (9.0). FGCU is also 225th nationally in free throw percentage (.677).

Read the rest of the Florida-FGCU gameday preview…after the break!
Continue Reading » NCAA Tournament Gameday: (3) Florida Gators vs. (15) Florida Gulf Coast Eagles

Tags: Andy Enfield, Billy Donovan, Brett Comer, Cowboys Stadium, Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, Kenny Boynton, Scottie Wilbekin