Though the No. 10 Florida Gators took down the then-No. 2 Michigan State Spartans just a few weeks ago, their toughest test of the young 2009 season came Thursday night against the No. 7 Syracuse Orange. Florida (8-1) lost their first game of the season 85-73 to Syracuse (9-0) at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, FL, as part of the SEC/Big East Invitational in a match that was much closer than the score indicates.

Down six at the end of the first half, the Gators came back to take the lead with 10:31 remaining in the game; however, they held it for less than a minute as the Orange would grab it back and pull away over the final few minutes of the contest.

Freshman guard Kenny Boynton led Florida in minutes (36), points (20) and assists (7), though he only shot 7-for-17 from the field, 5-for-14 from three-point range and 1-for-4 from the free throw line. Coming off the bench, senior forward Chandler Parsons was the most efficient Gator on Thursday, playing 35 minutes and recording 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting (3-of-5 from three). Sophomore point guard Erving Walker added 14 points and was 4-for-9 from beyond the arc. Junior power forward Alex Tyus led the Gators with 10 rebounds, though he missed a number of shots in the waning minutes of the game to finish 4-for-11.

Three Syracuse forwards achieved double-doubles against Florida, including Rick Jackson (19 points, 11 rebounds), Wesley Johnson (17 points, 10 rebounds) and Kris Joseph (12 points, 10 rebounds). As a team, they out-shot the Gators 52.5 percent to 43.5 percent from the field, though Florida won the three-point battle 40 percent to 23.1 percent. The Gators were +4 in turnover margin, but they committed eight more fouls and allowed the Orange to get into the bonus early. Syracuse won the battle on the glass 39-28, out-stole Florida 13-4 and finished the game on a 12-4 run.

The Gators will play their third consecutive road game next Saturday, Dec. 19 in the Orange Bowl Basketball Classic against the Richmond Spiders in Sunrise, FL, at the BankAtlantic Center. The game will be aired live on Sun Sports at 6:30 p.m.

Tags: Alex Tyus, Big East, Chandler Parsons, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Kris Joseph, Rick Jackson, SEC, SEC/Big East Invitational, St. Pete Times Forum, Syracuse Orange, Wesley Johnson

Event: SEC/Big East Invitational
Location: St. Pete Times Forum – Tampa, FL [Capacity: 20,500]
Time: 9:00 p.m. (EST)

TV: ESPN / ESPNHD
Online: ESPN360
Sirius: 214; XM: 199

Odds: Syracuse -3, O/U 146
Head-to-Head Stats: ESPN Insider Pick Center

KEEP AN EYE ON…
- Senior forward Dan Werner…who has struggled with his career from three-point range but is hitting a team-high 51.9 percent from beyond the arc in 2009.
- Five-star freshman guard Kenny Boynton…who has a 15:1 assist-to-turnover ratio combined in the last two games.
- Head coach Billy Donovan…who is coaching his 500th career game on Thursday.
- Redshirt junior transfer center Vernon Macklin…who has hit 12 consecutive free throws and is shooting 73.7 percent from the line after hitting just over 30 percent during his time with the Georgetown Hoyas.
- Senior F Chandler Parsons…who comes off the bench as Florida’s sixth man, is fourth on the team in scoring and leads them in rebounding with averages of 11.1 PPG and 6.4 RPG. He is averaging a career-high 27.1 minutes per game.

STREAKS:
- The Gators are 8-0 for the first time since 2005 and just the third time in school history.
- Florida is 4-2 all-time at the St. Pete Times Forum.
- The Gators are 43-30 (.589) all-time against the Big East, 15-7 under Donovan and 2-1 all-time against the Orange.
- This is Florida’s first appearance in the SEC/Big East Invitational.
- The Gators have allowed only two opponents to score 60 points or more in 2009.
- Florida has come up with 49 steals in the last five games, reaching double-digits in steals three times over that stretch.
- Since 2005, the Gators are 24-3 in the month of December.
- Florida has the best winning percentage in the SEC against ranked opponents during the last nine seasons (42-29, .592).

Read OGGOA’s Florida Gators vs. Syracuse Orange preview after the jump!
Continue Reading » No. 10 Florida Gators vs. No. 7 Syracuse Orange

Tags: Alex Tyus, Big East, Billy Donovan, CBE Classic, Chandler Parsons, Dan Werner, Erving Walker, Jim Boeheim, Kenny Boynton, SEC, SEC/Big East Invitational, St. Pete Times Forum, Syracuse Orange, Vernon Macklin

1 » Louisville Cardinals athletic director Tom Jurich spoke with the Louisville Courier-Journal on Monday about his continuing talks with Florida Gators defensive coordinator Charlie Strong to become his school’s next head football coach. Jurich he is “further along today than I was yesterday, so that’s good,” but that he would have another conversation with Strong on Tuesday. “I don’t really have a status update, it’s on-going,” Jurich said. “I tell you what though, he’s very impressive, a very impressive guy, he’d be great for our community.” An official contract offer has not yet been made, and the Gators are expected to make Strong a counter offer to stay on board.

2 » Two days after their heartbreaking loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 2009 SEC Championship, Florida players put the blame on themselves for not playing like they practiced throughout the week. “We thought we would have won the game with the way we practiced,” senior linebacker Ryan Stamper said. “It was just like any other practice — probably one of our better practices. We had juice in the locker room; we had juice when we went out on the field. We just couldn’t get the job done.”

3 » Gators head basketball coach Billy Donovan told reporters on Monday that the team may be without sophomores guard/forward Ray Shipman (mid-foot sprain) and sophomore center Kenny Kadji (lower back) for Thursday’s game against the No. 7 Syracuse Orange (8-0) in the SEC/Big East Invitational from the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, FL. Both players received MRIs and are considered questionable for the game. “We’re down to eight right now,” Donovan said. Speaking of Florida basketball, the team moved up to No. 10 and No. 11, respectively, in this week’s AP Top 25 and ESPN/USA Today coaches’ polls. Beginning the season unranked, the Gators are an undefeated 8-0 including a win over the then-No. 2 Michigan State Spartans.

4 » Shortstop recruit Casey Turgeon (Dunedin, FL), one of the best players in the state, committed to the Florida baseball program before his junior high school season.

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, baseball, Casey Turgeon, Charlie Strong, Kenny Kadji, Louisville Cardinals, Michigan State Spartans, Ray Shipman, Ryan Stamper, SEC Championship, SEC/Big East Invitational, St. Pete Times Forum, Syracuse Orange, Tom Jurich

On the heels of an 85-67 road victory over the Jacksonville Dolphins (0-5) on Friday, the No. 13/17 Florida Gators basketball team has begun its season 8-0 for only the third time in school history. Four Gators scored in double figures on the evening with sophomore point guard Erving Walker leading the way with a team-high 18 points.

Freshman guard Kenny Boynton spread himself out all over the box score with 15 points, five assists, three rebounds and three steals on the evening while junior transfer center Vernon Macklin had the best game in his short Florida career with 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting (6-of-6 from the charity stripe) and three blocks. The Gators hit 12 three-pointers on the evening and were 60 percent from behind the arc as a team. Junior forward Chandler Parsons was 2-for-2, Walker was 4-for-5, senior F Dan Werner (13 points) was 3-for-5 and Boynton was 3-for-7 from long range.

For Jacksonville, F Ayron Hardy led the team with 16 points and six rebounds while G Travis Cohn added 15 points of his own. The Dolphins kept the game close throughout the first half, but the Gators pulled away to a nine-point halftime lead and kept their foot on the gas for the remainder of the contest.

Florida won their first true road game of the season and improved to 7-0 all-time at Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, FL. The first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament will be held in the same location in March, and the Gators hope to return to one of their favorite places to play outside of Gainesville, FL.

The Gators three-game road trip continues on Thursday when they take on the No. 8/7 Syracuse Orange at the neutral site St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, FL, at 9 p.m. The game is part of the SEC/Big East Invitational and will air live on ESPN.

Volleyball in NCAA Tournament: No. 14/15 Gators volleyball (25-5) advanced to the NCAA Tournament Round of 16 for the 18th time in the last 19 years after defeating the Florida International Golden Panthers (32-4) 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-16) in second round action Friday at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Florida out-blocked FIU 12.0-1.0 while being led by sophomore middle blocker Cassandra Anderson, who recorded match-highs in kills (nine on .692 hitting) and blocks (seven). The Gators will face the winner of the State College, PA, subregional next Friday in the O’Dome.

Tags: Ayron Hardy, Cassandra Anderson, Chandler Parsons, Dan Werner, Erving Walker, Florida International Golden Panthers, Jacksonville Dolphins, Kenny Boynton, NCAA Tournament, O'Connell Center, SEC/Big East Invitational, St. Pete Times Forum, Syracuse Orange, Travis Cohn, Vernon Macklin, Veterans Memorial Arena, volleyball

Coming off two consecutive trips to the National Invitational Tournament, the Florida Gators basketball team is looking to return to the glory it experienced just a few short years ago. With guard Nick Calathes leaving to play professional basketball in Greece and an influx of talented players, head coach Billy Donovan hopes to wipe the sour taste the last two seasons have put in fans’ mouths. With that, ONLY GATORS Get Out Alive presents our 2009-10 Florida Gators Basketball Preview.

STARTING FIVE:

PG Erving Walker – sophomore, 5’8”, 171 lbs.
2008 STATS: 10.1 PPG – 2.4 APG – .434 FG% – .419 3P% – 1.5 RPG – 23.1 MPG
A spark plug known more for his shooting and penetrating than passing, Walker was a pleasant surprise for the Gators in 2008. Starting the season as the team’s sixth man, he moved into the starting lineup at year’s end, earning a reputation as a sharp-shooter who could be trusted to put the ball in the hoop when the game was on the line. Walker was named to the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman team and led Florida in three-point percentage (.419). His breakout performance came against the Auburn Tigers, when he hit two late three pointers to help send the Gators to a 68-65 win. Walker must improve his ball handling, court vision and willingness to dish the ball in order to allow Boynton to move around and not be forced to play point.

G Kenny Boynton – freshman, 6’2”, 183 lbs.
2008 STATS (HS): 33 PPG – .58 FG%
Boynton is the pride of the Gators’ 2009 recruiting class, a consensus five-star guard who was ranked No. 9 overall on ESPN’s Top-100 list, No. 12 by Rivals and No. 15 by Scout. He is the 12th McDonald’s All-American signed by Donovan and the third-leading scorer in the history of Florida high school basketball. Quick both with and without the ball, Boynton is highly competitive and athletic with the ability to play either backcourt position. He can get his shot off at will, whether it be a quick pull up jumper, deep three-pointer, floater down the lane or penetrating layup. Boynton is also a tough defender who is strong with quick feet laterally. In his two games so far in the Orange and Blue, Boynton has averaged 23.5 points in 25.5 minutes.

The preview is a LOT longer than this. Read the rest after the jump…
Continue Reading » 2009-10 Florida Gators Basketball Preview

Tags: Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, Dan Werner, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Kenny Kadji, Legends Classic, March Madness, NCAA, Nick Calathes, NIT, Orange Bowl Baksetball Classic, Ray Shipman, Rod Tishman, SEC/Big East Invitational, Vernon Macklin