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

The No. 11/12 Florida Gators earned their 19th consecutive home victory Saturday by defeating the No. 25 Vanderbilt Commodores 73-65 at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. The second of three games in six days, Florida’s victory left head coach Billy Donovan with plenty to talk about heading into the next contest on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

FIGHTING THROUGH FOUL TROUBLE

Florida at one point in the first half had a game-high 10-point lead but improved offensive play combined with major foul trouble to the Gators’ frontcourt sent the team reeling. Sophomore center Patric Young, junior forward Erik Murphy and even freshman guard Bradley Beal each picked up two fouls and UF played the last third of the first half with an extremely small lineup.

“We got put in a tough situation … and we really got caught playing the last 6-7 minutes of the half with [Scottie] Wilbekin at the power forward spot. To be up three going into the half, I was really pleased,” Donovan explained.

“Our energy was waning a little bit. It is tough when you go Thursday-to-Saturday like we’ve got to do. I thought we were teetering to start the second half. [...] I tried to just encourage those guys to keep battling and fighting, and I thought we did that. The thing that helped was trying to rotate guys in and out and keep them in for short bursts because I really thought [in] a lot of ways we were gassed.”

In addition to having Wilbekin at the four, Donovan also thrust redshirt junior G Mike Rosario into the three role. Both players did their best but no one had a bigger task than sophomore F Will Yeguete, who was tasked with controlling Vanderbilt C Festus Ezeli in the post while the big man was on the floor.

“It was a little confusing because Scottie was there playing the four. I was a little lost,” he admitted. “We had to just battle through because Pat and Erik had two fouls, so we just had to wait for the second half and do our best. We did a good job.”

BEAL GOT THE GLORY BUT YEGUETE DID THE DIRTY WORK
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Tags: Billy Donovan, Bradley Beal, Erik Murphy, Kenny Boynton, Patric Young, Scottie Wilbekin, Stephen C. O'Connell Center, Vanderbilt Commodores, Will Yeguete

An impressive all-around performance by freshman guard Bradley Beal – including 16 points on 50 percent shooting and seven rebounds in 30 minutes – led the No. 11/12 Florida Gators (19-4, 7-1 SEC) past the No. 25 Vanderbilt Commodores (16-7, 5-3 SEC) 73-65 Saturday at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center in Gainesville, FL.

It was Florida’s seventh-straight victory and second in the last three days. UF has won 19 consecutive games in the O’Dome and four-in-a-row against Vanderbilt.

Though Beal was all over the court for the Gators, it was junior G Kenny Boynton who posted a team-high 18 points. Commodores’ forward Jeffery Taylor led all scorers with 26 points on 7-of-12 shooting (4-of-7 from downtown, 7-of-8 from the line).

Down 11-9 early in the contest, Florida exploded on a 10-0 run capped by five-straight points by Boynton to take an 19-11 lead with 9:33 left in the first half. Vanderbilt answered back with a 6-1 scoring stretch, but the Gators followed by notching seven points – a four-point play by Boynton and a trey from redshirt junior G Mike Rosario – to take a game-high 10-point lead on the Commodores with 5:36 remaining.

Florida, however, found themselves with three starters on the bench for the remainder of the half with Beal, sophomore center Patric Young and junior F Erik Murphy all sitting after each picked up two early fouls. Vanderbilt used this to their advantage, outscoring the Gators 11-5 down the stretch to reduce their deficit to three points at the break.

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Tags: Bradley Beal, Festus Ezeli, Jeffery Taylor, John Jenkins, Kenny Boynton, Mike Rosario, Stephen C. O'Connell Center, Vanderbilt Commodores, Will Yeguete

The No. 11/12 Florida Gators earned their 18th consecutive home victory Thursday by defeating the South Carolina Gamecocks 74-66 at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. The first of three games in six days, Florida’s victory left head coach Billy Donovan with plenty to talk about heading into the next contest on Saturday at 1 p.m.

IMPROVING ON THE OFFENSIVE GLASS

The Gators’ offensive rebounding since the Southeastern Conference slate began has left much to be desired. Donovan was particularly bothered with the fact that junior guard Kenny Boynton (four) had more offensive boards than both freshman G Bradley Beal (two) and junior forward Erik Murphy (two) heading into Saturday’s game.

“Brad and Erik have got to get better at making that concerted effort, every time a shot is taken, at going to the glass,” he explained. Beal grabbed five offensive rebounds Thursday, and Murphy added two more, putting a smile on Donovan’s face.

“What won the game for us tonight is that we really did a good job getting to the offensive glass … and the fact that we got to the free throw line 32 times,” he said.

Florida shot poorly from the charity stripe in the first half but hit seven of their last eight attempts to finish 71.9 percent (23-of-32). The Gators’ free throw shooting has improved immensely since the beginning of the season, so much so that Donovan even feels comfortable giving one player a hard time when he starts off inconsistent in that area.

“I told Brad Beal, ‘I’m going to change your number to No. 12 for 1-for-2.’ He goes to the free throw line and is 1-for-2 the entire time,” Donovan joked.

VIDEO: CHARGE DRILL IN PRACTICE

The following video, courtesy of UF, shows Donovan’s charge drill during practice. This should help provide fans with some idea why players like redshirt junior G Mike Rosario have improved in this facet of the game throughout the season.

Watch the video and read post-game quotes…after the break!
Continue Reading » 2/2: Florida vs. South Carolina post-game notes

Tags: Bradley Beal, Erik Murphy, Kenny Boynton, Mike Rosario, SEC, South Carolina Gamecocks, Stephen C. O'Connell Center

Looking to begin a stretch of three games in six days on a high note, the No. 11/12 Florida Gators (18-4, 6-1 SEC) used a game-high 24 points by junior guard Kenny Boynton and a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds from freshman G Bradley Beal to top the South Carolina Gamecocks (9-12, 1-6 SEC) 74-66 on Thursday night at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center in Gainesville, FL.

Boynton and Beal were two of three Gators to score in double figures Friday as senior point guard Erving Walker chipped in 14 points with seven assists, four boards, two steals and just three turnovers in the winning effort.

As has been tradition recently, Florida got off to their usual hot start and used a 14-2 run as well as a 12-1 rebounding advantage to take a 17-point lead with 9:55 left in the first half. South Carolina responded with a quick 6-0 scoring stretch to cut their deficit to 11, but UF regained their half-high lead with five minutes left until the break.

The Gamecocks, however, were the aggressors at the end of the half, outscoring the Gators 9-1 over the final 3:54 as UF fell silent from the field. Florida still headed into the locker rooms with a nine-point lead as well as a 23-11 advantage on the glass.

After giving up a basket to start the second half, the Gators used a 6-0 run including consecutive jumpers by Walker to leap back ahead 12 points. Trading baskets the rest of the way, the Gamecocks got within six with 4:08 to play, but a highlight dunk by Beal appeared to push the momentum back in UF’s favor.

That would not wind up being the case for Florida, which gave up back-to-back three-pointers to South Carolina G Bruce Ellington and forward Anthony Gill, decreasing their advantage to five points with 2:51 remaining in the contest.

The Gators began consistently hitting their free throws late in the contest, but Gamecocks G Brenton Williams hit a transition three from the corner to put USC down five again with 50.1 seconds left.

It would be too little too late for South Carolina, which sent Florida to the line four times in the last minute and saw the Gators hit seven-of-eight free throws to close out the team’s 12th consecutive victory in the O’Dome.

The Gators have now won six-straight games since falling to Tennessee in their SEC opener with victories of eight points or more in all but one contest.

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Tags: Bradley Beal, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Patric Young, SEC, South Carolina Gamecocks, Stephen C. O'Connell Center, Will Yeguete

1 » Appearing Monday on WKOV 690 AM in Jacksonville, FL, new Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan responded to a caller who was wondering if he would consider trading for Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow should he be made available. “You know something? I think I can tell you this. I had a long chat with Wayne [Weaver] that year. Obviously the Rams drafted Sam Bradford, and I was talking to Wayne then on what they ought to do,” Khan said. “I should have an offline conversation with you, OK? I’m going to absolutely talk your ear off. Some of the stuff might not be politically correct, but I share your sentiment. I think, when is the next time Jacksonville is going to have an athlete like Tim Tebow? Coming from being raised in Illinois, I couldn’t see Red Grange playing for anybody other than the Bears or Dick Butkus playing for anybody other than the Bears. I don’t want to get into 20/20 hindsight, and God help us, the draft record has not been the best with the Jaguars.”

Khan was then asked by the host if he would have drafted Tebow had he been owner of the Jaguars at the time. “100 percent I would have. Absolutely,” he said. “The first Jaguars game I came to was in ’10, we played Denver here. There were a lot more Tebow jerseys in the Jaguars stands than the teal jerseys for any player, let’s face it. You hate to get into 20/20 hindsight and finger pointing, but certainly [I would have] if I had anything to do with it. We probably won’t have a chance like that again.”

2 » Even though his team is not participating in Super Bowl XLVI, Tebow will be in Indianapolis, IN for festivities over the course of the week. He will also be a guest on NBC‘s Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Wednesday along with actor/comedian Tracy Morgan and musical group All American Rejects. Tebow’s name has been a hot topic on Fallon’s show recently as the host as done a parody character of him and David Bowie and also used him in a number of jokes over the last few weeks.

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Tags: Arkansas Razorbacks, Ashanée Dickerson, Denver Broncos, Draft, gymnastics, Jacksonville Jaguars, Janoris Jenkins, Jeff Dillman, Jeremi Powell, Jesse Ackerman, Kytra Hunter, MacKenzie Caquatto, Marissa King, Marshall Thundering Herd, Maryland Terrapins, National Signing Day, NFL, Stephen C. O'Connell Center, Super Bowl, Super Bowl XLVI, Tim Tebow

The No. 13/14 Florida Gators earned another solid victory on Saturday by defeating the No. 16/18 Mississippi State Bulldogs 69-57 at home and winning their 17th consecutive game at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. With sophomore center Patric Young (ankle) again out of the starting lineup and Florida set for two games in three days next week, head coach Billy Donovan had plenty to talk about after the win.

YOUNG, BOYNTON ADJUSTING WELL TO TWEAKED ROLES

Though neither player has been asked to change their game, Young and junior guard Kenny Boynton have each had some adjusting to do since SEC play began.

Young, who has come off the bench the last four games mostly due to ankle tendinitis that has been bothering him, has had no problem whatsoever with the transition and said he will do it from now on if Donovan feels it is best. “Whatever Coach Donovan wants to do I’m 100 percent happy with it. If he wants me to come off the bench for the rest of the year, I would do it for the team,” he said after Saturday’s game.

Donovan discussed how the subject was broached to Young Friday evening and reiterated his player’s comments. “Pat’s fine. I went to Pat last night and I said to him, ‘You tell me where you’re at mentally. Do you want to start? Is that better for us and our team?’ He said, ‘No, I’m fine coming off the bench.’ I said, ‘We got a quick turnaround.’ He said, ‘I’m totally fine with coming off the bench [Saturday].’ He’s a great kid when it relates to that stuff. That’s not the end-all where he’s just not going to start,” he explained.

Young has played quite well since the switch, which came two games after Florida’s loss to Tennessee in their SEC opener. He’s shooting 71 percent from the field over the last five games and has played more than 24 minutes in each of the last three contests.

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Tags: Billy Donovan, Bradley Beal, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Patric Young, Stephen C. O'Connell Center

A highly-contested contest for most of the game, the No. 13/14 Florida Gators (17-4, 5-1 SEC) used quality defense and high-percentage shots to pull away from their opponent and defeat the No. 16/18 Misssissippi State Bulldogs (17-5, 4-3 SEC) 69-57 at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center in Gainesville, FL on Saturday afternoon.

Florida freshman guard Brad Beal played his most complete game of the year for the Gators, scoring a game-high 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting while going 3-for-4 from beyond the arc. UF shot 45.8 percent (11-of-24) from downtown as a team and registered 15 assists while turning the ball over just five times in the victory.

Shooting poorly early and down three points midway through the first half, Florida used a 7-2 run and an 8-2 scoring stretch to take a 27-20 lead with 3:06 left before the break. Mississippi State answered with five-straight points, but junior forward Erik Murphy’s third trey of the first 20 minutes helped UF hold a three-point advantage at halftime.

The Gators and Bulldogs battled early in the second half until Florida began to pull away again thanks to a 7-1 run that put them up 47-39 with 10:43 remaining. UF played top-notch defense during the scoring stretch with a pair of charges by redshirt junior guard Mike Rosario and sophomore forward Will Yeguete as two of the standout plays.

The highlight of the game also came during the run as Gators sophomore center Patric Young threw down a hammer dunk on a put-back from a missed three-pointer shot by senior point guard Erving Walker.

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Tags: Arnett Moultrie, Dee Bost, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Mike Rosario, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Patric Young, Stephen C. O'Connell Center, Will Yeguete