1 » After a huge upset win over the No. 17 Tennessee Volunteers last Tuesday, the Florida Gators looked to be squarely in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. A few days later, the Gators found themselves back on the bubble falling to the Georgia Bulldogs on the road. ESPN’s Mark Schlabach looks at what happened and what the team needs to do from this point forward.

2 » Four former Florida golfers were at the top of the leaderboard going into the final round of the PGA’s Waste Management Phoenix Open on Sunday. Mark Calcavecchia, Matt Every, Camilo Villegas and Chris Couch were all in the hunt for the tournament title, but each wound up falling short in the end. Couch finished T4 (-13), Villegas was T8 (-11) with Every and Calcavecchia shot a final-day 74 to fall to T43 (-7).

Four more BITS on Brantley, Brown, tennis and baseball…after the break!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: NCAA bubble, PGA, Brantley, Brown

Tags: Allie Will, baseball, Camilo Villegas, Central Florida Knights, Chris Couch, Duke Blue Devils, Freshman of the Week, Georgia Bulldogs, golf, Hudson Randal, John Brantley, Lauren Embree, Linder Stadium, Mack Brown, Mark Calcavecchia, Marrit Boonstra, Matt Every, Mike Pouncey, NCAA Tournament, PGA, Ring Tennis Complex, SEC, Tennessee Volunteers, tennis, Trey Burton

Location: Stephen C. O’Connell Center – Gainesville, FL [Capacity: 12,000]
Time: 9:00 p.m. (EST)

TV: ESPN / ESPNHD
Online Video: ESPN360.com
Live Updates: OGGOA on Twitter

Odds: Florida -2.5, O/U 136.5

KEEP AN EYE ON…
» The (recently less than) dynamic backcourt of…sophomore point guard Erving Walker and freshman guard Kenny Boynton who are averaging 29.3 points and 7.2 assists per game in conference play this season.
» Speaking of Walker and Boynton…they have hit 52 of the Gators’ 67 treys in SEC play. However, the duo has struggled from the field in its last three games, combining to shoot 12-for-54 from the field and 4-for-26 from downtown.
» Junior forward Alex Tyus…who is taking control of the front court, has reached double figures in 15 of 18 games and scored 15+ in eight of those.
» Junior F Chandler Parsons…who has scored in double figures in five straight games also has two double-doubles in those matches. He has been helping dish the ball and run the point while averaging 15.2 points and 9.0 rebounds and shooting 52.9 percent.
» Double-digit scoring by Vernon Macklin…the Gators are 12-2 when the redshirt junior transfer center finishes in double figures. He had a career-high 22 points in a big win against Ole Miss on Saturday.
» Volunteers center Wayne Chism…who leads his team in scoring and rebounding with 13.1 points per game and 7.2 boardseach contest. Chism has also posted a team-high 39 blocked shots this season.

STREAKS:
» Tennessee leads the all-time series against Florida 69-48, holding a six-game winning streak and having been victorious in 11 of the last 14 meetings. The Gators are 12-15 overall against the Volunteers under Billy Donovan.
» Florida is 12-3 at home in 2009-10 and 81-11 in the O’Dome since 2005.
» UF is 6-3 in games decided by five points or less compared to 4-6 in such games last season; they are also 5-1 in the last six contests that were that close.
» The Gators have out-rebounded seven of their last nine conference opponents and is 12-2 overall when out-rebounding an opponent in 2010.
» After shooting just 47.8 percent from the charity stripe (22-of-46) over its previous two games, Florida has gone 57-for-67 (85.1 percent) from the line in two contests since.
» Six of the Gators’ eight losses on the season have come from teams with RPIs currently inside the top 28 (five from teams ranked 19 or higher).
» Defeating the Rebels on Saturday, the Gators swept the SEC West (6-0) for the first time since 2003 and acquired their most road wins since 2006-07.
» A win Tuesday would give UF its 12th consecutive 20-win season, good for the longest active streak in the SEC.
» Tennessee has defeated then-No. 1 Kansas and Memphis so far this season.
» The Volunteers force 17.4 turnovers per game while holding opponents to 29.9 percent from beyond the arc.

Tags: Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Bruce Pearl, Chandler Parsons, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, SEC, Tennessee Volunteers, Vernon Macklin, Wayne Chism

In the midst of a stretch where they will play three games in only a six-day span, Florida Gators basketball was back in the gym Monday practicing for their contest Tuesday at home against the No. 19/17 Tennessee Volunteers on ESPN at 9 p.m. Head coach Billy Donovan spoke with the media about a number of topics regarding his team.
Continue Reading » Donovan speaks on team after back-to-back wins

Tags: Billy Donovan, Brian Williams, Chandler Parsons, Dan Werner, J.P. Prince, Kenny Boynton, Melvin Goins, Tennessee Volunteers, Vernon Macklin

1 » Picking seventh in the 2010 NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns are likely looking to upgrade their secondary with either a safety or cornerback. Assuming Tennessee Volunteers S Eric Berry is off the board, the Browns are expected to target Florida Gators CB Joe Haden with their first-round selection. Seriously lacking defensive backs and a starting quarterback, the Browns could go either way to start the draft, but Haden may be as can’t-miss as it gets at that spot and could even start from day one.

2 » Head basketball coach Billy Donovan mentioned that the University of Florida will be honoring the 2000 NCAA Championship runner-up Gators team with a video and posters during Saturday’s home game against the Xavier Musketeers. “[There are] too many guys still playing/coaching to get them [all] back,” Donovan said. “[I] hope people remember what a special team that was.” The game will air live at 6 p.m. on ESPN.

Tags: Billy Donovan, Cleveland Browns, Draft, Eric Berry, Joe Haden, NCAA Championship, NFL, Tennessee Volunteers, University of Florida, Xavier Musketeers

A missed layup by junior forward Alex Tyus with less than three second remaining resulted in the Florida Gators (15-6, 4-3 SEC) coming just short of upsetting the No. 14 Tennessee Volunteers (16-4, 4-2 SEC) on the road in Knoxville, TN. Tyus, who led the Gators with 18 points and seven rebounds, was hitting shots all game but unable to prevent a 61-60 victory by the Volunteers.

A clutch three-pointer by Florida junior F Chandler Parsons gave the Gators a one-point lead with 30 seconds left in the game. Following a timeout, Tennessee sophomore guard Scotty Hopson hit a long jump shot with 21 seconds remaining to put the Volunteers up by one. It was then that Tyus missed a layup on a pass into the post by sophomore point guard Erving Walker.

Walker and freshman guard Kenny Boynton were limited by Tennessee and shot a combined 5-of-20 from the field and 1-for-11 from downtown. Parsons was the team’s second leading scorer with 14 points; he added eight rebounds (seven of which came in the first half) and was 5-of-6 from the floor.

Read the rest of OGGOA’s No. 14 Tennessee vs. Florida game story after the jump!
Continue Reading » No. 14 Tennessee tops Florida in final seconds

Tags: Alex Tyus, Chandler Parsons, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Scotty Hopson, Tennessee Volunteers, Wayne Chism

Location: Thompson-Boiling Arena – Knoxville, TN [Capacity: 21,000]
Time: 1:00 p.m. (EST)

TV: CBS/CBSHD
Online: CBSSports.com

Odds: Tennessee -8, O/U 141

KEEP AN EYE ON…
-The dynamic backcourt of…sophomore point guard Erving Walker and freshman guard Kenny Boynton who are averaging 37.2 points (almost half of the team’s 75.3 total points) and 8.7 assists per game in SEC play this season.
- Speaking of Walker and Boynton…they have hit 39 of the Gators’ 45 treys in SEC play, and Walker is shooting 62.2 percent (23-of-37) from downtown in conference action.
- Junior forward Alex Tyus…who is dominating the front court, averaging 14.9 points and 7.5 rebounds over the last 11 contests. He has hit double figures in 11 straight games and scored 15+ in six of those ten.
- Double-digit scoring by Vernon Macklin…Florida is 10-1 when the redshirt junior transfer center does so.
- Buzzer-beaters from Chandler Parsons…the junior forward has hit two game-winning three-pointers in January. He is also averaging 10.6 points and 6.5 boards per contest.
- Senior center Wayne Chism…who leads the Volunteers in rebounding (6.9) and blocks (1.4). He also accounts for a solid 11.8 points per game.
- Sophomore guard Scotty Hopson…who is tops on Tennessee in scoring with 13.8 points per game.

STREAKS:
- Tennessee leads the all-time series 68-48, winning 10 of the last 13 meetings.
- Last season, the Volunteers swept the series; they have won the last five meetings against the Gators (since 2007).
- Florida has not won in Knoxville since 2005, and head coach Billy Donovan is 12-14 against Tennessee.
- The Gators are on a four-game winning streak, their longest in SEC play since 2007.
- Allowing 95 and 89 points to its first to SEC opponents, the Gators have held teams to 62.8 points per game during their four-game winning streak. Florida is 10-1 this season when holding opponents to 60 points or less and 120-2 all-time under Donovan.
- The Gators are out-rebounding their opponents by 5.2 boards during their four-game winning streak.
- Tennessee defeated then-No. 1 Kansas earlier in the season and also has a quality win over rival Memphis.
- As a team, the Volunteers are forcing 19.1 turnovers per game, averaging 78.7 points per game and hitting 47.1 percent from the floor.

Read OGGOA’s Gators vs. No. 14 Volunteers preview after the jump!
Continue Reading » Florida Gators vs. No. 14 Tennessee Volunteers

Tags: Adam Allen, Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Brian Williams, Bruce Pearl, Cameron Tatum, Chandler Parsons, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Kenny Kadji, Melvin Goins, Ray Shipman, Scotty Hopson, Tennessee Volunteers, Tyler Smith, Wayne Chism

1 » Former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow does whatever he can to make his fans happy. Unfortunately, he had to prioritize his health on Friday and miss the Meet the Players event at the 2010 Under Armour Senior Bowl, even after fans waited hours to meet him. Tebow, who practiced all week while under the weather, was still “very sick” on Friday, according to the Orlando Sentinel. Speaking of Tebow, the Montreal Gazette reports that the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL hold the first option to his rights should he decide, for any reason, to head North and not play in the NFL. Tebow and wide receiver Riley Cooper will participate in the Senior Bowl on Saturday at 4 p.m. The game will air live on NFL Network and OGGOA will have live coverage on Twitter.

2 » No. 4 Florida gymnastics (3-1, 3-0 SEC) took down the No. 13 LSU Tigers (3-3, 1-2 SEC) in a 196.725-195.05 victory Friday during the Fourth Annual Gators Link to Pink meet. While raising awareness about breast cancer, Florida put up its season-best total and set or matched 11 collegiate-best marks. The Gators hop on the road for their next meet, taking on N.C. State Wolfpack and George Washington Colonials in a triangular meet on Feb. 5 at 7 p.m. in the Reynolds Coliseum.

3 » Florida basketball will face them on Sunday, but the Gators’ men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams each took down the Tennessee Volunteers on Friday to conclude their 2009-10 dual meet schedules. On the road at the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center in Knoxville, TN, the No. 6 men (9-0, 4-0 SEC) took a 164-133 decision over the No. 11 Volunteers on the heels of eight individual event victories. The No. 7 women (10-2, 4-1 SEC) won nine of 16 individual events to claim victory over the No. 12 Lady Vols 170-130. Florida handed Tennessee’s men’s team its first loss in the two-year history of the building.

4 » The Gators baseball team held its first practice of the 2010 season Friday, and No. 7/9-ranked Florida is ready to defend its 2009 SEC East division title. Players and coaches hope to improve on last season’s 42-22 record, which brought them ever so close to a berth in the College World Series. For quotes from the team and some more information on baseball’s first practice, read Jim Harvin’s story in The Gainesville Sun.

Tags: Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center, baseball, CFL, College World Series, diving, Gators Link to Pink, gymnastics, LSU Tigers, Montreal Alouettes, NFL, Riley Cooper, SEC, Senior Bowl, swimming, Tennessee Volunteers, Tim Tebow, Under Armour