Gators open regular season with win over Hatters

By Adam Silverstein
November 15, 2009

Florida Gators men’s basketball (1-0) began the 2009-10 season with a 74-46 win over the Stetson Hatters (0-1) on Sunday afternoon in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Four Gators scored in double digits as junior forward Alex Tyus posted a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds.

Freshman guard Kenny Boynton, redshirt junior transfer center Vernon Macklin and junior forward Chandler Parsons were the other Florida players who shined offensively, scoring 12, 13 and 12 points, respectively. Macklin recorded a team-high three blocks while sophomore point guard Erving Walker led the team with three assists.

The Gators were in danger of blowing a school record for consecutive games with a three pointer until Parsons nailed one with just 33 seconds left in the game. Before that, Florida had missed 12 straight and shot only 7.7% from behind the arc on the day.

Above all else, Florida played superb defense against the Hatters, holding them to 46 points on a combined 16/56 (28.6%) from the field and 2/17 (11.8%) from three. “I was really pleased with our defense, because I didn’t think we had much of an offensive flow at all,” head coach Billy Donovan said. “I thought our guys kept a pretty good focus in trying to defend all 40 minutes.”

Gators basketball returns to action Wednesday when the Georgia Southern Eagles visit Gainesville, FL, at 7 p.m. The game is being carried by Fox Sports Florida, so be sure to check your local listings for availability.

Join The
Discussion

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Top
WordPress Appliance - Powered by TurnKey Linux