12/7/2024
The Gators needed just one game this week to prove they're still a force. Losing two years in a row to Virginia wasn't an option. Revenge served. This SEC/ACC Men’s Challenge game resulted in a 87-69 loss for the Cavaliers, bringing their record to 5-3, while Florida improved to 9-0. This is the best program start since the 2005 Gators team that went on to win their first NCAA title. This 9-0 record additionally goes along with being named number 13 in the AP top 25. It may be premature comparison, but hey, anything is possible.
Walter Clayton Jr., the well-known star for the Gators, dominated this game with 27 points, including a 4-point play in the second half that drained the hope from Virginia fans, if any, watching the game. Alex Condon kept the heat on with a 19-point performance with an impressive 7-8 shot attempts. An additional 16 from Alijah Martin and 12 from Denzel Aberdeen sealed the Cavalier's fate. In the 9 games this year, the team has improved in every single stat except for 3-point shooting, which has only dropped an unnoticed 0.6%. The most notable jump is steals, as 6.7 has increased to 8.2. Half the steals are coming from the persistent defensive efforts of Alijah Martin and Will Richard, averaging 2 steals a game. Good luck dribbling around those guys.
Another formidable opponent enters the swamp next week, the 8-1 Arizona State Sun Devils. Currently, they are first in the Big 12 Standings. Do they have what it takes to beat Florida? Probably not.
Tyler's Funny:
SEC/ACC Men’s Challenge? Yeah, might want to rename that the “SEC Training Camp Event”.
12/1/2024
The Gators came out on top of the ESPN Events Invitational, otherwise known as the college Mickey Mouse championship event, with wins against Wake Forest and Wichita State, improving their record to 8-0. Wake Forest seemed to present as the hardest challenge of so far coming into the game 6-1, but ended up being no challenge. 75-58 was the final score, marking the first time the Florida defense held an opponent to under 60 points this season. This defensive trend continued into the championship against undefeated Wichita State, dominating 88-51 in which the starters were pulled halfway through the second half, yikes. A 27-0 run sums up how this game went for Wichita State Shockers, what a shocker.
Walter Clayton was named the ESPN Events Invitational MVP as the leading scorer averaging 20 points per game and 17.4 on the season. Alex Condon served as Clayton’s wingman averaging 14.5 points and 8.5 rebounds, continuing his impressive sophomore season, what is a sophomore slump? Reuben Chinyelu racked up his first double-double as a Gator as well. As the Gators finish the first quarter of the season, their 8-0 record drastically increases the pressure to perform, but this gritty squad seems up to the challenge.
Walter Clayton Jr. is now the proud owner of a Mickey Mouse MVP award; watch out LeBron, you're now not the only one with a side hustle collecting Disney hardware.
11/24/2024
What else is there to say? The Gators can play some good basketball. 6-0 is the best start to the Todd Golden era by far and doesn’t look to slow down anytime soon. The Gators capitalized two more wins at home this week against Florida A&M 84-60 and Southern Illinois 93-68. The scoring spree hasn’t halted either; the offense has averaged over 88 points per game, putting up points like taking candy from a baby. To top off this perfect start, the Gators are only 1 of 3 teams in the SEC with a 6-0 record.
Tuesday night against FAMU started like a Formula One race car driver with the foot on the gas, leading 46-22. The second half slowed down the momentum for the Gators, hitting a few curbs more like a student driver. However, the lead was too much for the Rattlers to make up. Rebounding consistency continued from last week, with four players having 7+ rebounds, controlling the glass 47-36. The Gators also had four players in double-digit scoring, an impressive trend this season, led by senior duo Will Richard with 20 and Walter Clayton Jr. with 17. Additionally, freshman Isiah Brown scored his first collegiate buckets, contributing 9 points in the win. Welcome to the Swamp.
The Gators maintained first-half dominance later in the week leading the Southern Illinois Salukis 46-25. Alijah Martin tallied a season-high 32 points and was a cheat code from the 3-point line, sinking eight, the most in his career and second most in Florida history. He shot an impressive 11/19 from the field, and his stellar performance now makes Martin the leading scorer for the Gators this year, with 16.7 points per game. Sophomore forward Thomas Haugh also set a career-high of 19 points and sank three shots from behind the line. It was a low-scoring effort from the usually high-scoring senior duo Clayton Jr. and Richard, but that didn’t stop Florida from finishing with the second most points in a game this season with 93.
This upcoming week will be the toughest test yet, set to face 5-1 Wake Forest and 3-2 Virginia, both teams the Gators lost to last season. I smell revenge on the menu. Go Gators.
Tyler's Funny:
Those FAMU Rattlers didn’t look too good after slithering into the Gator-filled swamps of Gainesville; not even college basketball can avoid the food chain.
11/17/2024
Despite the serious accusations against head coach Todd Golden, this team hasn't slowed down. The Gators are off to a hot 4-0 start, and the offense looks great, if not better than last year. Florida defeated Grambling on Monday 86-62, then rival Florida State in Tallahassee 87-74 on Friday. The team's rebounding efforts improved drastically this week, putting up 39 more rebounds than both opponents. These efforts were led by sophomore forward Alex Condon, who averaged 10 rebounds in these two games.
One thing shown across the roster is consistency. Florida fans know this team runs through Walter Clayton Jr., but when he's not his best night, the others make up for it. Center transfer Rueben Chinyelu had been quiet the first two games, but against Grambling, he outscored Clayton and tied his career-high of 14 points, leading the team in scoring. In this match, the team operated as a charity event as 5 players scored in the double digits, 'You get a basket! Everyone gets a basket!'. Against Florida State, however, Clayton made Tallahassee his city, scoring 25 points and 4 threes in a masterclass performance. Alijah Martin put up his season-high 17 in the impressive win, rounded out by a solid performance from Sam Alexis with 12 off the bench. freshman acquisition Urban Klavzar, an ex-Slovenian pro player, was cleared by the NCAA to play, making his debut in this game and scoring his first collegiate points.
In other news, Golden announced 7', 9" Oliver Rioux would be redshirting his first season. Sad news for Florida fans, as they won't be able to see Rioux make Gator opponents look like children on the court. Florida A&M and Southern Illinois are the opponents for the Gator's third week of the season as they look to chomp down on their next opponents. FSU Barstool...where is the Carolina Reaper video?
11/10/2024
The Gators pulled out a 98-83 win against the gritty opponent of USF in the Jacksonville Sports Foundation Invitational Monday night. The Gators got off to a slow start, shooting poorly from the 3-point line. The tenacious South Florida defense forced many poor shots while their own shots continued to fall, gaining a 13-point lead halfway through the first half. An inspired 8-point solo run by Will Richard seemed to fuel the Gator's comeback, only trailing by 1 point into the second half. Transitioning aggressively to attacking the rim was clearly noticeable for the Gators, getting into the bonus only 8 minutes into the second half. After a USF timeout to halt the Gator's comeback, Todd Golden ran to center court and hyped up the crowd, resulting in excitement from Gator's fans that could almost match returning home to your favorite homemade meal.
Walter Clayton ended the game with an impressive 29-point performance, shooting 10-15 from the field and perfect from the line. Clayton was only 4 points away from tying his career-high 33 against Colorado last year in March Madness. Will Richard joined the 20+ club in Jacksonville with a career-high 25 points. Richard led the team in minutes with 36 and tallied up 6 rebounds. The star duo combined for over half of the Gator's overall points. FAU transfer Alijah Martin and rising sophomore Alex Condon, contributing 13 points each. Martin struggled from the floor, missing all his 6 attempts from the 3-point line. Most of his points came from the free throw line, taking advantage of the early bonus, and racked up an impressive 4 steals to solidify his impact. Alex Condon showed continued improvement from his impressive freshman year off the bench, killing in the paint with 5 offensive rebounds with only 22 minutes of playtime after early foul trouble. The Gators transfer center Rueben Chinyelu was quiet in his debut, scoring only 2 points after 15 minutes of play. Chinyelu still looks to figure out how to integrate himself into this offense, taking injured Center Micah Handlogten's role from last year. Big shoes to fill, literally.
Thomas Haugh headlined the Gator's bench during his 30 minutes of playtime. He didn't contribute much, a mere 2 points on the stat sheet, but his effort clearly impacted the game as Chinyelu continued to progress. Chattanooga transfer Sam Alexis counted for 6 points and 4 rebounds while returning player Denzel Aberdeen scored 8. 16 points combined from the bench shows the reliance for scoring that the Gators offense has on its star players.
. . . . .
I'm not sure who's better at stealing, Alijah Martin in his first two games as a Gator, or my dogs with my leftovers…
UF continued their win streak in the season's home opener at the O'Connell Center, defeating the Jacksonville Dolphins 81-60. This win was highlighted by Alex Condon's career-high 23 points, shooting a perfect 7-7 from the field. Condon looks to improve his free throw percentages(7-12) but showed impressive attributes to get to the line within 25 minutes. The Dolphins, however, impressed with offensive rebounding skills throughout, including a combined seven from 6' 9 forwards Stephon Payne III and Kendall Munson. Condon's five offensive rebounds in the season opener didn't continue, as he totaled none in this matchup. The Dolphins kept it close halfway through the first half, but the Gators displayed an incredible shooting improvement, going 16-25 in the first and pulling away for the remainder.
The Gators had another four players in the double digits this game, introducing Sam Alexis and removing Walter Clayton Jr. from the assortment of players. Clayton passed around the love this game, only attempting 8 shots and had 7 assists, more than any game last season. It is acceptable to have only 9 points when all everyone will remember after this game is his insane poster dunk. Sam Alexis scored 10 off the bench and led the team with 7 rebounds, while Will Richard scored 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals. Alijah Martin improved his poor shooting performance with 15 points on 5-9 from the floor while achieving 6 steals. Averaging 5 steals through 2 games is no easy feat, and he looks to continue contributing to the team.
The Florida Gators improved to 2-0 after the expected win against Jacksonville University, and they are looking to go 4-0 after Grambling and Florida State are on the schedule this upcoming week.
10/27/2024
Colorado takes the shot from the right baseline; it bounces around the rim for a few seconds… it’s in. No! But with 1.7 seconds the Gators still have a prayer. Walter heaves it the length of the court and . . . no good. A heartbreaking ending for the Florida. Ugh.
Todd Golden’s successful second year as Florida’s head coach came to a bittersweet end in the round of 64, losing 102-100 to Colorado. After a much improved 24-12 record and SEC Tournament finals appearance for the first time since 2014, concerns for the franchise’s future became rampant. The Gators lost graduate guard Zyon Pullin, who signed a two-way deal with the Miami Heat and graduate forward Tyrese Samuel, who became an unrestricted free agent for the NBA. Sophomore guard Riley Kugel transferred to SEC opponent Mississippi State, and starting center Micah Handlogten suffered a gruesome leg injury in the SEC Tournament, ending his 2024-25 season. The cherry on top was that leading scorer Walter Clayton Jr. and starter Will Richard declared for the NBA draft after their junior years. With so much uncertainty for the program, would the upward trend of the Gators take a halt?
Luckily for the Gators, the star duo used their eligibility to return for their senior years. After the offseason scares, Coach Golden has expressed positivity for the new team. Florida returns 58% of total production from the previous year, ranking 3rd in the SEC. This statistic is as vital as ever, considering a whopping 8 team opponents in the division enter the season in the preseason AP Top 25 poll, with Florida at 21. To make another run at an SEC championship appearance will be a bloodbath, but hopes are sky high, aligned with 7’ 9” freshmen commit Oliver Rioux’s line of sight.
Star transfer Alijah Martin, guard from FAU, will join the dynamic duo. He previously led his team to the Final four and received the 2023 NCAA All-Tournament Team award, bringing immediate deep tournament experience to the squad. With a solidified backcourt and Will Richard at the wing, Todd Golden noted that the program would be led by these three stars. Sophomore transfer Rueben Chinyelu, who showed promise in his limited 12 starts at Washington State, should take over the starting center role. The lineup projection is rounded out by sophomore forward Alex Condon after impressing off the bench during his freshman year. The underclassmen frontcourt will be the main transition issue for this squad. The bench will expect increased roles from returning sophomore forward Thomas Haugh and junior guard Denzel Aberdeen, with transfer forward Sam Alexis joining the cause.
Significant strides are hoped to be made for Florida this season as they look to continue their momentum as a top offense in the nation while improving their defensive abilities.
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