Texas Southern @ #20 Florida Dec. 6, 2021 | 6 p.m. SEC Network+ | ESPN App

Wrong.

All were on the road and 5 of those teams are likely NCAA tournament teams.

 

No not a savior. But another big body to disrupt their layup line and easy put backs.

If you are getting killed on the boards and the opponent is getting 2 and 3 shots every other possession, are you going to substitute with a 6’1” guard to stem the tide or a 6’ 11” 300 center?

We know what ME elected to do and we know the outcome.

 

Ok let’s just ignore the 7-2 record with a win against a ranked FSU team and 5 gaudy blowouts so that we can focus on one bad game.

 

Maybe they were "oohs", followed by "ahhhs."

 

Do you think Texas Southern is the ONLY team we are going to lose to this year? Victories are crucial especially against teams that you are supposed to slaughter. This was not a last-second shot by Appleby or Rutgers against Purdue. This was a textbook annihilation. Thank God we came back against North Florida, although given some additional experience on that team, I honestly believe this team would struggle with them. We are right now one of the worst 3 point shooting teams in college basketball. And in a sport where 3 point shooting is trending upwards, that is NOT a good sign. Hopefully, the baskets will start falling for us, but right now, they don't even look close right off of the release for most of our players.

5-23 against lowly North Florida. 5-24 against lowly Texas Southern and 4-24 against Oklahoma. That says it all. A collective shooting slump or a poor shooting 3 point team? All of those are about 10 percentage points below our whopping average of 30%. Something needs to give here. I don't know what, but Murphee you can't have high hopes when a team in three consecutive games shoots barely 20% from the 3 point line. YOU CAN'T!!!!!

Teams are starting to sag as Oklahoma did and double Castleton or deny him the ball effectively taking away a strong low post option by ignoring the nonexistent 3 point option. When teams can simply game plan their defense like that, a program is going to struggle. I hope MW comes up with some sought of solution. I really do.

 

The NBA buzz usually dies after you get to Gainesville. I know that you have played tons of basketball, but you have it bass ackwards when you say that Reeves will earn playing time as he develops. The reality is that he will develop when he gets playing time. This kid should be going into the game at the 4 or 5 minute mark of every single game and again at the 9 or 10 minute mark. He also should be involved in the offense rather than just standing around watching his teammates dribble. If he has played well, this should be repeated in the 2nd half. If he hasn’t played well, his butt should be on the bench in the 2nd half. The team is not going to be hurt by doing this. Reeves will feel that he is a part of the team, and he will develop. Similar treatment should be given to other players. This is how you build a cohesive team and develop your players rather than having them thinking about where else they are going to be in another year or 2. I have been watching this same stuff ever since White got to Gainesville. If your not one of the regulars, you don’t develop and you get out of Dodge. White has to have the guts to play these kids regardless of whether they will make some mistakes on the way to becoming good players. It will pay huge dividends in the long run.

 

I hear you, but there are a finite amount of minutes in a game. 200 minutes exactly to split. 5 starters get about 25-30 min each. 6th man gets about 25 min. That leaves about 50-75 min for the rest of the team. That’s not a lot to split amongst Felder, Eli, Jitoboh, Lane, and Reeves.

 

11 is too big of a rotation. I have been watching pieces of Illinois’ games. Its coach is basically doing with Omar Payne what I am suggesting should be done with the Gator bench players who might be developable. Omar has a long way to go, but I have no doubt that he feels that he is a part of the team. Like clockwork, he comes in for Cockburn at the 4 minute mark of the first half. If he stays out of foul trouble, he comes in at the 8, 9, or 10 minute mark. If he has a good first half, he goes back in in the 2nd half usually once. Bear in mind that he is spelling a guy who probably is the best big man in college basketball, but the coach has the guts to play him, and he is improving. He is not scoring at all, but he is solid on defense and is all over the court setting screens on offense. Against Rutgers, which was his best game, Payne played 11 minutes and had 7 rebounds and a blocked shot. Payne might or might not turn out to improve enough to start next year for Illinois, but he is being given every opportunity to do so. That does not happen at Florida.

 

I wasn’t advocating an /1.1-man rotation… I was just pointing out all the players who get minutes from game to game. And you are kind of highlighting my point… where are the additional minutes for Reeves going to come from? Who are you suggesting gets less time to accommodate it?