Yeah, I'm sure proud of Patrick, seeing him working the games now. I imagine it's quite difficult for him. He's a real life Gator hero. Cheese, man he will always have a spot on my all Gator team. What an exciting player.
I never take how a team plays in the NCAAs as a benchmark for their season. We had some awesome teams flame out in the first weekend after 2000 with BD as the head coach. Those teams did not suck. Lots of talent and a great coach but things happen. I think this team has done quite well so far and losing in the first round of the NCAAs will not change my opinion. I don't want them to do that and I don't expect them to do that but it can happen. They also can get on a run. But the body of work so far is that they are a solid team and can give nearly every other team a tussle. I am good with that.
Agree. An early tourney loss doesn’t change the success and enjoyment of a season. But the season is kinda geared toward the tourney… earning a bid, seeding, etc. And, right or wrong, I’ve just kinda looked at Sweet 16 as the bench mark for where you can say… “we have a good tourney”.
Unless you are situated as one of the very top elite teams in the country with expected lottery talent, then I think it's difficult to expect better than a Sweet 16 appearance. That's always been my personal standard for a successful season. You can't complain if you make it to the second weekend because there are simply too many really good teams.
Well, I think this Florida team can beat anybody in the country, esp on a neutral court. It’s been since ‘14 since I really thought that. Definitely a potential tough out with the way these guys are playing. I’d be thrilled with a sweet 16, but potential is there for more. We score a ton of points and with the bigs we can do it in a lot of ways (aren’t just praying for 3’s to fall). Obviously there’s a few elite defensive teams that would make for an interesting matchup (and we’ve seen these guys have trouble at times against zones and pressure), also a handful of teams that can “run” with the Gators. So as usual some of it depends on matchups, luck, and how the bracket shakes out. Obviously that ‘14 team was more dominant, almost a shock it didn’t win it all (damn UCONN buzzsaw). That last elite 8 team was good too and could have been a contender at full health, but that felt more like a miracle run after Egbunu went down. We had very little front court depth that year, relying on PF Hayes to shift over and be the C (and literally no backups at that point).
The bigs have to learn how to play aggressively without fouling. We're not a great defensive team, but defended the 3-point arc very well tonight. Our guys had an off night shooting until the last 10-12 minutes of the game where we lit it up. Pullin, Clayton & Richard led the scoring, with Samuel & Condon next & the defense getting a lot of stops down the stretch. Props to all the guys, but especially Todd Golden, who pieced togtether a very good team.gb
I still say success in the tourney will depend on who they draw. Until further notice, this team has a problem with zone defense. Mainly, they need to shoot the ball well (Richard especially) to stop the zone. If he and Samuel are doing well, it is damn hard to beat this team. After that, getting into foul trouble in the front court is a tough thing to have.
I posted 12-6, 25 wins and a Sweet 16 before the season began. After three games, I bet a Natty at 5600-1 and two weeks ago, a Final Four at 1400-1. Go Gators.
Still mad that with him or honest refereeing, we would have been in the Final Four in 2018 instead of the Cocks. We was robbed.
Yeah, I simply can't relax despite whatever our lead is. Protecting the lead has been our glaring weakness, and I think CTG addressed it last night by telling the guys don't let up, no matter what. Sometimes it led to some quick, bad shots, but I'll take that if that's what it takes to keep the foot on the gas.
I'm not saying I expect us to make the Final Four. I'm saying the pieces are there for us to shock any team IF we have every guy playing at the top of their game. There's just a lot of good stuff and balance on this squad we haven't seen in years, and it's peaking at the right time.
same for me. That team was special, but twice we couldn't overcome UConn. Maybe this year, we will exact our revenge, especially since they are going for back-to-back titles
Aberdeen is a Soph, right. Not likely to make a big jump at the point but you never know. That said, gotta give him props for that steal and dunk. Condo and Haugh are more likely to have jumps.
I didn't want to mention Mike White in other threads but it at least seems somewhat appropriate to write it here. We finished 14 and 1 at home. One of the most frustrating aspects of our last several years was spoiling early season excitement and home crowds with poor showings against fsu and others. For me it always starts with defending home court/field regardless of sport. I supported White uo until his last couple years but the excitement had long left the building after multiple let downs some of which was terrible injury luck but mostly due to our recurring issues. We could have an early exit in the tourney and this year wouldn't be any less enjoyable because we have seen the team progress and jell. I was excited after year two of Mike White but in hindsight this is different because this is Goldens hand picked team. If anything we could be even better if he didn't suffer some ill timed adversity as well when Jarvis left. Looking forward to seeing what Goldens ceiling is as he gains more experience. I hope he can be a stabilizing force for years to come, Something that we have struggled to find over on the football field. I also have to wonder if Golden could have the same success at Georgia that he has had here in year two. I'm not sure why he wouldn't given where our program was when he came here last year. Just random musings. One more thing. Goldens extroverted personality and enthusiasm is just as refreshing as the play on the court. I hope we have our guy for years to come. It's fun to watch Gator basketball again.
Just to note, we won this game with free throws. We hit 87pct. Made 40 to their 20. That's bigger than the margin. Also props to Samuel who went 9/9. I would never have believed.
