OGT-Florida @ Kentucky 2/12/2022 4:00 pm ESPN

Florida (16-8/6-5 SEC) vs. #5/4 Kentucky (20-4/9-2 SEC)
Rupp Arena (23,000) | Lexington, Ky.
Feb. 12, 2022 | 4 p.m.

BROADCAST INFO
ESPN | ESPN App
Play-by-Play: Karl Ravech
Analyst: Jimmy Dykes

Gators Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Mick Hubert
Analyst: Lee Humphrey

 

HEAD COACHES
Mike White
139-83 | 7th season at UF
240-123 | 11th season overall

John Calipari
359-97 | 13th season at Kentucky
762-235 | 31st season overall

MATCHUP BASICS
All-Time Series: 41-105
All-Time/Away: 11-53
Series under White: 4-8
Away under White: 2-4
Last Meeting:
W, 71-67, 2/27/21 (Away)

 

FLORIDA POSSIBLE STARTERS
# Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Min. Pts. Reb. Misc.
4 Anthony Duruji F 6-7 209 Sr. 25.6 9.5 4.4 1.0 stl
12 Colin Castleton F 6-11 240 Sr. 28.3 15.4 8.9 2.8 blk
22 Tyree Appleby G 6-1 163 Sr. 27.7 10.8 2.2 4.0 ast
24 Phlandrous Fleming Jr. G 6-5 205 Gr. 25.6 10.4 4.0 1.4 stl
44 Niels Lane G 6-5 206 So. 11.2 0.9 1.2 0.3 stl

Kentucky POSSIBLE STARTERS
# Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Min. Pts. Reb. Misc.
12 Keion Brooks Jr. F 6-7 210 Jr. 24.4 11.6 4.7 .495 fg%
34 Oscar Tshiebwe F 6-9 255 Jr. 30.4 15.9 15.1 1.9 stl
2 Sahvir Wheeler G 5-9 180 Jr. 30.3 9.7 2.1 7.2 ast
3 TyTy Washington Jr. G 6-3 197 Fr. 29.5 12.9 3.7 4.0 ast
31 Kellan Grady G 6-5 205 Gr. 32.4 12.0 2.0 2.9 3fg

 

NUMBERS OF NOTE​

7
Myreon Jones’ seven 3-pointers in Florida’s win against Georgia were
the most by a Gator in three years. Over UF’s last three games, Jones
is shooting 14-for-23 (.609) from 3-point range.

2
Florida is one of two visiting teams to post multiple wins in Rupp Arena
since 2015-16 when Mike White’s tenure began (Tennessee).

33
Florida plays its 33rd all-time road game vs. an AP top-five opponent.
The Gators own a pair of top-five road wins in team history, both coming
against fourth-ranked Kentucky teams, occurring on Dec. 17, 1966, and
Jan. 20, 1988

 

2021-22 AT A GLANCE
• Florida has compiled a four-game winning streak entering Saturday, the team’s best stretch since a 6-0 start
to open the season.

• Myreon Jones has caught fire for the Gators and had a 7-for-11 shooting night from 3-point range in Wednesday’s win vs. Georgia. Over the past three games, Jones has hit on 14 of 23 attempts (.609) from long range.

• UF has also been buoyed by the return of Colin Castleton, who missed six games with a shoulder injury. In his two games back, Castleton has posted 15.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 3.5 blocked shots per game.

• To open the Gators’ current win streak, Tyree Appleby led UF to a trio of comebacks. He first posted 21 points against Oklahoma State, his most as a Gator. Appleby added 17 points, all in the second half, against Mizzou. Appleby shot 10-for-10 from the free-throw line at Mizzou, including a pair with 7.9 seconds left to lift UF to a one-point victory. Against Ole Miss, Appleby earned his first double-double at Florida with 10 points and 10 assists, including a 7-for-8 performance from the free-throw line in the overtime period.

• The Gators are one of six teams with a win in each of the past four NCAA Tournaments, joined by Gonzaga,
Kansas, Michigan, Villanova, and Florida State. UF is also one of 12 teams nationally and the only Southeastern Conference team to reach every NCAA Tournament in that span (since 2017).

• UF ranks among SEC leaders in blocked shots (second, 5.7), scoring defense (third, 63.9) and steals (fourth, 9.0).

• After Florida’s comeback win vs. Oklahoma State without Castleton and Jitoboh, OSU coach Mike Boynton had this to say: “It shows the character of their guys to not hang their heads ... Just lost their backup center, who was playing well, the best player’s out. Give them credit for showing what true competitors do when their back’s against the wall, which is come out and try to fight for what they believe they can be.”

• The Gators stifled Vanderbilt, limiting the Commodores to 14 second-half points. Vandy’s 42 total points
marked the second-fewest UF has allowed vs. an SEC opponent under Mike White (41 at SC, 2/10/18). No
Commodore scored more than seven points against the UF defense, and the Gators forced the SEC’s leading
scorer Scotty Pippen Jr. into a 1-for-10 day with a season-low six points.

• Anthony Duruji scored 18 of his 22 points vs. Mississippi State in the second half, helping UF rally from seven points down with 7:20 to play. Duruji nabbed a career-high five steals vs. MSU, becoming the fifth Gator since 1996 (Donovan/White Era) to post a 22-point, five-steal outing. He joins Nick Calathes (twice), Corey Brewer (twice), Brett Nelson and Jason Williams (twice).

• Florida battled back from a double-digit deficit to knock off Ohio State on Tyree Appleby’s buzzer-beating
3-pointer to win the Fort Myers Tip-Off. Phlandrous Fleming led the Florida attack with 19 points and four
steals, supported by Colin Castleton’s double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds.

• The Gators used a 13-0 second-half run to spark the win against 20th-ranked FSU, and Colin Castleton earned SEC Player of the Week honors with a 15-point, 16-rebound, six-blocked shot performance.

• The Gators’ quartet of veteran impact transfers combined for 3,882 career points scored at their previous
schools. The groups consist of grad transfers Brandon McKissic (UMKC) and Phlandrous Fleming Jr. (Charles-
ton Southern) along with Myreon Jones (Penn State) and CJ Felder (Boston College).

 

ABOUT THE OPPONENT​

• Kentucky enters Saturday’s game on a five-game winning streak,
including a victory at Kansas in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge.

• Oscar Tshiebwe leads the team with 15.9 points and 15.1 rebounds per
game, 46 steals, 36 blocked shots and a .602 field goal percentage.

• TyTy Washington Jr. (12.9 ppg), Kellan Grady (12.0) and Keion Brooks
Jr. (11.6) all average in double figures, as well. Grady rates as the top 3-point threat, connecting on 69 of 156 attempts from long range (.442).

• Sahvir Wheeler leads the Wildcats with 159 assists (7.2 apg).

OPPONENT’S LAST 5 GAMES
Jan. 25 Mississippi State W 82-74
Jan. 29 at Kansas W 80-62
Feb. 2 Vanderbilt W 77-70
Feb. 5 at Alabama W 66-55
Feb. 8 at South Carolina W 86-76

OPPONENT’S NEXT 5 GAMES
Feb. 15 at Tennessee
Feb. 19 Alabama
Feb. 23 LSU
Feb. 26 at Arkansas
March 1 Ole Miss

SERIES UNDER WHITE (4-8)
Feb. 6, 2016 A L 61-80
March 1, 2016 H L 79-88
Feb. 4, 2017 H W 88-66
Feb. 25, 2017 A L 66-76
Jan. 20, 2018 A W 66-64
March 3, 2018 H W 80-67
Feb. 2, 2019 H L 54-65
March 9, 2019 A L 57-66
Feb. 22, 2020 A L 59-65
March 7, 2020 H L 70-71
Jan. 9, 2021 H L 58-76
Feb. 27, 2021 A W 71-67

ALL-TIME TOP-10 ROAD WINS (5-62)
Dec. 17, 1966 at #4 Kentucky W 78-75
Feb. 3, 1969 at #7 Vanderbilt W 91-85
Jan. 20, 1988 at #4 Kentucky W 58-56
Feb. 1, 1998 at #7 Kentucky W 86-78
Jan. 7, 2003 at #7 Mississippi State W 74-66

VS. TOP 10 UNDER WHITE (5-14)
Dec. 12, 2015 at #1 Michigan State L 52-58
Jan. 30, 2016 #9 West Virginia W 88-71
Dec. 6, 2016 vs. #5 Duke L 74-84
Feb. 4, 2017 #8 Kentucky W 88-66
Nov. 26, 2017 vs. #1 Duke L 84-87
Dec. 8, 2018 #10 Michigan State L 59-63
Jan. 12, 2019 #3 Tennessee L 67-78
Feb. 2, 2019 #7 Kentucky L 54-65
Feb. 9, 2019 at #1 Tennessee L 61-73
March 6, 2019 #10 LSU L/OT 78-79
March 9, 2019 at #6 Kentucky L 57-66
March 15, 2019 vs. #9 LSU W 76-73
March 23, 2019 vs. #8 Michigan L 49-64
Jan. 18, 2020 #4 Auburn W 69-47
Jan. 25, 2020 #1 Baylor L 61-72
Feb. 22, 2020 at #10 Kentucky L 59-65
March 7, 2020 #6 Kentucky L 70-71
Jan. 19, 2021 #6 Tennessee W 75-49
Jan. 8, 2022 at #9 Auburn L 73-85