Florida Gators basketball preview for St. Bonaventure game

What to Know: Florida Gators vs. St. Bonaventure Bonnies

Game Information

When: Thursday, November 17, 2016, at 7 p.m. (ET)

Where: The Lakeland Center, Lakeland, Fla.

Records: Florida 2-0; St. Bonaventure 1-0

Coaches: Mike White- 23-15 (2nd season at Florida), 124-55 (6th season overall); Mark Schmidt- 147-132 (10th season at St. Bonaventure), 229-222 (16th season overall)

Streaming: SEC Network+

Radio: Gator IMG Sports Network

Projected Starters

Florida Pos. Ht. Wt. Class Per Game
Devin Robinson F 6-8 200 Junior 13.0 pts / 7.5 reb
Justin Leon F 6-8 206 Senior 12.5 pts / 4.0 reb
John Egbunu C 6-11 255 R-Junior 9.5 pts / 8.0 reb
KeVaughn Allen G 6-2 183 Sophomore 8.5 pts / 3.0 asts
Kasey Hill PG 6-1 175 Senior 9.5 pts / 3.5 asts

 

St. bonaventure Pos.  Ht.  Wt.  Class Per Game
Denzel Gregg F 6-7 225 Senior 23 pts / 3.0 reb
Chinonso Obokoh F 6-9 225 Graduate 2.0 pts / 3.0 reb
Idris Taqqee G 6-4 200 Junior 5.0 pts / 12.0 reb
Matt Mobley G 6-3 185 Junior 21.0 pts / 3.0 asts
Jaylen Adams 6-2 185 Junior 23.0 pts / 8.0 asts 

 

Preview

Both teams come into this game with undamaged records. Due to renovations being made to the O’Dome, this will be Florida’s third consecutive neutral site game. Nine of the Gators’ first eleven games will be played at a neutral site, the other two are trips to Florida State and North Florida.

The Gators are coming off of two convincing wins in Jacksonville over Florida Gulf Coast (80-59) and Mercer (76-54). The first win was highlighted by a dominating performance in the second half in which Florida outscored FGCU 35-9 in the final 16 minutes of the game. The win over Mercer came in opposite fashion, as the Gators played outstanding defense in the first half. The Bears scored just 14 points in the first 20 minutes of play, the fewest points allowed in a half under Mike White.

The Bonnies defeated St. Francis (PA.) 92-82 in their season opener. Three different players scored 20+ points for St. Bonaventure in the game (no Florida player has scored 20+ points yet this season). Adams and Gregg each scored a team-leading 23 points, while Mobley put up 21. Taqqee led the Bonnies with 12 rebounds in the game.

Mid-majors are very dangerous opponents, especially this time of year. Several major programs found that out the hard way in the opening weekend of college basketball. The Gators will face their third consecutive mid-major opponent on Thursday, and St. Bonaventure is no slouch. The Bonnies were co-Atlantic 10 champions last season and narrowly missed a spot in the NCAA Tournament with a 22-9 record. They earned a No. 1 seed in the NIT last season, ahead of the Gators, who were a No. 2 seed in the tournament.

Florida has fared decently against other Atlantic 10 opponents, with a 10-4 record since 1990. George Washington (A-10) eliminated the Gators from the NIT last season.

This will be just the second meeting between Florida and St. Bonaventure in history. The only game between the two teams was played in Jacksonville on December 27, 1977, and the Gators came away with an 88-75 win. The Gators will look to keep a perfect record against the Bonnies in Thursday night’s game.

Bailiegh Carlton
A lifelong sports fan, Bailiegh Carlton knew from a young age that she wanted to work in sports in some capacity. Before transferring to the University of Florida to study journalism, she played softball at Gulf Coast State College. She then interned for Gator Country for three years as she worked toward her degree. After graduation, Bailiegh decided to explore other opportunities in the world of sports, but all roads led her right back here. In her time away, she and her husband welcomed a beautiful baby girl into the world. When she isn't working, she can almost always be found snuggled up with sweet baby Ridley, Cody and her four fur babies.