What to know: #24 Florida Gators basketball vs. Tennessee Volunteers
Game Information
When: Saturday, January 7, 2017 at 5:15 p.m. (ET)
Where: Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center, Gainesville, Fla.
Records: Florida (11-3), (2-0 SEC); Tennessee (8-6), (1-1 SEC)
Coaches: Mike White- 32-18 (2nd season at Florida), 133-58 (6th season overall); Rick Barnes- 23-25 (2nd season at Tennessee ), 627-339 (30th season overall)
TV: ESPN2
Streaming: WatchESPN
Radio: Gator IMG Sports Network
Projected Starters
Florida | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Class | Per Game |
Devin Robinson | F | 6-8 | 200 | Junior | 12.6 pts / 5.5 reb |
Justin Leon | F | 6-8 | 206 | Senior | 6.4 pts / 3.2 reb |
Kevarrius Hayes | C | 6-9 | 218 | Sophomore | 5.6 pts / 4.0 reb |
Kasey hill | G | 6-1 | 175 | Senior | 9.3 pts / 4.9 asts |
Kevaughn allen | G | 6-2 | 183 | Sophomore | 14.1 pts / 2.4 reb |
tennessee | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Class | Per Game |
grant williams | F | 6-5 | 234 | Freshman | 10.8 pts / 5.9 reb |
kyle alexander | F | 6-10 | 218 | Sophomore | 3.6 pts / 3.7 reb |
lamonte turner | G | 6-0 | 187 | R-Freshman | 9.4 pts / 2.7 asts |
robert hubbs III | G | 6-5 | 207 | Senior | 15.2 pts / 4.8 reb |
jordan bowden | G | 6-3 | 180 | Freshman | 7.6 pts / 2.9 reb |
Preview
Tennessee comes into this game looking to get back on track after suffering its first SEC loss to Arkansas at home on Tuesday. The Volunteers opened conference play with a road win over Texas A&M before that.
The Gators are riding a four-game winning streak, after defeating Ole Miss at home last game. Canyon Barry scored 20 points off the bench for Florida and Kasey Hill became the first player in a power conference to have 5-plus points, rebounds, assists, and steals in a league game this season. Florida also forced 21 Ole Miss turnovers, the most turnovers forced against an SEC opponent since South Carolina (21) in 2014.
Robert Hubbs III leads the Volunteers offensively with 15.2 points per game. Grant Williams comes in averaging 10.8 and leads the team with 5.9 rebounds per game. Hubbs III and Williams both shoot better than 50 percent from the field.
Tennessee brings a huge offensive threat in Detrick Mostella off the bench. He also averages double-digits with 10.6 points per game and has made a team-leading 23 three-pointers this season.
The Gators and Volunteers are as evenly matched as it gets offensively. Both teams average 78.6 points per game. Tennessee has scored just one more point than Florida has this season, with 1,101 points to Florida’s 1,100.
Florida has a 56-73 all-time record against Tennessee, but holds a 34-24 home advantage in the series. The Gators are 0-1 against the Volunteers under Mike White. Tennessee dominated with an 83-69 win at home last season and led by as many as 30 points in the game.
Florida looks to secure a third consecutive victory at home over Tennessee. The game officially sold out on Thursday, so the home crowd will surely be ready to help the Gators out with that task.