My biggest gripe. . .

[ofmgator]

We played better early in the season because we had depth and everyone was fresh. Fast forward to a grueling schedule and two games per week ... fatigue and lack of depth caused us to lose tow or three games and had little to do with players skill sets.
If Yeguette and Frazier come back soon we'll have the depth,experience and numbers we need to be on top. We lost four games by an average of three to four points and they were away in tough places to play.

[UFreak]

I've been beating this drum a lot lately on this board. He needs to get the ball in the paint more, especially when we are struggling to find a way to score.

He has a very nice post game

[GatorMcCluskey]

Originally Posted by CoachSayre

EM has been banged up too. Hard on him taking the inside when he's playing more minutes. Will go in more when WY comes back for good minutes.

yeah, Murphy also took a pretty hard fall in the first half too that looked like it slowed him down even more.

AKA, I agree that we need more consistent inside scoring, but I just don't think there's a whole lot that can be done with this team as currently constructed to get it. Murphy has good footwork/skills, but he lacks athleticism and gets pushed around too much (plus he appears to be banged up). Yeguete's a good defender but isn't really a guy you can call plays for offensively. Prather's a small forward playing out of position. Young's our best option in terms of being able to establish himself down low and beat single defenders, but his offensive ability is limited. I think all of our big men are really better suited to being secondary options rather than go-to guys.

[Bullis33]

The issue is when he is in with PY, he is the 4 and will almost never post up...only when he is at the 5 spot (PY out) do we post him up...Dykes pointed that out several times last night, and he is right...we are best offensively in the post when Erik is the 5....Erik is very skilled and crafty finishing around the rim when he posts up, and I agree with AKA we have wasted his talent to an extent down low

[diamondted13]

I posted about this last week. It seemed to me that Murphy was posting up and using his mid-range game more in the pre-conference schedule (and not just against cupcake opponents). He is obviously a huge weapon and match-up problem from beyond the arc, but as AKA states, he seems to have become more one-dimensional in the offense as the season has progressed....and as a result our offense has become too reliant on pts outside the paint. He definitely has more versatility in the post than PY.

[stingbb]

Murphy was 3-10 from the field last night so he was getting looks but wasn't making shots. Same thing against Mizzou when he was 3-11 from the field. Earlier on, Murphy was just 2-7 against Arkansas in another SEC loss.

So, in UF's three conference losses, Murphy is a combined 8-28 from the field. He is such a key to our team that in games when he struggles, the team struggles also. But, it's not like Murphy isn't getting shots.

[bullish]

AKA, I feel Patrick is very physical like you say. When playing Billy Ball with defense coming first, I don't know if this hurts him getting open more, but with playing center he is shorter than a lot of other teams centers so I think our guards try to get it to him but lose the ball in the "trees". His hands are so strong I think he has a hard time catching passes, but against Tenn. I felt he played very tough and hit some shots. His FT shooting, he even made some, hurray! I never feel confident with him at the line. His muscles are so big I think when he raises his arms, they pull his shot off. He seems to line up right for shooting, but when he stands in that position too long, usually the first shot is pulled to the left. I think a good ft shooter could work with him and help. I sure he is trying and the coaches are helping, but with him getting fouled a lot, he has to make better than 50% for high percentage of success for our team. Maybe its just focus or he needs to be moving when he gets to the line.

Murphy does have some moves and a short range game. He tried at Tennessee, but with the physical play, he got hammered. More time on his backside than being upright. He should have been at the line more, but with Road Games in the SEC, they let the home teams usually murder the other guys. Hopefully against Alabama, he will get more touches closer in and the guards drive it more successful inside with scoring and assists.
The Gators seemed to be a better team when driving the ball inside and Billy said as much. Being at home, with two players lending some minutes off the mash unit, hopefully our shooting, especially from 3 pt territory will be better.

[GothamGator]

Murphy has shown the ability to score in the post, but I wonder how many of those baskets come when he's switched off on a smaller player.

Young has slowly developed his post game, and it's passable now. Most teams have to double him. Still, he's not at the level of a Horford or, especially, a Speights.