The first game back from the holiday break can often be a sloppy one and while both teams had their moments shaking off the rust, the Florida Gators were still able to lead over the Dartmouth Big Green from wire to wire and finish with a 94-72 win. During the first half it looked like the Gators might completely run away with this one, holding a 53-27 lead at the break, but between the Big Green fighting their way back with excellent three-point shooting and the Gators emptying the bench a little bit the game didn’t get wildly out of hand. Leading the way in scoring for Florida was Alex Condon with 17 while he added 9 rebounds, but it was Rueben Chinyelu who might have been the best overall Gator with 13 points and 12 rebounds along with some excellent defense on the other side.
Glass Domination
Florida is going to have a size advantage against just about anyone they play against this season but against Dartmouth the discrepancy was gigantic and that showed up anytime a missed shot was up for grabs. The Gators ended up winning the rebounding category 60-24, and a +36 rebound margin is going to be just about as big as anything you’re going to see. Ultimately this was the biggest reason the Gators were able to win this one by 22 as the complexion could have been a whole lot different if the Big Green were outrebounded by only, say, 18 (which is still a comical number) but it shows just how high Florida’s floor is when they can completely dominate the glass like this.
Vying For A Spot
Looking at the rotation there is a pretty clear top eight, but the Gators have been trying to find a ninth player that could enter the mix and play an important role. Right now it doesn’t seem like anyone really has the inside track, but each of the possible wings had their chance on Monday. CJ Ingram got the first crack but messed up on some defensive assignments, and didn’t get much more run until garbage time. Alex Kovatchev, a new addition to the competition, was also able to get an early chance and while he had some excellent moments defensively he missed both of his threes and had an egregious turnover that shows he has some improvement to make on the offensive end. Isaiah Brown, who would probably be as close to the leader as anyone for that ninth spot, was the leading scorer with 6, including a big dunk on a baseline cut. Perhaps the player that needed to have a good showing more than anyone was Alex Lloyd and he did just that, knocking down a three and having a nice driving layup while adding a really nice defensive possession that ended with a block. It’s not clear who is the leader among this group to enter the rotation at the wing, but it’s clear that everyone is vying for it.
State Of The Team Entering SEC Play
This was the final chance for the Gators to tune things up before SEC play and it was a good chance to see where the team is currently at. The rebounding and defense remain a strength, and much of that is due to the excellent play of Rueben Chinyelu in the middle. Despite 17 points and 9 rebounds for Alex Condon he didn’t play a particularly good game and his 4 turnovers were all incredibly sloppy, and he picked up a couple of early fouls that did not show a high level of focus. Three-point shooting remains a concern with the Gators hitting just 29% of them against Dartmouth, and Boogie Fland and Xaivian Lee combined to go 1-5. There has been some improved play from both of these two, but finishing at the rim and making deep shots has remained a limitation, and you have to wonder how much that could change at this point of the year. Whatever the case may be, Florida has stayed in a lot of games this year with their defense and rebounding and it will scare a lot of teams in the SEC.
Final Thoughts
At this point of the year both the players and coaching staff are probably tired of playing buy games, and with a couple months of play having already occurred there wasn’t a whole lot that was going to be learned Monday night. This team has shown their identity is one of defense and rebounding and that was the case once again. They’ll now prepare for their SEC opener against Missouri, a team that had a lackluster non-conference portion of the season that makes them look vulnerable.