Florida played an excellent team on Wednesday night and wasn’t up to the challenge, falling to the UConn Huskies by a score of 75-54. UConn entered the game ranked 5th in the country and showed why they are deserving of that accolade, controlling the game on both sides of the floor on their way to a relatively easy dispatching of the Gators. Riley Kugel and Alex Fudge led the way for the Gators with 13 points each and both were bright spots on a night where things didn’t go so well for their teammates. Big man Adama Sanogo was the player of the game scoring 17 points and adding 7 rebounds.
Defensive Issues
The Gators have struggled to guard off ball screening actions so far this season so they were in trouble from the jump against a UConn team that runs complex screening actions away from the ball to free up shooters and occupy help side defense. Knowing the Gators would be employing drop pick and roll coverage they also came into the game with a game plan to attack that defense and executed well throughout the game. There were some good moments for the Gators but overall UConn shot 52% from the field, making it a disappointing game for Florida.
Struggling Offense
Using a continuity ball screen offensive system that has mixed results so far this season the Gators struggled to get quality looks against a stout UConn defense and finished the game shooting only 30% from the field. UConn was aggressive with their coverage of the continuous side ball screens Florida would run and it never felt like the Gators were able to pressure the Huskies or put them in rotation and ultimately it was a cold offensive night that made it seem like they never had the firepower to get themselves back in the game. It was also a frustrating game for Colin Castleton who did have 12 points but shot only 4-14 from the field, struggling to finish over the big, physical centers on the Huskies.
Still Recovering
Kyle Lofton and Will Richard were starters up until they had injuries and while both were able to play on Wednesday they weren’t themselves. Both came off the bench but weren’t able to contribute to their regular level with Lofton having 0 points and 1 assist on 0-5 shooting and Richard having 0 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists on 0-2 shooting. Even though Richard was able to return from his injury a game earlier than Lofton he was the one who looked more unlike himself, struggling to make the dynamic movements that made him such an effective player to start the season. Both showed toughness in playing when they weren’t totally recovered and Florida certainly misses having them at full strength.
Final Thoughts
Make no mistake, UConn is a tremendous basketball team and there is no shame in losing to them. However, there is certainly some concern in the way that Florida’s offense has once again not looked very good when playing against a quality opponent, and there has to be serious frustration in how they have lacked fight defensively again–something that was an issue at the Phil Knight in Portland. This team still has a lot of growing to do and a lot more chemistry to develop, but luckily they have a week to prepare for their next opponent–Ohio, on Wednesday, December 14.