Gators Hang On To 92-84 Win Over Georgia

There were some moments of frustration as the Gators sorted through some missed defensive rotations and confusion against Georgia’s 2-3 zone but ultimately their talent, size, and athleticism won out with a 92-84 win over the Bulldogs. The final score might have made it sound like the game was a track meet but it was a bit more measured than that, though Georgia head coach Tom Crean’s determination to continue to foul at the end of the game despite a wide point spread ran the point total up. Most impressively for the Gators was the play of Tyree Appleby and Tre Mann, a backcourt that was gliding by Georgia defenders at will and setting up everything the Gators did offensively. Modern basketball is a guard’s game and if those two are playing at a high level then Florida will have chances to win a lot of games.

Career Game

Tre Mann had 24 points, a career high for the sophomore. Georgia had no answer for him on the perimeter and he was cooking all game long, getting to his step back jumper that is as devastating a scoring move that any player in the country has. It wasn’t just his scoring that was on point as he also contributed 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals. It still seems like Mann is growing as a player but his pure instincts to score are unlike anything the Gators have had for a number of seasons now.

Playing Big

Florida went a lot bigger than they normally have this season, putting Omar Payne next to Colin Castleton for a number of minutes. Castleton was back after missing the Tennessee game due to an ankle injury and it didn’t look like it was bothering him much at all. Having these two players on the floor created a huge size mismatch against the much smaller Georgia front line and they were both able to dominate. Payne finished the game with 10 points and 9 rebounds while Castleton chipped in 14 points and 3 rebounds. Florida has gotten pounded on the inside on a number of occasions this season and are going to play a lot more physical frontcourts moving forward so lineups that feature two bigs could be more prominent in the next couple of games.

A Work In Progress

Ultimately Florida won this game because they were more talented, longer, and more athletic than the Bulldogs. They didn’t look particularly crisp offensively, but the shot creation and finishing ability of Tre Mann and Tyree Appleby saved a number of possessions. That, or their much longer players like Colin Castleton, Omar Payne, or Anthony Duruji came away with clutch rebounds and finished over smaller players. On one hand, this is disappointing as you would have liked to see the Gators play more connected after a great win at Tennessee. On the other hand, the Gators were able to simply outgun another SEC team with talent and Florida hasn’t been able to do that since the team that made the Elite Eight run in 2017. There is still a lot for this team to work on but their talent really was on display against the Bulldogs.

Final Thoughts

The Gators didn’t look great but they were still able to take care of business with relative ease and the fact they were able to win somewhat comfortably despite an off game speaks to their high level of talent. Winning even when you play bad can be a sign of a good team, and that is something that could potentially even be taken as encouraging. What is discouraging, however, is the fact that Florida’s defense, particularly their pick and roll defense, is broken. Georgia shot 54% from the field and didn’t turn the ball over a ton, and the Gators absolutely could have gotten themselves beat if their elite shot makers didn’t come to play on the other end. There have been a number of disappointing defensive efforts from the Gators this year that suggest they will probably never be a great defensive team and that could cause major issues down the line.