No Castleton, No Problem As Gators Land Big Win

Things were looking rough for the Gators when they learned they’d be without star center Colin Castleton who would be missing the game due to a shoulder injury but they didn’t lay down and die, instead digging deep and playing one of their most inspired games of the season coming away with a 80-72 win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs. A big reason why was Florida’s best three-point shooting game of the season, hitting 10-24 from three (42%) and punishing the Bulldogs’ pack-the-paint defense. Both Florida and Mississippi State are teams fighting to get on the right side of the NCAA Tournament bubble so getting a head to head win is huge for the Gators.

 

Stepping Up

 

In Colin Castleton’s absence it was Jason Jitoboh, Tuon Gatkek, and CJ Felder who had bigger roles and all of them stepped up in different ways. Jitoboh brought size and a big interior target for dump off passes, CJ Felder brought some five-out spacing as he was a threat from deep, and Tuon Gatkek blew up some actions defensively with his length, with each of them contributing to a generally solid 40 minutes from the center position. Keeping an aggressive offensive rebounding Mississippi State team off the glass was a key to this game, and these three helped keep the Bulldogs to 11 offensive rebounds, a manageable number that allowed the Gators to come out on top.

 

Bounce Back

 

Point guard Tyree Appleby has had a bit of a difficult couple of weeks with turnovers leading to Mike White pulling him from the starting lineup. Appleby, always a big-game player, wasn’t going to let a bad few games and a bench role limit his effectiveness as he came into the game against Mississippi State and instantly caught fire finishing with 17 points and 5 assists. His points were particularly big in the first half as the Gators started slow offensively and he entered the game and started drilling threes. Ultimately he had 4 made threes with three of them being late clock pull ups off the three, daggers that sunk the Mississippi State defense. There are going to be times where he struggles with turnovers but Appleby’s ability to hit shots off the dribble and create offense out of nothing makes him an extremely valuable player.

 

Staying Hot 

 

Kowacie Reeves started his third straight game and for the third straight game was excellent offensively hitting 3-6 from three and finishing with 14 points. He remains an elite shooter, hitting deep threes with lightning quick release at 6’7” making it a functionally unblockable shot. Florida’s offense has had new life since Reeves entered the lineup and it seems he has solidified a major role for this team.

 

Star Of The Night

 

Anthony Duruji had the best game of his Florida career finishing with 22 points and 5 steals. He got it done with straight line drives, back cuts, and catch and shoot threes, everything making for an efficient 6-8 shooting night. Duruji has a simple offensive game but when he cuts with intensity and attacks in a straight line his athleticism can win out over the average defender and we saw just how effective he can be when that happens. On a night when Florida needed offensive production, Anthony Duruji stepped up.

 

Final Thoughts

 

This was a huge win in a game that would have been very easy for the Gators to sputter out and blame the loss on Castleton being out. Instead they played hard, played smart, and executed, and got a huge win over the caliber of team that they need to beat if they want to make an NCAA Tournament. This was a huge step for the Gators who now get to see Vanderbilt, a team projected to finish at the bottom of the SEC.

 

Eric Fawcett
Eric is a basketball coach and writer from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. His work has been found at NBA international properties, ESPN, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, Lindy's and others. He loves zone defenses, the extra pass, and a 30 second shot clock. Growing up in Canada, an American channel showing SEC basketball games was his first exposure to Gator hoops, and he has been hooked ever since. You can follow him on Twitter at @ericfawcett_.