Gators Men’s Basketball Returns for 2023-24 Season in Orange & Blue Game

In celebration of the return of college basketball, the Gators men’s basketball Orange & Blue scrimmage game took place Thursday night in the O’Dome.

As well as the scrimmage game, there were three-point and dunk contests held. This new Gators roster will feature some familiar faces as well as some fresh new ones.

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Scrimmage Starting Lineup

Blue Team –

G – Walter Clayton Jr.

G Riley Kugel

G Will Richard

F Tyrese Samuel

G Kajus Kublickas

Orange Team –

G Denzel Aberdeen

G Zyon Pullin

G Julian Rishwain

F Thomas Haugh

F Alex Condon

Gators Scrimmage Highlights

Riley Kugel began the scrimmage with an alley-oop dunk. Earlier today, Kugel was voted onto the Coaches’ Preseason All-SEC First Team by the league’s coaches. During the scrimmage, you could see that this group is sharing the basketball better than last year, perhaps because of Castleton’s reliance last season.

During the 2022-23 season, Kugel was averaging 17 points per game on nearly 50% shooting. Kugel broke out for the Gators in the second half of the 2022-23 season and isn’t slowing down for the new season. He provided the unit with a viable top offensive option and a presumed building block for the season due to his skill as a shot-creator and three-level scorer.

In preseason practices and during the scrimmage, freshman Alex Condon displayed good passing ability. He showed good accuracy and was able to set up his teammates for scoring opportunities. The rookie is proving to be a valuable member of the team and a promising prospect.

The Blue team defeated the Orange team 20-19 thanks to two free throws by Walter Clayton Jr. with 0.5 seconds left to win. Riley Kugel recorded six points and Will Richard had five points.

Three-Point and Dunk Contest Winners

The three-point contest winner is Zyon Pullin over Gators senior guard Julian Rishwain. Sophomore guard Denzel Aberdeen won the team’s dunk contest, he followed up his victory with a dunk over head coach Todd Golden.

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