Florida center Rueben Chinyelu dunks the ball Saturday against Texas at the O'Connell Center. [Libby Clifton/WRUF]

No. 5 Florida Men’s Basketball Busy In SEC

Hannah Getman January 21, 2025 Basketball, College Basketball, Feature Sports News, Gators Men's Basketball, NCAA, SEC, University of Florida 260 Views

The Florida men’s basketball team will have no time for a breather following its 84-60 win against Texas on Saturday. The Gators’ SEC slate continues against South Carolina on Wednesday and Georgia on Saturday.

Both games would be key wins for Florida, which sits at 3-2 in a conference where every win has tournament implications. The Gators (16-2) are also fighting to hang on to their No. 5 ranking in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, after two weeks in that spot.

Keys To Caging Gamecocks

South Carolina enter Wednesday’s game dead last in the SEC with an 0-5 record. The Gamecocks (10-8 overall) are hungry for a conference win, making them a dangerous opponent for the Gators, especially with home court advantage in Columbia. They will likely need at least eight wins in the SEC to have a chance at making the NCAA tournament, unless they make a deep run and win the conference tournament.

Despite the record, South Carolina remains No.91 in the NET rankings due to its difficult schedule in a tough conference. This is the lowest ranking for an SEC team, but the Gamecocks can quickly climb these rankings with a conference win, especially against a top-5 team.

Shutting down the Gamecocks will require the Gators to slow down Collin Murray-Boyles. The sophomore forward leads South Carolina in scoring, averaging 15.4 points a game, and dominates down low, corralling 9.2 redounds a game. Florida will need to force Murray-Boyles to take some deep shots, as he averages just 26% from beyond the arc, rather than letting him dominate in the paint. He also may prove a nightmare on defense, as he leads the Gamecocks in both blocks and steals.

To shut down Murray-Boyles in the paint, the Gators will need to rely on forward Alex Condon, who leads the team in rebounds, averaging 8.2 per game and stands four inches taller than Murray-Boyles at 6-11. If Condon can hold his own down low, Florida can dominate in this matchup.

Trying To Win Dogfight

Following the game in South Carolina, Florida will head home to host the Georgia Bulldogs. The Bulldogs have a 2-3 SEC record. Their last time out, the Bulldogs almost pulled off an upset against No.1 Auburn, losing 70-68 in a nail-biter. This marked their second loss in a row, dropping them from No.23 to out of the AP Top 25. They’ll have another SEC matchup against Arkansas, who is 0-5 in conference play, before heading to Gainesville.

Georgia is looking to solidify its place as a contender in the conference against the Gators. Beating a top-5 team after giving the best team in the country a scare, would help the Bulldogs chances of making the NCAA tournament.

Georgia’s offensive attack is led by freshman forward Asa Newell, a Florida native, leads the team with 15.3 points a game and 6.8 rebounds. Shutting down Newell will be the key to slowing down the Bulldogs attack. Luckily for Florida, Newell’s shooting percentage drops by 10% on the road. Unfortunately for the Gators, Newell averages more rebounds on the road and has a better free throw percentage. To shut him down, the Florida defense will have to force Newell into bad shots and avoid fouling him.

Key Players For Florida

Florida will need to turn to its leaders to pull out some tough wins. Senior guards Walter Clayton Jr. and Alijah Martin will need to maintain their strong scoring numbers and generate offense for the Gators against two teams with big players in the paint. Clayton will also look to extend his streak of 41 consecutive games with a 3-pointer, which is tied for the most in Gators men’s basketball history. If he makes a 3 against South Carolina, he will break this record. Posts Condon, Rueben Chinyelu and Thomas Haugh need to fight hard for rebounds down low and avoid unnecessary fouls to rival both SEC foes in the paint.

Game-time

Tipoff Wednesday at South Carolina is set for 7 p.m. (SEC Network) with coverage beginning on ESPN 98.1-FM/850-AM at 6:30. Against Georgia, start time at the O’Connell Center is set for 3:30 p.m. (SEC Network) with radio coverage beginning at 3.

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About Hannah Getman

Hannah Getman is a second-year sports and media major at the University of Florida.

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