JACKSONVILLE - At times this season freshman Kenny Kadji has looked all but lost out on the court. Saturday night he found the talent that brought him to Gainesville in the first place.
Kadji scored 15 points and grabbed 7 rebounds as UF (9-3) rolled to an 89-61 win against in-state foe UCF (5-5).
"In high school you don't really have to do anything when you're 6-foot-10. You just stand there and they're going to pass you the ball and you score. But in college everybody is 6-10. Everybody is as big as you. I think that was my problem the first nine games," Kadji said. "I talked to coach about it and I realize that if we want to win and be as good as we can be, I need to be a part of the team. It's time for me to step up"
Alex Tyus continued to prove he has the ability to anchor an inexperienced UF frontcourt. Tyus scored a team-high 20 points and brought in 14 boards. It was the first double-double of his career.
"Kenny has been really picking it up. He's come a long way," Tyus said.
UF coach Billy Donovan said he would consider playing Kadji and Tyus together in the future.
"I think it could be a good look for us," Donovan said. "It gives us a little bit more size."
Florida passed on recruiting UCF guard Jermaine Taylor as a High school senior. Saturday he showed the Gators why they made a mistake.
Taylor scored 13 points in the first half and at times looked like the best player on the floor.
But Taylor retired to the bench after the game appeared out of reach. He played only three minutes in the second half.
Chandler Parsons made a return to the starting lineup against the Knights, but failed to make a convincing case about why he should stay there.
Parsons, who had preformed well off the bench in recent weeks, scored 3points racked up three fouls and struggled to establish himself against outmatched UCF.
"He's not addressing the problem," Donovan said. "Being confident isn't enough. He's got to fix his (shooting) mechanics.
Freshman point guard Erving Walker, who had struggling to shoot the ball consistently as of late, returned to form against the Knights scoring 14 points including a buzzer-beating three heading into halftime.
