This weekend could prove to be more than just a chance for Florida to get its first Southeastern Conference win after a shaky start.
It’s an opportunity for UF (11-5, 0-2 SEC) to fix its season-long problems, and according to freshman guard Kenny Boynton, Saturday’s 8 p.m. matchup against LSU (9-7, 0-2 SEC) in the O’Connell Center might be the time for the Gators to decide their postseason fate.
“The first two losses in the SEC showed us that it’s serious and we can be beat. Now, we’ve got to hunt teams instead of being the hunted,” Boynton said. “Earlier, we were ranked, but now if we want to make the tournament, I think we’ve got to start from here.”
For the first time under coach Billy Donovan, Florida dropped its first two SEC games, and it was due primarily to a defensive breakdown.
UF gave up 95 points to Vanderbilt and 89 to Kentucky — a far cry from the team that gave up more than 70 points just twice in its 14 non-conference games, both of which came against teams ranked in the top 10 at the time.
Although the Tigers, averaging just 65.3 points per game, don’t have nearly the same offensive potential as the Commodores or Wildcats, Donovan still sees cause for concern in LSU’s three top scorers: forward Tasmin Mitchell (16.9 points per game), guard Bo Spencer (15.7) and forward Storm Warren (13.8).
“I definitely think they’re a physical team up in the frontcourt with Storm Warren and Tasmin Mitchell,” Donovan said. “So I think defending around the basket is going to be important, rebounding’s going to be important and I think the three-point line will be important because of how well Spencer can shoot it.”
Much of the burden of defending down low will fall on junior center Vernon Macklin, who has struggled to even stay on the floor so far in SEC play. Due to foul trouble, Macklin played a combined 33 minutes in the first two conference games and only scored 10 points.
With sophomore center Kenny Kadji sidelined indefinitely with a herniated disc in his lower back and freshman Erik Murphy struggling against the bigger, stronger post players in the SEC, Macklin’s foul trouble has forced UF to play a smaller lineup with Alex Tyus and Dan Werner out of position.
“When Vern gets in foul trouble, there’s a noticeable difference because of Kenny with his back injury,” Donovan said. “We all of a sudden become a totally different-looking team, size-wise, so maybe it’s a little more glaring for us than other teams.”
Unlike Vanderbilt and Kentucky, LSU will not look to get into a shootout with UF, as the Tigers’ smaller rotation makes them better-suited to run a slowed-down, half-court offense.
Having had a thin backcourt all year and a frontcourt depleted by injuries, Donovan can relate to the lack of depth, but the Gators will still be looking to run the floor Saturday night.
“There’s similarity in terms of depth. Styles are probably a little bit different,” Donovan said. “They’re a team that would prefer maybe to make the game just totally half-court, where I think we’re trying to score a little bit more in transition and off our defense.”
