Alex Condon came into the 2025 season as Florida’s first AP preseason All-American since 2006, and against Colgate on Sunday, he proved why.
Condon opened the scoring for Florida on its first offensive possession, connecting from beyond the arc.
He also made an impact on the defensive end with two blocks in 34 seconds and a steal at the break. His first block, which came from a Ben Tweedy layup attempt, led to a Boogie Fland 3-pointer, giving the Gators a 14-8 lead with just over 14:31 before the half. At the halftime break, the Aussie had a team-high nine points, along with seven rebounds and four assists.
The junior forward finished the game with a 16-point and 10-rebound double-double. While Florida was up by just 12 to an opponent they were expected to beat comfortably, Condon’s dominance helped set the tone early for the rest of the Florida squad.
In a second half where Thomas Haugh, Xaivian Lee and Rueben Chinyelu all logged double-digit points, the Gators went on an 11-0 run en route to a 90-60 victory in its first-ever meeting against Colgate (6-6) at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
Condon did not see the floor until five minutes into the second half, but once he did, he had an impact.
The junior forward had seven points and three rebounds after the break. Most importantly, his presence on the court helped Florida's spacing. He gave the rest of the Gators a chance to flourish, resulting in the Gators outscoring the Raiders 47-29 in the second half.
Lee, who came into Sunday’s contest averaging 17 points a game over the last five outings, was held to six points on 1-of-4 shooting from the field. However, in the second half, he turned things around.
The Toronto native finished the game with a team-high 19 points with a team-leading 13 second-half points on 5-of-6 shooting. He scored five points in back-to-back possessions, following up his sole 3-pointer with a steal leading to a layup to give the Gators a 20-point lead with 13:53 left.
Lee’s high school teammate, Haugh, also came to life in the second half.
The junior forward was coming off a season-low 5 points against Saint Francis and had five points in 14 minutes in the first half against Colgate.
However, in the second half, Haugh showed his offensive capabilities, grabbing 12 points in as many minutes on 3-of-4 shooting. Right out of the break, Haugh had back-to-back makes from beyond the arc to give the Gators a 55-39 around four minutes into the half.
Alongside Condon, Chinyelu was the second Gator to record a double-double.
The junior center from Nigeria finished the game with 16 points and 12 rebounds due in part to a second half where he logged 10 points and seven rebounds.
Florida will look to sweep its three-game homestand with a win over Dartmouth on Dec. 29 at 6 p.m.
Contact Jeffrey Serber at Jserber@alligator.org. Follow him on X @JeffreySerber.
Jeffrey is the Fall 2025 enterprise and men's basketball beat reporter and a second-year journalism sports & media major. In his free time, he enjoys hanging out with friends and family, and rooting for the Miami sports teams.
