Arizona freshman forward Koa Peat (10) shoots over the outstretched defense of UF 7-1 center Micah Handlogten on his way to 30 points and a 93-87 upset win for the Wildcats Monday night. (Photo: Maddie Washburn/UAA Communications)

The Gators: They struggled putting the ball in the basket in the win over the Seminoles, converting just 39% from the floor and only six of 31 shots from the 3-point line. The veteran front court, however, seized on its size and length advantage by out-rebounding FSU 58-34 and limiting the Seminoles' uptempo, 3-point offense to just 33.8% overall and 9-for-34 from deep (26.5%). The game likely would not have come down to the final minute had the Gators taken better care of the ball (18 turnovers) in allowing the Seminoles to chip away at a nine-point deficit and have a chance in the final minute. ... UF is still searching for its identity after Thomas Haugh on offense, especially when it comes to outside shooting. Haugh, who played 38 minutes against FSU and never came out after halftime, is hitting nearly 49% of his field-goal attempts and actually leads the team in 3-point shooting but at just 31.3%. That's because the rest of the team is a collective (ready for this?) 18.9% from deep, with shooting guard Xavian Lee is just six of 29 (20.7%), point guard Boogie Fland two of 12 (16.7%) and backup guard Urban Klavzar at 3-for-14 (21.4%). ... Forward Alex Condon, the preseason first-team All American, has improved his shooting efficiency from the floor (59.3%) and free-throw line (73.9%), but leads the team in turnovers with 13. He had six each in the games against Arizona and FSU. ... Center Rueben Chinyelu had one of the best games of in his two seasons as a Gator, with 10 points, a career-best 16 rebounds (seven on the offensive end) and two blocks. ... Backup 7-1 center Micah Handlogten (10.3 ppg, 9.3 ppg) went scoreless against the Seminoles, but his six rebounds in just under 10 minutes made him one of six Gators with at least five boards. ... Of UF's five starters, Chinyelu was the only one who didn't play at least 32 minutes against FSU. ... Of the 79 teams in power conferences (Atlantic Coast, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12 and Southeastern), Florida and Alabama are the only ones to schedule at least three other power conference opponents in their first four games of the season. Only nine others scheduled as many as two. 

The Hurricanes: Similar to FSU in its first season under Luke Loucks, Miami under Jai Lucas has entered a significant rebuild, with four starters arriving through the transfer portal and a group of promising freshmen added as complementary pieces. Offensively, the Hurricanes have been sharp in their first three outings, converting 66% of their attempts inside the arc. That efficiency, however, has come against a trio of overmatched in-state opponents — Jacksonville, Bethune-Cookman, and Stetson — with UM winning by an average margin of nearly 33 points.

Florida’s season-opening loss to Arizona highlighted a defensive weakness, as power forward Koa Peat (30 points) and point guard Jaden Bradley (27 points) repeatedly attacked downhill against smaller Gator guards and finished at the rim. Florida State’s Robert McCray V (29 points) followed the same formula. Now, forward Malik Reneau, the Indiana transfer and former UF commit under then-coach Mike White, along with Michigan (via Auburn) point guard Tre Donaldson, will look to exploit that same vulnerability. Reneau is shooting 64% from the field (with only three 3-point attempts) and has been reliable at the line, hitting 17 of 20 (85%). Donaldson has been equally efficient, shooting 56.7% overall and converting 14 of 17 free throws (82.4%).

UM doesn’t rely heavily on the 3-point shot, averaging just 18 attempts per game with 19 total makes (35.2%). Freshman guard Timotej Malovec accounts for eight of those, while guard Tru Washington, a transfer from New Mexico, has five. Together, they are 13-for-21 from deep (61.9%).

Center Ernest Udeh Jr., who starred on the 2021 Orlando Dr. Phillips Class 7A state championship team alongside former Gators Riley Kugel and Denzel Aberdeen, has been nearly automatic, hitting 11 of 12 shots (91.7%) without yet attempting a free throw.

Numbers of Note

• 20 — It’s been 20 years since the Gators defeated both Florida State and Miami in the same season. That last occurred in 2005-06, the first of UF’s back-to-back national championship runs. Since then, Florida has faced both programs in the ’08-09, ’14-15, ’15-16, ’16-17, and ’19-20 seasons, but managed only splits at best, with a pair of sweeps mixed in.

• 376 — Days have passed since UF last played at VyStar Memorial Arena. The Gators opened the ’24-25 season there with a 98-83 win over South Florida, rallying from a 13-point first-half deficit. Point guard Walter Clayton Jr. scored 29, while guard Will Richard added a career-high 25. Florida poured in 54 second-half points, shooting 62.5% and going a perfect 10-for-10 at the free-throw line.



• 2007-08 — That was the season Miami coach Jai Lucas, then a 5-10, 160-pound McDonald’s All-America freshman point guard from Houston, started all 36 games for the Gators. He averaged 8.5 points and 2.3 assists for a team that finished 24-12 and reached the NIT semifinals. Lucas transferred to Texas the following offseason, starting just once in two years with the Longhorns while averaging 2.9 points across 58 games, before leaving to pursue a professional career overseas.