How Did Florida Gators Basketball Get Here This Season?
The Florida Gators continued to prove their standing as an average basketball team on Tuesday night.
Following a blowout loss on the road in Rupp Arena to the Kentucky Wildcats, a game in which the Gators could not capitalize on opportunities to remain in the contest, UF traveled to College Station to take on the reeling Texas A&M Aggies.
The contest presented an opportunity to rebound and remain on track for a finish that kept them on the brink of contention to make the postseason. However, the outcome was unfavorable for a Florida team that perpetually sits on the bubble to earn a berth into the tournament.
AllGators takes a look at how Florida reached its position as a team on the outside looking in on the postseason and the increasingly rockier road to squeeze into the field of 68.
How Did Florida Get Here?
Florida had multiple chances to steal a victory against a Texas A&M team that had lost eight-straight contests coming into the matchup.
Plagued by an abysmal 21.9% field goal percentage and 10 turnovers in the first half, the Gators entered the halftime break with just 20 points, but only trailing by seven.
After trailing by as much as 13 in the first half, Colin Castleton's double-double of 15 points and 15 rebounds – as well as increased ball security – lifted Florida to take the lead late in the second half.
It looked like Florida would escape Reed Arena with a much-needed victory.
However, after going up 55-53 with under a minute remaining, an errant foul by Phlandrous Fleming Jr. on Wade Taylor IV's shot attempt from beyond the arc put TAMU at the charity stripe for three free throws. After connecting on all three, Florida would have one more chance to retake the lead late.
After waiting out a large portion of the remaining clock, Florida would come up short with Fleming missing a jumper from the porch (the area between the corner three-point line and the box). His miss would attempt to grab Niels Lane, but he lost it out of bounds, giving the Aggies the ball with just 0.5 seconds remaining.
Ultimately, Florida's slow start set the tone. The Gators ended the contest shooting just over 28% from the field as a team and scored on just four of every 10 possesions.
This isn't the first time the Gators fell behind by a steep margin in the first half just to come roaring back due to drastically improved effort, efficiency and intensity in the final 20 minutes of play.
The only difference was that, this time, they were unable to finish the comeback. Consequently, they fell to 16-10 (6-7 SEC).
As a team that started 6-0 in the month of November with quality victories of Florida State and Ohio State to begin the year, the Gators – led by a quartet of transfers – were viewed as sleepers to create chaos in a competitive Southeastern Conference.
Entering into December, Florida suffered its first loss of the season against Oklahoma on the road in its first true away game of the season. However, this year was supposed to be different from years past, where one loss turned into a multiple game slide. The roster was filled with mature veterans who were equipped to handle adversity, or so we thought.
The losses began to snowball, serving as another example that regression to the mean is, in fact, real. Florida dropped two of its next three – one at home to a then-winless Texas Southern – and have endured spells of up-and-down play since.
Where Do the Gators Go?
Florida finds itself in college basketball purgatory.
They're not good enough to be considered a lock to earn a March Madness bid, but they're not bad enough for their season to be considered a complete wash (although outsiders may think it is relative to expectations).
Previously sitting on the bubble as a team considered to be one of the first four out, ranked as NET 72nd in the country, the untimely loss on the road to a struggling A&M squad takes UF's ability to control its destiny in the final five games away.
The Gators will be vying to upset one of the three ranked opponents they face during that stretch, as well as significant help from other programs walking the tightrope of a tournament berth and watching the postseason from home.
As a result, Florida will look to a plethora of pieces to energize to elevate the team stuck in a cycle of mediocrity.
Whether that entails strong performances from Castelton and Tyree Appleby, more explosive three-point shooting performances from Myreon Jones, some combination of 10-plus point scorers or intense defensive outings, the urgency to add marks to the win column is paramount before focusing on how the other factors play out.
Barring an unforeseen undefeated finish to close out the regular season – which would involve beating three top 25 teams in No. 2 Auburn, No. 4 Kentucky and No. 23 Arkansas – UF faces an uphill battle in its chances to return to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time under Mike White.
The Gators host the Auburn at home on Saturday at 2 p.m. They'll get a chance to reconcile the damage done with a monumental quadrant one victory to kickstart the incline ascent at Exactech Arena.
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