Why Todd Golden is Confident in Florida Gators Basketball's Freshmen

CJ Ingram and Alex Lloyd are carving roles off the bench for the Florida Gators.

Florida Gators guard CJ Ingram II has played in both of the team's games this year. | Candice Ward-Imagn Images

Entering the 2025-26 season, the Florida Gators boasted one of the better high school recruiting classes with four-stars CJ Ingram and Alex Lloyd.

Through two games, the duo are already carving out roles off the bench with Ingram backing up Thomas Haugh on the wing and Lloyd competing with Urban Klavzar and Isaiah Brown for minutes behind Boogie Fland and Xaivian Lee.

Ingram has played in both games this season, recording three points, an assist and a block against Arizona before improving with five points, two steals, two rebounds and an assist against UNF.

Head coach Todd Golden said it'll be about "getting through some of the freshman mistakes" as Ingram continues to develop on the wing.

"He was ready to play. He's confident, you know, got some good looks later in the game he wasn't able to put in, but he's put himself in position to be a contributor and I was impressed with the way he played, especially earlier in the game," Golden said on Wednesday two days after the loss to Arizona.

right on cue

gators 70 | ospreys 41 pic.twitter.com/yIrcWodjmE

— Florida Gators Men’s Basketball (@GatorsMBK) November 7, 2025

Ingram went 1-for-3 from deep against Arizona, but the fact that the freshman was willing to take shots in a tight game impressed Golden.

“For anybody on our team, if they're wide open and nobody's within 12 feet, like I expect them to shoot the ball," Golden explained. "So he did that twice, missed them. The first one was a great shot. Knocked it down. One for three. One more of those, you know, the game might be different. But there's a lot of plays like that you can point to."

"Again, like his confidence level, his effort, and his willingness to play for the team role there. So I think he'll continue to get better that way.”

Lloyd, meanwhile, did not make his debut until the UNF game, recording four points with four rebounds, an assist and a steal. Three turnovers plagued him, but Golden remains confident in the young guard.

"Alex is a great player. He's a great young man. I think he's kind of transitioning going from being the guy in high school to realizing everybody out here is a guy," Golden said. "And just continuing to find some comfort zone within how he plays."

FIRST career 3️⃣ for lloyd!!

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— Florida Gators Men’s Basketball (@GatorsMBK) November 7, 2025

In the win over the Ospreys, Lloyd shot 1-for-5 from 3-point territory, a mark Golden credits to Lloyd thinking he has to shoot to "stay on the court." However, like his confidence with Ingram, Golden believes with more appearances, Lloyd will improve.

"Lloyd is a super talented young man, and I think if he continues working the way he has and allowing us to coach him the way we have, I think he's going to be a not just a good player," Golden said. "I think he's going to be a phenomenal player. He's a great talent, and he's got a lot of great basketball ahead of him."