Five takeaways from Florida basketball’s season opening win
The Florida Gators opened the 2023 college basketball season with a 20-point victory over the Loyola Greyhounds.
It’s a more than an ideal start for second-year head coach Todd Golden and his young ensemble of talent, but it looked like the team had built some serious chemistry despite only playing in one full game together.
The Gators toppled the Greyhounds, 93-73, through a spectacular night from sophomore guard Riley Kugel, who’s taking over the leadership role after the departure of Colin Castleton.
There were a few plays and turnovers the Gators would certainly like back, but the offense is meshing nicely and the rebound improvement that was harped on in the offseason seems like it’s coming to fruition.
The Gators showed off a stellar preview of things to come in 2023 and here’s are the five main takeaways from the season opener.
PG Riley Kugel is making a name for himself as leader of the team
Florida point guard Riley Kugel returned to the team this season and far surpassed his season average from 2022 (8.8 points per game) in just one night.
Kugel made it to the bucket with ease, collecting 23 points on top of five assists. The sophomore needs to work on his touch from beyond the arc, as he went 0-for-3 while shooting threes.
Besides his off-night from downtown, head coach Todd Golden and the rest of the Gators are more than comfortable giving Kugel the keys to the offense.
“Yeah, I’m glad he played really well.” Golden said. “He did a great job at attacking downhill and he did a really good job putting the ball in the basket. He could have drawn, I thought there were a couple more drives that maybe could have ended up at the foul line, but overall 10-of-15, and just a fantastic – does a great job reading an opportunity to go make a play on the ball.”
Kugel faired well on the defensive side of the ball as well, racking up six steals and smacking the ball for a block in the first half.
Free throws are the only thing holding the Gators back
If the Gators are to work on anything during practice this week, free throw shooting needs to be the first priority.
The team shot a collective 50% from the charity stripe, with transfer forward Tyrese Samuel struggling the most, shooting 5/10 after earning multiple trips to the line.
Kugel found the most success while taking free throws, going 3-for-4 during his few opportunities. Florida center Micah Handlogten missed his only take after earning an and-one attempt.
Any program shooting less-than 70% at the foul line will never survive in March, but luckily for the Gators, there’s plenty of time to fix that. Luckily the Greyhounds also struggled at the stripe, making just 66.7% of their attempts.
Gators have vastly improved in the paint
Florida head coach Todd Golden preached improvement in rebound column for 2023 and the Gators followed through in the season opener.
The Gators marked their territory in the paint early on, out-rebounding the Greyhounds 21-13 in the first half. Loyola brought the rebound battle back in the second half, but Florida won the war 39-29.
Florida was quick to get back to the rim and chase their shots, collecting 13 offensive rebounds and 10 second-chance points.
C Micah Handlogten is filling the fifth position with grace
One of the biggest question marks surrounding the Gators’ starting-five was replacing the production of now Los Angeles Laker Colin Castleton.
It’s safe to say that sophomore center Micah Handlogten is finding his comfort zone, carrying over his found confidence when he took over the position after Castleton broke his arm.
Handlogten was the second-best offensive performer on Monday night, scoring 16 total points and compiling six rebounds. The center also managed to get a block and caused a turnover.
The big-man went a perfect two-for-two while while shooting from downtown, potentially showing that he can be a threat from anywhere on the court.
The Gators aren't afraid to pull the trigger from beyond the arc
The Gators decided to play it safe in the second half, but any time the Orange and Blue found enough open space from beyond the arc in the first, they were quick to let it fly.
Freshman forward Alex Condon led the way from downtown to start the game by going two-for-three, and guard Julian Rishwain was quick to find a long bucket to get the Gators going.
It was refreshing to see the Gators have confidence in its long-distance shooting, especially from bigs like Condon and Handlogten.
The Gators were in front for the entirety of the game, so it made sense to pump the brakes and go for easier points in the paint. Look for the team to keep building momentum from the three-point line for when it’s really needed.
Up next for the Florida Gators is a matchup against the Virginia Cavaliers on Friday during the Hall of Fame series in Charlotte, North Carolina. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. ET and will broadcast on the ACC Network.
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PHOTOS: Highlights from Florida basketball’s season-opening win
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