Gators News: Both basketball teams open with a bang

Tuesday evening reminded us why it is great to be a Gator fan as both the men’s and women’s basketball teams took the O’Connell Center floor and defended home turf to open their respective schedules. Otherwise, things are pretty slow around the Swamp as the midweek doldrums roll in ahead of this weekend’s festivities. But for now, here is a look at our two victorious Florida squads.

Women's basketball

The women’s basketball team opened up the season with an 84-70 win over the Georgia State Panthers in the O’Connell Center on Tuesday evening. The squad got off to a slow start, trailing by two after the first 10 minutes while showing a great deal of rust. However, things turned around in the second as the Gators outscored the Panthers by 12 and essentially cruised the rest of the game.

Kiki Smith led the ladies in scoring with 23 on 8-for-13 shooting — 2-for-4 from beyond the arc — while three other Gators also finished with double figures. Lavender Briggs dominated the glass with seven rebounds to go with her 16 points along with a pair of assists, steals and blocks.

Florida next faces the Towson Tigers on the road Friday with tipoff slated for 4:30 p.m. EST.

Men's basketball

The men’s basketball team also opened up with a win, beating the Elon Phoenixes on Tuesday night, 74-61. Four Gators scored in double digits en route to the first victory of the 2021-22 campaign.

Florida hosts the Florida State Seminoles on Sunday with tipoff scheduled for 1 p.m. EST.

3 takeaways from Florida’s convincing season-opening win over Elon

PHOTOS: Florida basketball cruises to easy season-opening win

Around the Swamp

• Florida plummets in CBS Sports College Football Rankings after fifth loss: Florida hasn’t been ranked in the Coaches Poll or AP Poll in over a month, and the Gators were nowhere to be seen on the season’s first College Football Playoff ranking.

• Does Joe Lunardi’s preseason bracketology have UF in the NCAA tournament field?: The team is unranked in both polls, and it was picked by the media to finish in the middle of the pack in the SEC.

• ESPN’s Mark Schlabach thinks Florida will fire Dan Mullen: It’s no secret that there’s a lot of pressure in Gainesville to get things turned around.

• Did you know Florida football has played Samford twice? Well, kind of: Florida has never played Samford before Saturday’s game in the Swamp. But…

• How does Florida basketball stack up with other in-state teams?: Florida isn’t the juggernaut on the hardwood it was 15 years ago, but the Gators are typically in the mix to make the NCAA tournament.

It's great to be a Florida Gator!

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