Michael Frazier: 21 points (8/10 fg, 5/6 3pt) in only 17 minutes
Will Yeguete: 20 points (8/10 fg, 4/5 ft), 11 rebounds, in 24 minutes
Braxton Ogbueze: 15 points (4/5 fg, 1/1 3pt, 6/8 ft) in 16 minutes
Kenny Boynton: 14 points (6/8 fg, 2/4 3pt) in 22 minutes
Dillon Graham: 14 points (4/4 fg, 2/2 3pt, 2/2 ft) in 19 minutes
What I was wondering (from preview):
1. How will Scottie Wilbekin react to being the starting point guard?
Answer: Wilbekin's play surprised me because the offense didn't seem to run smoothly while he was on the floor. He had three assists, but was 2/8 from the field in 24 minutes. It may take him a few games to get fully comfortable with his new role. He needs to be the floor general and just play his own game, not try to be like Erving Walker.
2. Which freshman will step up and impress Coach Donovan?
Answer: Frazier, Ogbueze, and Graham did themselves a world of good when they combined for almost half of the Gators' points (50 out of 101). All three are excellent shooters, particularly Frazier and Graham. To be honest, I wasn't expecting that kind of production from the three of them. This can only help Coach Donovan with depth and giving guys breaks during games. If we get this kind of production on a consistent basis, watch out!
3. How much playing time will Jacob Kurtz (walk-on) get?
Answer: Kurtz played the final minute and a half of the game, scoring a layup to put the Gators over the century mark. Looking back from last year, Jacob looked poised and confident when he saw action last year. This will be his first full season, as he joined the team in mid-December last year.
4. How will Calvary Christian grad Akeem Morissaint play in the O'Dome tonight? (Kenny Boynton may know him from high school hoops in Broward County)
Answer: I had to throw this one in there. Morissaint's Calvary Christian Academy is rivals with my high school, Coral Springs Christian Academy. He was one of the top players in Broward County during his senior year, which also boasted Kenny Boynton and Brandon Knight, who were all in the same grade. He's only about 5'10", but he knows how to fill it up. While he only scored one point versus UF, it must've been a cool experience to be playing in Florida again. I hope that he had some friends and family supporting him in the O'Dome. I'm looking forward to following his senior season.
First Half Notes
- Will's hustle points have become a norm in his time in Gainesville
- Judging from Mark Wise and the stats, Will's free throw technique has improved. He shot roughly 36% and 44% the last two seasons, respectively. Thursday, he made 4 out of 5.
- Mike Rosario was careless with the ball at various points during the game. With the way Frazier and Graham played, he needs to have a solid week of practice and come out versus Georgetown hungry. If he's not careful, he could be relegated to the bench.
- Frazier was the first freshman off the bench, followed by Graham, DeVon Walker, and Ogbueze.
- Mark Wise pointed out that Boynton "will play 10-15 minutes per game at point guard." Being 6'2", he'll need to continue to get experience running the offense (he ran the point a little bit last year) in order to help the team and to prepare himself for the next level.
- Ogbueze is a combo guard at 6'1", but is probably more comfortable at the point, which he played in high school.
- The best shooters off the bench are Frazier and Graham.
- Wise: "Hard for big guys to play against undersized bigs." As in most exhibition games, the Division 1 team usually has a distinct advantage in height, which may be a downside for players like Erik Murphy or Patric Young because they're not used to someone giving up that much height and it almost comes as a shock when they get into the post. Wise didn't think Young would have a good game for this reason.
- Every player (besides Kurtz, who didn't play until the final 1:30) attempted a shot at the 8:00-mark. This shows that, much like last year's team, we're not afraid to shoot the ball. You're going to see us scored 70-80 points on a consistent basis.
- Murphy was outworked for an offensive rebound. Murph's gotten stronger and more confident defensively, so I look for him to grab between 5-6 rebounds per game (averaged 4.5 last year).
- Rosario's defense hurt the Gators while he was in. It happened all too often last season, and his minutes decreased because of it. He can't just be a scorer like he was at Rutgers; he has to also play defense.
- Two 35-second calls! I'm a HUGE fan of these, along with diving after loose balls, all-out hustle, and charges.
- Kenny has added the floater to his repertoire. When he goes into the paint amongst the giants, this shot will be deadly!
- Wise pretty much summed up Yeguete on the floor: "Johnny on the spot!"
- Wise: "Shot selection not good with Scottie Wilbekin as point guard."
- Frazier scored 10 points in the first half off the bench in his collegiate debut.
- Halftime score: UF 46 - UNK 32
- Cannot be overstated, but Rosario's defense needs work! He made a defense lapse and Billy D took him out. That was a recurring theme last season and he's not afraid to do it again this season.
- Coach D has never tolerated defensive breakdowns.
- Shot selection was not good, with or without Scottie on the floor. It's tough in exhibition games where a lot of the time it's fastbreaks and the tempo is ratcheted up.
- There was a "revolving door" with the subs as Donovan was experimenting with many different lineup combinations.
- Wise noted that Boynton has made great strides when making decisions at point guard.
- DeVon Walker dove after a loose ball, which was great for me to see!
- Frazier has incredible shooting range, which was displayed in high school at both Tampa Prep and Montverde Academy.
- I cannot say enough about Frazier's debut! It bodes well for the rest of the season for sure!
- Ogbueze was injured, but returned. If I remember correctly, it was either his knee or ankle.
- Patric was not involved at all, finishing with 2 points and 4 rebounds. I'll give him a pass because of Wise's point that I made above in the first half notes. I wouldn't read too much into it.
- Steve Russell, the play-by-play announcer on WRUF, came up with a creative slogan when Graham dunked: "Slam by Graham!" I'm sure Mick Hubert, the Gators' regular play-by-play announcer, will be using that one very shortly! "Oh my!"
- Only three turnovers in the second half.
- The only upperclassman to have a productive game was Boynton. Like I said, I wouldn't read too much into that.
- Final score: UF 101 - UNK 71
Three-pointers made/attempted= 11/24 (45.8%)
Free throws made/attempted= 14/20 (70%)
Field goals made/attempted= 38/63 (60.3%)
Fouls= 14
Turnovers= 11
Steals= 10
UNK turnovers= 19
Blocks= 5
Points off turnovers= 25
Points in the paint= 50
Second-chance points= 16
Fastbreak points= 10
Officials= Doug Shows, Mike Nance, and John Heatly
Attendance= 7,121
What's up next
The 10th-ranked Gators face Georgetown on the deck of the USS Bataan in Jacksonville on Friday (11/9). It should be quite an experience that you won't want to miss! Tip is at 9:00 and it's being broadcast on TV on the NBC Sports Network and on the radio on WRUF.
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