Preview: Hobbled Gators travel to Texas A&M to face Aggies

#10 Florida Gators (12-2, 2-0 SEC) at Texas A&M Aggies (12-3, 2-0 SEC)
Reed Arena (capacity: 12,989), College Station, TX 7:00 p.m.

Broadcast Information

TV: ESPN2; Rece Davis (play-by-play) and Bob Knight (analyst)

Radio: WRUF/Gator IMG Sports Network; Mick Hubert (play-by-play) and Mark Wise (analyst)

Streaming: ESPN3.com

Head Coaches

University of Florida: Billy Donovan (398-160, 17th season at Florida; 433-180 overall, 19th season)
Texas A&M: Billy Kennedy (26-21, 2nd season at Texas A&M; 237-200overall, 15th season)

Probable Starters

Florida Gators

#5 Scottie Wilbekin (6'2", 176 lbs JR) Season stats: 8.1 ppg, 4.7 apg, 2.8 rpg, 1.8 steals per game
#1 Kenny Boynton (6'2", 190 lbs SR) Season stats: 13.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.7 apg
#3 Mike Rosario (6'3", 183 lbs RS-SR) Season stats: 12.3 ppg, 2.2 apg
#33 Erik Murphy (6'10", 238 lbs SR) Season stats: 12.0 ppg, 4.5 rpg
#4 Patric Young (6'9", 249 lbs JR) Season stats: 11.1 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 1.9 blocks per game

Bench

#15 Will Yeguete (6'7", 240 lbs JR) Season stats: 6.5 ppg, 6.6 rpg
#20 Michael Frazier (6'4", 200 lbs FR) Season stats: 5.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg (seven rebounds, career-high 31 minutes vs. LSU)
#12 Dillon Graham (6'4", 179 lbs FR) Season stats: 0.4 ppg, 0.4 rpg

Texas A&M Aggies

#11 J'Mychal Reese (6'1", 173 lbs FR) Season stats: 7.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 2.6 apg
#12 Fabyon Harris (5'11", 172 lbs JR) Season stats: 10.5 ppg, 1.7 rpg
#31 Elston Turner (6'5", 212 lbs SR) Season stats: 17.1 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 2.9 apg (scored career-high 40 points in win at Kentucky on Saturday)
#32 Kourtney Roberson (6'9", 234 lbs SO) Season stats: 6.5 ppg, 6.4 rpg
#35 Ray Turner (6'9", 230 lbs SR) Season stats: 11.4 ppg, 6.5 rpg

Bench

#21 Alex Caruso (6'5", 176 lbs FR) Season stats: 4.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 3.3 apg
#13 Jordan Green (6'5", 183 lbs SO) Season stats: 3.9 ppg, 2.0 apg
#0 Andrew Young (6'8", 241 lbs JR) Season stats: 3.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg
#42 Jarod Jahns (6'6", 202 lbs SR) Season stats: 1.7 ppg, 1.6 rpg

Injury News and Team Notes

• Junior forward Casey Prather will miss at least the next two games due to a high ankle sprain he suffered during Saturday's win at LSU.  It's been a season of bad luck for Prather, who's already suffered two concussions.  
• Senior guard Mike Rosario sat out vs. LSU with an ankle sprain, but is expected to start tonight.
• Senior forward Erik Murphy continues to battle through a rib injury, labeled as a cracked rib.  He started vs. LSU and should do the same tonight.
• Junior forward Will Yeguete has been dealing with knee tendonitis, but hasn't missed any time because of it.  He was x-rayed on Monday to make sure there wasn't any other damage. 
• Look for freshman guard Mike Frazier to continue receiving significant minutes (31 minutes against LSU) due to Prather's absence and Rosario recently coming back from an injury.  Coach Donovan has praised Frazier's rebounding ability (seven rebounds vs. LSU), something the Gators will need in order to compensate for Prather's absence.
• Whether freshmen guards Dillon Graham and Braxton Ogbueze, or DeVon Walker will see more playing time is based on how the game versus the Aggies developes.  Donovan stated, “It could be totally different against A&M,” Donovan said. “It’s not necessarily him (Graham).  It could be Braxton (Ogbueze).  It could be DeVon Walker.  It depends as we get deeper into (scouting) A&M to figure those things out.”
• Patric Young: “We all went through the time where we weren’t playing as much our freshman and year and just be ready.  Your time’s coming.” --talking about how the Gator freshmen need to be ready when their number's called.
• UF faces the SEC's two newest teams, Texas A&M and Missouri (home), in its next two games.

Last Game for Both Schools

Florida: Defeated LSU (away) on Saturday, 74-52
Texas A&M: Defeated Kentucky (away) on Saturday, 83-71

Gators All-Time Versus Texas A&M

The Gators lead the all-time series, 2-1.  Last season, Florida defeated Texas A&M in the Orange Bowl Classic.  The teams split a home-and-home series during during the 1991-92 and 1992-93 seasons with the host school winning each game.

Last Meeting Between Schools

The Gators defeated the Aggies in the Orange Bowl Classic last season, 84-64.  Kenny Boynton scored 22 points (six three-pointers).

What I'm Wondering

1.  Depth could be an issue in tonight's game with Prather out and Rosario, Murphy, and Yeguete playing through pain.  Rosario might be a little cautious with his ankle, but I expect him to play his usual game.  Murphy and Yeguete have been dealing with their injuries for a couple of weeks now, so their production and minutes should not drop off.  Casey Prather has been this season's x-factor because of his athleticism and ability to create matchup problems on defense.  His loss for the next two games is a big one, but that creates an opportunity for players like Graham or Walker.  Other than Frazier, which of the freshmen will impact the game the most?

2.  Florida has suffered both of its losses on the road (I'm counting the "neutral site" game vs. Kansas State in Kansas City as a road game).  Reed Arena was one of the best environments in the Big 12, the Aggies' previous conference.  I'm expecting a sellout tonight, partly because Texas A&M is recognizing their football team at halftime.  How will the Gators react to what could be a raucous environment?

3.  Aggie senior guard Elston Turner scored 40 points in Kentucky's Rupp Arena on Saturday.  Turner, along with his team, will take on Florida with lots of confidence after their upset of the Wildcats.  Either Scottie Wilbekin or Kenny Boynton will draw the assignment on Turner and it will be their job to contain his offense.  Holding Turner to under 15 points would be a solid effort.  The Aggies go as Turner goes, so how he plays will determine how the Aggies play.  Will the Gators be able to contain the Aggies' leading scorer?

4.  Jarod Jahns, a senior walk-on for the Aggies, has seen considerable time this season after playing a total of 13 minutes in his last two seasons (154 minutes this season).  He played 30 minutes in the Aggies' upset of Kentucky and will likely play tonight against the Gators.  Will Jahns play a role in tonight's game?  

Records to be Broken in the Near Future

• Boynton (1,782 points) recently passed Udonis Haslem for 3rd on the all-time scoring list (Ronnie Williams leads with 2,090 points)
• Boynton (294 threes) is now the all-time leader in three-pointers made in school history
• Boynton (119 games started) is just 10 starts away from passing Andrew DeClerq (128 starts) for the all-time record in school history

Final score prediction: Florida 78 - Texas A&M 72