Gators look to rebound at home against Mississippi State

Mississippi State Bulldogs (7-14, 2-7 SEC) at #2 Florida Gators (18-3, 8-1 SEC)
Stephen C. O'Connell Center (capacity: 11,548), Gainesville, Fl. 5:00 p.m.

Broadcast Information

TV: Fox Sports (Sun Sports); Dave Neal (play-by-play) and Larry Conley (analyst
Radio: WRUF/Gator IMG Sports Network; Mick Hubert (play-by-play) and Mark Wise (analyst)
Streaming: ESPN3.com

Head Coaches

Mississippi State: Rick Ray (7-14, 1st season at Mississippi State/overall)
University of Florida: Billy Donovan (404-161, 17th season at Florida; 439-181 overall, 19th season)

Probable Starters

Florida Gators

#1 Kenny Boynton (6'2", 190 lbs SR) Season stats: 13.2 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.3 apg
#20 Michael Frazier (6'4", 200 lbs FR) Season stats: 5.8 ppg, 3.5 rpg
#3 Mike Rosario (6'3", 183 lbs RS-SR) Season stats: 12.2 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.4 apg
#33 Erik Murphy (6'10", 238 lbs SR) Season stats: 12.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg
#4 Patric Young (6'9", 249 lbs JR) Season stats: 11.0 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 1.8 blocks per game

Bench

*update: (4:52 p.m.) Wilbekin will not start due to "lack of passion in practice" and Donovan's "high expectations" placed on him.  No disciplinary issue, just Wilbekin's attitude since Tuesday's loss.  Donovan said that Wilbekin's a gritty competitor and he's disappointed by Tuesday's loss and hasn't had the right mindset so that's why Frazier's starting.  As the point guard, Wilbekin's attitude trickles down to his teammates. 

#5 Scottie Wilbekin (6'2", 176 lbs JR) Season stats: 9.5 ppg, 5.0 apg, 2.9 rpg, 1.6 steals per game
#20 Michael Frazier (6'4", 200 lbs FR) Season stats: 5.8 ppg, 3.5 rpg
#24 Casey Prather (6'6", 208 lbs JR) Season stats: 5.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg
#25 DeVon Walker (6'6", 191 lbs FR) Season stats: 0.9 ppg, 0.8 rpg
#12 Dillon Graham (6'4", 179 lbs FR) Season stats: 0.4 ppg, 0.3 rpg

Mississippi State Bulldogs

#4 Trivante Bloodman (6'0", 182 lbs SO) Season stats: 5.7 ppg. 3.3 rpg, 2.8 apg
#1 Fred Thomas (6'5", 191 lbs FR) Season stats: 10.6 ppg, 3.4 rpg
#32 Craig Sword (6'3", 189 lbs FR) Season stats: 9.9 ppg, 3.0 rpg
#3 Colin Borchert (6'8", 231 lbs JR) Season stats: 7.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg
#20 Gavin Ware (6'9", 270 lbs FR) Season stats: 8.6 ppg, 6.8 rpg

Bench

#25 Roquez Johnson (6'7", 210 lbs SO) Season stats: 9.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg
#24 Tyson Cunningham (6'3", 194 lbs JR) Season stats: 2.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg
*Update: (4:08 p.m.) Normal starter Jalen Steele will not play due to a violation of team rules.

Injury News and Team Notes

• It was announced Thursday that junior forward Will Yeguete will undergo knee surgery to repair bone chips in his ailing right knee.  He will be out 4-6 weeks and, after being evaluated, might be ready to play in either the SEC Tournament or NCAA Tournament.
• Florida is no stranger to injuries this season, however.  Mike Rosario (ankle sprain), Scottie Wilbekin (broken finger and three-game suspension), Casey Prather (concussion and ankle sprain), and Erik Murphy (broken ribs) have all missed time.
• Yeguete's loss gives freshman guard Michael Frazier more time and freshman DeVon Walker possible minutes. 
• Brockway: "I don't know if he is ready," Donovan said. "We don't have a whole lot of choices now, but I will say this about DeVon Walker, which I like.  He is highly competitive.  He is a tough kid.  I think he'll step in there and give us everything he has."
• Kevin Brockway: "[Despite giving up a season-high 80 points in the loss to Arkansas on Tuesday] Florida remains second in the nation in scoring defense at 52.4 points per game."
• Coach Donovan: "As of today, we are a really bad defensive team,” Donovan said. "Right now, because that was our last game, we are a bad defensive team."
• Brockway: "Without the 6-foot-7, 240-pound Yeguete in the post, Donovan said the Gators may be forced to play more double-teams in the post when freshman DeVon Walker or junior Casey Prather play at the power forward spot."
• Brockway: "He's very important," Florida senior guard Mike Rosario said. "Obviously, he's one of our, like, dirty guys. That's what we would call it, like Dennis Rodman-type, grab every rebound, our hustle guy."
• Brockway: "The Gators have held 11 opponents under 50 points and 15 opponents under 60 points."
• Brockway: "Florida senior Kenny Boynton has made at least one 3-pointer in 15 straight games."
• Brockway: "Florida freshman Michael Frazier II is 9 of his last 14 from 3-point range."
• Brockway: "Mississippi State is shooting an SEC-worst 28.3 percent from 3-point range." 
• Brockway: "The Gators are shooting 49.2 percent from the floor and 39 percent from 3-point range."
• The Bulldogs have lost seven straight games after beginning the SEC schedule with two wins.
• Mississippi State is 1-6 on the road this season.
• Florida is 10-0 at home this season.

Last Game for Both Schools

Mississippi State: Lost to Ole Miss (away) on Wednesday, 93-75.
Florida: Lost to Arkansas (away) on Tuesday, 80-69.

Florida All-Time Versus Mississippi State

Florida leads the all-time series 59-49.  The Gators are 12-8 under Donovan against the Bulldogs.  The Gators are 6-2 at home under Donovan, and are 36-12 all-time at home.  Six of the last eight games between the two teams have been dedided by single digits. 

Last Meeting Between Schools

Florida defeated Mississippi State 82-47 in Starkville on January 26th.  Kenny Boynton and Erik Murphy co-led the team with 18 points.  The Gators opened the game with a 20-6 run and led 41-19 at halftime.  The Gators held Roquez Johnson, then the Bulldogs' leading scorer, and their third-leading scorer, Jalen Steele, scoreless on 0/8 from the field.

What I'm Wondering

1.  How will Florida rebound from Tuesday's loss?

2.  Will Yeguete's injury creates an opportunity for freshman forward DeVon Walker to play some important minutes on a consistent basis.  This is a similar situation to when junior guard/forward Casey Prather was out due to a high ankle sprain, and Walker was projected to see some time.  However, the most minutes he saw during that time was six minutes, ironically versus Mississippi State.  How many minutes will Walker play in today's game and how will he deliver?

3.  The Bulldogs are certainly playing much better since they lost by 35 to Florida on January 26th.  They lost in overtime to Texas A&M on January 30th and at the buzzer to LSU on February 2nd.  They only play eight players (dress nine), but Coach Rick Ray gets the most out of his guys.  This by no means will be a pushover for the Gators like it was in Starkville.  Will the Bulldogs be able to improve on their previous meeting with the Gators? 

Records to be Broken in the Near Future

• Kenny Boynton (1,867 points) is third on the all-time scoring list (Ronnie Williams leads with 2,090 points)
• Boynton (310 threes) is the all-time leader in three-pointers made in school history
• Boynton (126 games started) is just 3 starts away from passing Andrew DeClerq (128 starts) for the all-time record in school history
• Boynton (4,171 minutes played) is 188 minutes away from passing Erving Walker for first on the all-time list.
• Patric Young (99 blocked shots) is tenth on the all-time list.  David Lee is ninth with 109.
• Young (104 dunks) is sixth on the all-time list.  Dwayne Davis leads with 168.

Final score prediction: Florida 83 - Mississippi State 56