Gainesville, FL (Sports Network) - The 11th-ranked Florida Gators finally jump
into conference play, as they welcome the Georgia Bulldogs to Gainesville on
Wednesday for an SEC showdown at the O'Connell Center.
Billy Donovan's Gators closed out their non-league slate on Sunday with a
79-58 drubbing of Yale. The victory was the third in the last four games and
moved Florida to a solid 10-2 on the year.
Mark Fox's Bulldogs have struggled with consistency this year, as evidenced by
the team's lackluster 6-7 overall record. It has been a season of streaks for
Georgia though and the team is on a roll heading into league play, having won
the last four games, including a 52-41 decision against George Washington last
Friday.
Florida leads 106-97 in the all-time series with Georgia and has won 15 of the
last 18 meetings overall. The Gators have more wins over Georgia than any
other team.
Nemi Djurisic and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope each scored 17 points, as Georgia
posted its fourth consecutive win with an 11-point victory against the
Colonials. John Florveus played a role in the win as well, grabbing a career-
high 10 rebounds to lead the team on the glass. The team shot a solid .487
from the floor, thanks to a scorching .647 in the second half (11-of-17) to
make up for an alarming 25 turnovers.
The team's lack of scoring was nothing new, as Georgia heads into SEC action
netting a mere 60.5 ppg, doing so on just .414 shooting. The defensive effort
has been much better, holding foes under 40 percent shooting (.386), including
.298 from behind the arc. Caldwell-Pope is far and away the top offensive
threat, averaging a steady 17.5 ppg. The scoring pool dries up after that with
Djurisic next in line with a distant 8.5 ppg.
Florida knows a thing or two about defensive tenacity, ranking fourth
nationally in scoring defense (52.7 ppg), while holding opponents to just .368
shooting (11th nationally). In addition, the Gators are enjoying a +8.6
rebounding margin and recording 7.4 steals per game. The team has had success
shooting the basketball as well, delivering on 48.3 percent from the field
overall. Four Gators are currently averaging double figures, led by Kenny
Boynton's 13.8 ppg. Erik Murphy is a close second at 12.1 ppg, while Mike
Rosario and Patric Young round out the top threats with 11.8 and 10.8 ppg,
respectively.
Boynton tied his career-high with 28 points, as Florida rolled over Yale this
past weekend. Will Yeguete added 14 points to the cause, while Rosario checked
in with 13 points. Freshman Scottie Wilbekin doled out a career-high 10
assists in the win. Florida converted 60 percent from the floor overall (30-
of-50), including 9-of-17 from behind the arc (52.9 percent).
The Sports Network