60° RAIN, Gators look to address late-game issues at SC
Last Modified: Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 5:42 p.m.
Florida made clutch shots and free throws down the stretch to beat Alabama and Mississippi State in back-to-back games.
When: 8 p.m.
Where: O'Connell Center, Gainesville
Gainesville TV: Cox Ch. 15; WJXT (Ch. 19, Cox Cable)
Gainesville radio: 103.7 FM, AM-850
FLORIDA PROBABLE STARTERS
G Kenny Boynton 6-2 Fr. 14.1 ppg, 3.0 apg
G Erving Walker 5-8 So. 12.9 ppg, 5.1 apg
F Chandler Parsons 6-9 Jr. 10.9 ppg, 6.7 rpg
F Alex Tyus 6-8 Jr. 12.9 ppg, 6.9 rpg
C Vernon Macklin 6-10 Jr. 10.1 ppg, 5.1 rpg
KEY RESERVES
F Dan Werner 6-8 Sr. 5.2 ppg, 4.3 rpg
G Ray Shipman 6-4 So. 2.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg
F Erik Murphy 6-9 Fr. 3.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg
SOUTH CAROLINA PROBABLE STARTERS
G Brandis Raley-Ross 6-2 Sr. 10.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg
G Devan Downey 5-9 Sr. 23.0 ppg, 3.5 apg
F Lakeem Jackson 6-5 Fr. 6.6 ppg, 4.6 rpg
F Austin Steed 6-8 Jr. 3.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg
C Sam Muldrow 6-9 Jr. 9.5 ppg, 6.4 rpg
KEY RESERVES
G Ramon Galloway 6-3 Fr. 7.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg
F Evaldas Baniulus 6-8 Sr. 3.0 ppg, 1.9 rpg
G Johndre Jefferson 6-9 Jr. 2.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg
THREE THINGS TO WATCH
1. Macklin's production
Was Florida center Vernon Macklin's 20-point performance Saturday against Mississippi State an aberration or a sign of things to come? Macklin has scored in double figures in just three of his first nine SEC games. But with teams focusing more attention on UF junior forward Alex Tyus, Macklin could get more scoring chances in the post. Macklin will need to stay out of foul trouble, which is never easy on the road.
2. Crashing the backboards
Florida should be able to get some second-chance scoring opportunities against a South Carolina team that ranks last in the SEC in rebounding margin. South Carolina frontcourt starters Sam Muldrow and Austin Steed are decent shot-blockers, but sometimes their tendency to chase shots leaves them out of rebounding position. Florida junior Chandler Parsons could have a big night rebounding the basketball. Parsons (6-9) has a four-inch height advantage over South Carolina starting small forward Lakeem Jackson (6-5).
3. Containing Downey
South Carolina point guard Devan Downey is too good of a scorer for the Gators to completely shut down. Downey will get his points, but Florida could do a better job of containing Downey and denying him the basketball in certain situations. In the closing seconds of Florida's first meeting against South Carolina, Downey split three Florida defenders to score a basket that put the Gamecocks ahead 56-55. Fortunately, Florida got a 3-pointer from Chandler Parsons at the buzzer to win the game.
THREE QUESTIONS
1. Can Florida find ways to keep South Carolina senior guard Devan Downey from making shots in crunch time?
2. Can the Gators use their size advantage against South Carolina to crash the offensive backboards and score second-chance points?
3. Can Vernon Macklin stay out of foul trouble and build off his 20-point performance against Mississippi State?
Go to Gatorsports.com after the game to read Kevin Brockway's answers.
But some careless turnovers in the closing minutes of both games put the Gators in some perilous situations.
It's something the Florida coaching staff addressed in practice this week before tonight's matchup at South Carolina.
Against Mississippi State, Florida allowed a 61-49 lead with 2:40 left slip to 66-62 with 22.7 seconds remaining. Against Alabama, Florida lost a 64-60 lead in the final two minutes before winning 66-65 on a basket from point guard Erving Walker with 11 seconds left.
The 5-foot-8 Walker had shaky moments handling the relentless pressure at the end of both games. Against Mississippi State, Walker had two turnovers in the final two minutes, one on an offensive foul and one on a careless pass after dribbling underneath the basket. Against the Tide, Walker was stripped at midcourt by Alabama senior guard Anthony Brock, leading to a three-point play that cut UF's lead to 64-63.
“Erving has got to do a better job,” Florida coach Billy Donovan said. “I don't think there is any question, he had two turnovers in the game against Alabama coming down the stretch and he had a couple of turnovers in this game (against Mississippi State) and he had a couple of turnovers against South Carolina at home.”
Donovan said he planned to show some extra film to Walker this week to discuss late-game situations. Donovan also has used forward Chandler Parsons at point guard to help relieve pressure from Walker during stretches of games.
“We have to have the floor spaced in a way,” Donovan said. “But the thing for Erving that he's learning is there are certain guys in the league that he cannot outrun and probably a lot of times in high school he was able to use his speed to get away from people.
“Sometimes he's unable to do that. He kinda dribbles himself into trouble instead of putting himself in a position to get out of trouble. I think that's something that we as a coaching staff have to work with him on, we have to help him with that.”
Walker acknowledged that the responsibility to close games out rests on his shoulders.
“I need to be more patient and take care of the ball,” Walker said.
Florida is returning to the Colonial Center for the first time since its 70-69 loss at South Carolina last season. In that game, Florida let a seven-point lead slip away in the final two minutes. The Gators lost at the buzzer when Zam Fredrick slipped behind Dan Werner for a buzzer-beating dunk. Fredrick took a full-court pass from Mike Holmes after Parsons missed the front end of a one-and-one free-throw attempt that could have closed out the game.
Like last season, Florida will have to contend with South Carolina senior guard Devan Downey, who has scored an average of 34.5 points in his last two games against the Gators. The 5-9 Downey leads the Southeastern Conference in scoring at 23.0 points per game. Asked if he had any special gameplan to try to slow Downey tonight, Donovan responded: “Go to church, and pray.”
But Florida was able to survive a 36-point performance from Downey to beat South Carolina at the buzzer 58-56 on a Parsons 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Werner said it won't feel any different going back to the Colonial Center after last season's late-game collapse there. Florida had won five of its previous six games at South Carolina.
“You can't let that affect this year,” Werner said. “You know they got one on us last year, we got one on them this year. So we just have to go in there and play the game.”
Contact Kevin Brockway at 352-374-5054 or brockwk@gvillesun.com. Also check out Brockway's blog at gatorsports.com.
All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged.
Next Article in UF Men's Basketball
-
Double trouble: BYU tops UF
It took close to three hours and two overtimes for Florida and BYU to resolve their first-round NCAA Tournament matchup. (Doug Finger/Staff photographer)...