Florida men's basketball: No. 24 Gators face off against visiting Troy
Troy (4-2) vs. No. 24 Florida (5-0)
Where: O'Connell Center
When: 12 p.m. today. TV: SEC Network. Radio: 98.1-FM, AM-850
BOTTOM LINE: No. 24 Florida hosts Troy in an early season matchup. Each team is coming off of a victory in their last game. Florida earned a 71-68 win in Fort Myers over Ohio State on Wednesday, while Troy got an 83-78 win in overtime at Florida Atlantic on Monday.
LEADING THE CHARGE: Florida's Colin Castleton has averaged 15.8 points, 10.4 rebounds and three blocks while Myreon Jones has put up 11.8 points and four rebounds. For the Trojans, Duke Deen has averaged 13.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists while Efe Odigie has put up 13 points and 5.3 rebounds.
DOMINANT DUKE: Deen has connected on 30.6 percent of the 36 3-pointers he's attempted and has made 11 of 35 over his last five games. He's also converted 87.5 percent of his foul shots this season.
STREAK STATS: Florida has won its last three home games, scoring an average of 75.3 points while giving up 53.7.
ASSIST DISTRIBUTION: The Trojans have recently used assists to create baskets more often than the Gators. Florida has 39 assists on 81 field goals (48.1 percent) over its previous three matchups while Troy has assists on 41 of 77 field goals (53.2 percent) during its past three games.
UNDER PRESSURE: The Gators’ pressure defense has forced 18 turnovers in each of their past two games, powering Florida to its Fort Myers Tip-Off championship. UF tallied 13 steals in the win vs. Ohio State and 10 vs. California.
SPOTLESS START: Florida is aiming for a 6-0 start, something the Gators have done just eight times previously, most recently in the 2012-13 season.
RALLY TIME: Florida overcame a 10-point deficit in its last outing to claim the win vs. Ohio State, marking the team’s 11th double-digit comeback win under Mike White.
DID YOU KNOW: Florida has attempted the second-most free throws among all SEC teams. The Gators have averaged 22.2 free throws per game this season.