Florida basketball coach Todd Golden received some credit at SEC Basketball Media Day on Wednesday, Oct. 15.
Golden, a former director of operations at Auburn, was praised by now-first-year head coach Steven Pearl, who took over the job after his father, Bruce Pearl, announced his retirement a few weeks ago.
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“He was the one that brought analytics into our program when we first got to Auburn,” Pearl said. “That was when KenPom was really one of the only analytically driven databases out there. Now, there’s like 57 of them.”
Pearl also recognized some of the former assistant coaches he played under at Tennessee, including Steve Forbes, now the head coach at Wake Forest, and Jason Shay, the former head coach at East Tennessee State.
However, according to Pearl, his and Golden’s time at Auburn from 2014 to 2016 played a significant role in shaping his coaching style.
“It was some of my assistants from Tennessee, but then Todd had a really big impact on me as an assistant when he was at Auburn,” Pearl said. “It’s pretty well documented that we’ve stayed in touch ever since he left Auburn to go to San Francisco. (Bruce Pearl) then really helped him get that job with Florida.”
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Golden’s Gators faced Auburn in last year’s Final Four in UF’s eventual national championship season.
“I think (Bruce Pearl) might regret that now because Todd obviously has turned into one hell of a coach,” Golden said. “They kicked our ass last year a couple of times.
“So, Todd, Coach Forbes and Coach Shay and some of those guys have been influential in me wanting to become a coach, and obviously continue his journey. Then obviously BP. One of the reasons why I believe I’m ready for this job is because I watched him.”
Reach Florida Gators writer Andrew Abadie at aabadie@gannett.com or on X (formerly Twitter) at @AndrewAbadie. You can also find him on Facebook at Andrew Abadie Sports Reporter or on Instagram @andrewabadie_sports.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Why Auburn coach Steven Pearl credits Florida basketball’s Todd Golden
