Florida basketball fell to the Missouri Tigers, 76-74, on the road Saturday night in the SEC opener.
Everything went right for the Gators over the first 15 minutes of the game as UF built up a lead between five and seven points, but that’s where the luck stopped. Missouri went on a 10-4 run to close the half, tying things up with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. Todd Golden argued that the Tigers committed the same moving screen called on Alex Condon earlier in the game, but it wasn’t a reviewable play.
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Golden’s complaints swayed the refs to pay more attention to Missouri’s off-ball play in the second half, but Florida dug a 10-point hole, missing the first six 3-pointers taken after the break. Xaivian Lee broke the streak there, but Florida only buried one more in the half, going 2-for-15 after halftime. That shot, made by Thomas Haugh, briefly gave the Gators the lead back, but the Tigers answered one of their own, albeit an errant bank shot that found its way to the net.
Florida played the foul game and got two big misses in the end, but not enough time remained for Boogie Fland to get down the court and bear the 3-point line. His 50-foot heave found the rim but did not go in.
Haugh finished with a game-high 24 points, and Condon had 14 points, six assists and five rebounds. Lee was the only other Gator in double figures with 11 points. Chinyelu finished the night with eight points and eight rebounds.
Florida hasn’t made as much progress as we thought
Head coach Todd Golden said that his team was ready for SEC play on Friday, but the Gators looked overwhelmed for much of the game. The entire starting frontcourt got into foul trouble, which has been a major point of focus all year, and poor shooting continues to be the bane of Florida’s existence.
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Boogie Fland went 2-for-10 from the field, including a 0-for-6 night from deep. Xaivan Lee made a few 3-pointers, but still seemed off when it counted most. Thomas Haugh was 2-for-9 before exploding in the second half, and the bench gave a combined 11 points on 5-for-11 shooting. Walter Clayton isn’t stepping through that door to save the day like last year, and Haugh can only do so much by himself.
While there was a lot of bad, Fland’s seven assists and Florida’s eight total turnovers are positives coming out of the loss.
The Gators’ frontcourt can’t afford foul trouble
Missouri has the second most size in the SEC, and it served them well against Florida’s frontcourt. Alex Condon was in foul trouble all night, and the time crunch in the final seconds of the game was a direct result of Rueben Chinyelu being unable to foul with four already on his stat sheet. If Chinyelu has one less, Florida has two more seconds to get the ball down the court and potentially tie, or win, the game.
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It’s also the first time Florida hasn’t won the rebound battle since dropping the season opener against Arizona. Missouri tied Florida with 37 rebounds, largely because the Gators’ bigs were all in foul trouble. Micah Handlogten got some extended playing time and made the most of it with six boards in 12 minutes, but any night Chinyelu isn’t in double-digits means Florida’s offense is in trouble.
This team thrives on chucking it up and letting the big men pull it down for a second opportunity. When that’s taken away, it’s usually a loss.
Figure out the mismatch
Missouri exploited a size mismatch against all of Florida’s guards. Jacob Crews was the beneficiary, converting on seven of eight free-throw shots in the first half. The Tigers kept attacking Fland and Lee, allowing Missouri to build momentum going into the half.
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The other mismatch was Florida’s offense versus the 3-2 zone. Florida’s abundance of 3-pointers wasn’t necessarily by design. They were simply the best shots players could find. When the backcourt and Haugh can’t cut to the rim effectively, the Gators struggle. Hitting shots forces the defense to adjust, but Florida shoots so poorly that opposing teams can just stick with the game plan and watch the Gators implode.
The good news is that not many other teams have the kind of all-around size Missouri does. The bad news is that this was a Quadrant 2 matchup, and Florida has four consecutive Q1 games following this loss. Golden’s squad needs to get right before Mike White and Georgia come to town on Tuesday. Losing to the program’s former coach at home could send UF into a spiral.
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida Gators basketball at Missouri Tigers recap, takeaways
