It's all uphill from here.
UF (13-2) polished off its non-conference schedule Tuesday night with a 95-69 thumping of Longwood (7-9) in the O'Connell Center.
Nick Calathes once again led the way for the Gators, scoring 19 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and finishing two assists shy of a triple-double. It was his second double-double of the season.
Kenny Kadji scored 14 points while shooting 70 percent from the field.
Now, as the Gators turn their attention to Saturday's matchup with Mississippi and the start of Southeastern Conference play, they hope the freshman will be able to provide some much-needed depth in the frontcourt.
"I need to keep getting more consistent," Kadji said. "In high school you can get away with playing good one day and then just relaxing the next. (In college) you have to be ready every day, and it's something I'm working to get better at."
While Kadji has shown he can provide the Gators with minutes off the bench early in the season, even he isn't sure what to expect from conference play.
"I have no clue," Kadji said. "I guess we'll find out Saturday."
Calathes said that while he has tried to help prepare his young teammates for the SEC, they may have to experience it for themselves before they can fully understand the jump they are about to make.
"The SEC is a lot stronger, a lot taller and a lot tougher than the teams we have played so far," Calathes said. "I think we definitely have a tough task ahead of us."
UF coach Billy Donovan is also unsure about how his team will fare in the coming weeks.
"We are very inconsistent," Donovan said. "But I think that is part of this team's growing and maturing process. We have a big challenge ahead of us and we need to figure out a way to handle that."
