Florida dominated Webber International for 35 minutes Monday.
The first five minutes, however, were cause for concern.
WIU's Tyrell Harper threw down a two-handed dunk off a steal in transition to put the Warriors up 9-3. After a missed jump shot by UF power forward Alex Tyus, Harper slammed home another dunk, this time out of a broken press. And four possessions later, WIU forward Marvin Williams added another two-handed jam in a half-court set.
"That was good to happen to our team because here's a team that clearly - at the level they're at - came in and hit us in the mouth early in the game," UF coach Billy Donovan said. "And it wasn't 'a high-major, Division I conference game or nonconference game.' It was a game against a team that came out with a lot more aggressiveness than we did."
It's hard to learn anything from early season games against significantly worse competition, but the Gators were able to feel what it's like to come out with less energy than an opponent.
Athleticism, size and talent overwhelmed WIU over the course of the entire game, but it may not be so easy to rebound later in the year.
"Ugly. Just poor execution, poor focus," sophomore point guard Erving Walker said. "That's totally our fault, and we can't have that for the regular season."
Donovan voiced concern after UF's first game about his team's ability to transition out of its full-court press into a half-court defense. The Gators gave up 17 offensive rebounds to Saint Leo, and Monday, they completely missed assignments transitioning to man-to-man defense, showing that playing against small schools can still provide valuable lessons.
