Throughout the 2016-17 Florida men’s basketball regular season, freshman center Gorjok Gak averaged just 5.3 minutes per contest. He saw more than five minutes of action just twice in the regular season, relegated to the bench as he developed strength and coordination.
In the NCAA Tournament, the Gators were able to catch a glimpse of his potential. Still, throughout the post- and regular season, Gak attempted 17 total field goals.
The World University Games in Taiwan have been an opportunity for Gak to polish a wider set of offensive skills with the Australian team.
Through eight games, the sophomore averaged 11.1 points per game. Two back-to-back 16-point performances against Israel and the Russian Federation showcased an improved touch. He followed that two games later with a 17-point showing in a victory over Estonia.
In order to capture ninth place in the tournament, Australia went up against Canada. Gak once again impressed, going for 14 points in a close 101-96 win.
Gak also showed improvement corralling rebounds as he averaged 8.3 per contest. In three of the eight contests, the Sydney, Australia, native gathered double-digit rebounds with 11 against the Russian Federation.
New Gator addition Egor Koulechov also had an impressive showing for the Israeli team. The former Rice standout averaged 15.1 points through eight games.
In three contests, Koulechov led Israel in scoring, with two 24-point games in wins over Finland and Australia.
The graduate transfer scored in double figures during seven of the team’s eight games, moving on to the fifth place game against Germany. Despite Koulechov scoring 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting, Israel fell to Germany 87-78 to finish sixth in the tournament.
Koulechov also drilled 14 threes throughout the tournament, something that’s considered his specialty throughout his collegiate career.
After losing Devin Robinson to the NBA and Justin Leon and Kasey Hill to graduation, the Gators needed to secure players with a scoring punch.
The 6-foot-5 Koulechov is just that, averaging 13.5 points in four seasons with Rice and Arizona State. He shot nearly 40 percent from beyond the arc during his career with the Owls.
Apart from his offensive skills, the weapon flying under the radar might be his rebounding. Despite playing guard, Koulechov led his team in crashing the board last season with 8.9 per game. That was good enough for fourth in the Conference USA.
Now, both players will return to Gainesville in preparation for the 2017-18 regular season, which opens Nov. 13 against Gardner-Webb at home.
Seven of the 13 players on Florida’s roster have yet to play in a Gator uniform, so they need all the time they can get to adjust to each other’s play styles and work on becoming a cohesive unit.
You can follow Skyler Lebron on Twitter @SkylerLebron, and contact him at slebron@alligator.org.
Gorjok Gak (right) is competing for Australia in the World University Games in Taipei. Through eight games, the rising sophomore averaged 11.1 points a game.
