For the second game in a row, Chandler Parsons kept one of Florida’s most impressive streaks alive.
When his team was hitting nothing but iron against Georgia Southern on Wednesday night, he broke the ice, nailing the team’s first three with 6:12 remaining in the game. This came one game after he preserved UF’s 580-game streak with a 3-point shot by hitting a last-minute shot against Stetson in the season opener.
“I’m a hero, I guess,” Parsons joked.
But the 6-foot-9 forward has found success in another role for the Gators so far this season — sixth man.
Despite leading the team with nine rebounds per game, averaging the second-most points (14.5) and playing the third-most minutes per game (26.5), Parsons will likely be the first player off the bench tonight when UF hosts Troy at 7 in the O’Connell Center.
Parsons recorded his third career double-double against the Eagles on Wednesday, scoring 15 points and grabbing 12 rebounds while providing some much-needed energy off the bench against a scrappy opponent.
“It’s just what I’m going to do all year,” Parsons said. “I’m going to come in, play hard, bring energy and I’m going to be relentless on the offensive glass.”
Parsons’ long, athletic frame allows him to make plays some of his teammates aren’t able to, but for a player who struggled to stay consistent from game-to-game in his first two years, UF coach Billy Donovan said the biggest change has been in his head.
“It’s much more mental,” Donovan said. “The mental preparation he put in in the offseason, the way he’s practiced the last month and a half, his maturity as a player and person, he’s totally different as a basketball player.”
Part of that change has been simply doing what his coaches have asked of him. Donovan said after the game Wednesday that he had to refocus Parsons after his freshman year and get him to understand what his role on the court was.
As a junior, he is finally proving capable of being the player Donovan hoped for. While filling any position from shooting guard to power forward, Parsons has played on the ball in the team’s full-court press, showed a newfound commitment to defense and relentlessly crashed the boards.
Sophomore point guard Erving Walker praised Parsons’ versatility, particularly on defense, and his willingness to play whatever role has been asked of him, even if it means not starting like he did in 28 of UF’s 36 games last year.
“Just his whole attitude, his hustle is good. He brings another dimension to the team,” Walker said. “Dan (Werner) is a great player, but Chandler’s more athletic. He’s the guy who gets tip dunks besides Alex (Tyus). That’s what we need.”
As for the fact that he is seemingly the only player capable of hitting a three in the team’s first two games — his two threes account for two-thirds of the Gators’ 3-point production — Parsons isn’t worried about that yet.
“We have a lot of great shooters,” Parsons said. “The shots will come. We’re going to get better on offense. I don’t think we’re too worried about it.”
