Billy Donovan has coached teams to the peak of college basketball’s mountaintop.
At this point in the season, Florida doesn’t have much to play for.
For the first time in what seemed like forever, the Gators won a game decided by five or fewer points, defeating Vanderbilt 50-47 on Wednesday in the O’Connell Center.
This year’s Florida basketball team has fallen from near the top of college basketball’s Mount Everest to the depths of the Mariana Trench by the standards Billy Donovan has set for the program as its head coach.
The NBA All-Star break is typically regarded as the midway point of the often grueling 82-game regular season schedule — a time when players can relax after 50 games and enjoy the week off.
Luck is seen by some as a cop-out.
Eli Carter had a season-high 22 points, Kasey Hill dished out a career-high-tying 10 assists and the Florida men’s basketball team still couldn’t pull out a win.
Dorian Finney-Smith’s three-pointer should have been good enough.
Chris Chiozza is making strides in his first year at UF.
In coach Billy Donovan’s eyes, the Gators truly played like Gators for the first time this season against Kentucky.
Florida could be without one of its top scorers for the near future.
Even though Florida (12-11, 5-5 Southeastern Conference) was on the losing end of a 68-61 showdown against No. 1 Kentucky (23-0, 10-0 SEC), coach Billy Donovan saw his team take a step in the right direction.
The Gators almost did the unthinkable.
ESPN College Gameday’s Seth Greenberg has experience with Florida’s Dorian Finney-Smith. The Gators most consistent scorer was once a member of Greenberg’s Virginia Tech Hokies team, averaging 6.3 points per game starting in 30 of 33 games and earning Atlantic Coast Conference All-Freshman Team honors in 2012.
Following Florida’s 67-61 loss to a Vanderbilt team that had lost seven straight Southeastern Conference games, Michael Frazier II said that the team "didn’t come out with any passion or energy."
Facing a Vanderbilt team that had lost seven straight Southeastern Conference games, Florida had an opportunity to capitalize on the Commodores’ woes and earn its third straight victory.
Coach Billy Donovan has watched his team struggle more this season than most of his former squads.
When you’re a player at one of the elite programs in college basketball, everyone’s a critic.
The development of Chris Walker may take longer than expected, even if the ceiling is higher than most.
Michael Frazier II just needed to keep shooting.
Solutions by The State News
