Florida Gators Match Up With Yale Turns Into Key Test

Normally, losing by 6 points on the road to the No. 11 ranked Kansas Jayhawks isn’t a bad loss. But after the now unranked Florida Gators (3-4 ) men’s basketball team blew an 18 point second-half lead to limp to a 71-65 loss in Lawrence, Friday’s debacle shows that this Gators basketball team isn’t nearly deep or talented enough to live up to the success of the past few years.

And while normally a matchup with an Ivy League team would be an expected victory for SEC power Florida, tonight’s 7 pm game with Yale (8-2)  at the O’Dome not only shouldn’t be taken lightly by the Gators, it could also be an important indicator of where Florida basketball is heading this year. Drop this one and Florida may find themselves in a fight simply to return to the NCAA tournament.

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Any doubts about what Yale basketball is capable of were erased Friday when the Bulldogs dropped defending national championship UConn 54-44 on the Huskies home court. Though UConn is also slumping this season, the win for Yale shows that the Bulldogs are yet another dangerous team to come out of the Ivy League.

The Bulldogs have weapons in their guards, including senior Javier Duren who averages 14.3 points a game and junior Jack Montague, who shoots 51 percent from 3-point range. Yale mostly controlled the game against UConn, despite holding shooting just 3-of-21 from three point range.  However, Montague showed he can make the big shot when it counts, hitting a late three to seal the game for the Bulldogs.

Mar 27, 2014; Memphis, TN, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Norman Powell (4) has his shot blocked by Florida Gators forward Chris Walker (23) during the first half in the semifinals of the south regional of the 2014 NCAA Mens Basketball Championship tournament at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports

Regardless of whether they win or lose, this should be a close game for the Gators. Florida’s defense has proven mostly capable. It’s scoring that has been the problem. After the disappointing meltdown versus Kansas, the Florida Gators are looking for players that can make shots.

One culprit in the Gators poor shooting performance is senior center Jon Horford, who missed all five of his three-point shots against the Jayhawks and is now a miserable 20 percent from long range.

Unlike with Kansas, Georgetown, North Carolina, who have bigger post players, the Bulldogs don’t have the size advantage, giving sophomore forward Chris Walker more chance to develop his frontcourt game. Walker’s coming off the best game of his career with 12 points and five rebounds against the Jayhawks. But though only 6-8, Yale forward Justin Sears is known for his rebounding and will give the Gators all the effort they can handle.

Another newcomer also showed improved performance against Kansas was freshman forward Devin Robinson, who led the Gators with 13 points, the best performance of his young career.

Fans looking to watch the game can check it out on the SEC Network.