Florida basketball: How to watch, things to know for Florida vs Xavier
By Will Thomas
![Florida Gators guard Riley Kugel (24) talks with Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden. The Florida Gators menÕs basketball team hosted the Florida Atlantic Owls at Billy Donovan Court at Exactech Arena in Gainesville, FL on Monday, November 14, 2022. The score was tied 35-35 at the half. [Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun]Gai Ufbasketballfau](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2F1f04c9393146b31338cee4c6472e2931a74564e145ff669453fbfcc83e8000c1.jpg "Florida Gators guard Riley Kugel (24) talks with Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden. The Florida Gators menÕs basketball team hosted the Florida Atlantic Owls at Billy Donovan Court at Exactech Arena in Gainesville, FL on Monday, November 14, 2022. The score was tied 35-35 at the half. [Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun]Gai Ufbasketballfau")
After a great road win in Tallahassee last week, Florida basketball heads across the country to take on Xavier in the Phil Knight Legacy Tournament. The tournament takes place in Portland, Oregon, and features Florida, Xavier, Duke, Oregon State, Purdue, West Virginia, Gonzaga, and Portland State.
The Todd Golden era has gotten off to a relatively good start. Despite the home loss to FAU, the Gators have looked sharp and showed some serious fight when they came back against the Noles.
Now, they have their first serious road trip across the country, to take on a very solid Xavier squad.
Florida basketball: How to watch the Gators
Tip-off will be at 5:30 pm on ESPN 2. This will be UF’s first game off of the SEC Network and gives the nation a chance to see what the Gators look like with a new coach.
You can also watch the game on Fubo TV.
Florida basketball: Things to know vs Xavier
Florida will have to bring their A-game defensively, as Xavier is a very efficient team on offense. They average almost 85 points a game on 52.4% from the field, as well as dishing out 22 assists per game.
In comparison, the Gators average almost 80 points on 44.7% and pass out 12.5 assists per game.
It’s not like the Gators can rely on their offense to just keep up with Xavier either. The Musketeers are swiping 10 steals per game, and the Gators are only shooting it at 35.7% from three-point range, meaning they’ll struggle to win in a shootout.
The recipe for a Gator win is pretty much the same as it’s always been: Get Castleton going early. Colin has been dominant for the Gators so far this season and will have plenty of attention from Xavier.
Florida will also need its shooting to improve. Like I said before, they’re shooting it at 35.7% from deep, which isn’t a sustainable rate if they want to win tough games. Guys like Myreon Jones and Kowacie Reeves need to find their stroke to make Florida a great offensive team.
Keep up with Florida basketball at Hail Florida Hail.