Florida basketball: Gators handle business, lose Castleton in win over Ole Miss

Feb 15, 2023; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators forward Colin Castleton (12) defends Mississippi Rebels forward Jaemyn Brakefield (4) during the first half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 15, 2023; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators forward Colin Castleton (12) defends Mississippi Rebels forward Jaemyn Brakefield (4) during the first half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Florida basketball came into the game as double-digit favorites in a game that they needed to win if they wanted any chance to make the Big Dance.

And after a bit of a slow start, the Gators got back into the rhythm they’d been missing for a few games and took care of Ole Miss at home.

The final score was 79-64, and the game may give the Gators the confidence they need to go win a tough game in Fayetteville this weekend.

A promising aspect of this game was seeing a couple of shooters that had been cold find their stroke.

Will Richard had 13 points, and Riley Kugel had 12. Both Kowacie Reeves and Myreon Jones started to look like their best selves as well, as Reeves had 13 and Myreon made 5 threes and scored 15.

As a team, Florida had a great shooting night, with a 58.3%rate from the field and 58.8% from three-point range. The Gators really clicked on offense tonight.

The biggest story of the night however is that Colin Castleton left the game with a right-hand injury in the second half and didn’t return. Right after the injury, he sat on the bench for a few seconds before walking into the locker room, clearly in pain.

He only had three points and three rebounds in his time tonight, but nobody reading this needs me to tell them that the Gators can’t afford for Castleton to be hurt for an extended period of time.

As of right now, we don’t have any updates on his injury, but we’ll pass them along as we receive them.

The good news is still the good news, however, as the Gators cruised to a much-needed win, and now get ready to hit the road and play at Arkansas on Saturday.

Keep up with Florida basketball at Hail Florida Hail.