Florida Basketball is 13-0 and getting ready for SEC play tomorrow as the Gators will take on the Kentucky Wildcats in the conference opener.
To get a better idea of what to expect, we reached out to our Fansided sister site Wildcat Blue Nation and spoke with their site expert Mark Knight to see what he thought are the keys to the game this weekend.
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Hail Florida Hail: On paper, this looks like a matchup on two teams who want to play uptempo as both are in the top 75 nationally in terms of pace. How does Kentucky fare when facing teams who also like to push the pace?
Mark Knight: Kentucky also loves to push the pace; it’s the physical game that sometimes gets them rattled. They often play a 5-out offense and thus it limits offensive rebounds but does allow them to get back quick. Kentucky loves fast-paced games, especially when Lamont Butler is in them.
HFH: Florida loves driving to the basket. Kentucky is top 50 in blocks, but 136th in two-point shooting percentage against. How would you classify Kentucky’s ability to protect the rim?
MK: It’s a point of emphasis for Mark Pope. He still thinks they aren’t good enough in this department. Amari Williams grades as one of the best defensive big men because of his ability to contest shots and get rebounds. However, when a player gets real physical with him he can sometimes get timid. This is what happened both in Clemson and Ohio State losses. The key for Florida will be to create this sort of pressure on him. Garrison who plays behind him is one of the best NBA draft prospects on the team but he’s still a work in progress.
HFH: I predicted the first team to 90 wins. What feels like the point total the winning team is going to have to hit?
MK: What would worry me if I’m a Florida fan is the lack of strong competition so far this season. It hasn’t been a terrible non-conference schedule, but now that Louisville beat North Carolina, Florida has no wins inside the NET 40. So this will be their first true test and on the road. I think Kentucky is a bit more battle-tested tested, and that will matter. It does feel like it could be a race to 90.
Prediction- Kentucky 91 Florida 82
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We thank Mark for our time. You can check out the responses I gave to Wildcat Blue Nation, where I predicted Florida will win 90 to 84.