Florida basketball: Gators set to take on Michigan at the Jumpman Invitational
By Will Thomas
Florida basketball currently sits at 7-3 with just a few games remaining before they begin conference play.
Tonight, they have another chance to add to their resume and pick up an out of conference win on a neutral floor, which will help them out come selection day in March.
Florida is looking to keep their momentum going off of three straight wins and knock off a solid Big Ten team.
Florida basketball: Can't keep wasting opportunities
The Gators have dropped games to Virginia, Baylor, and Wake Forest, all of which would have been big resume boosters. Those three losses make this game much more important for Todd Golden and his squad.
Florida plays tonight at 7 pm ET on ESPN, and are currently -3.5 point favorites over the 6-5 Wolverines.
When you compare these teams' stats side by side, this game figures to be pretty close. Both squads are scoring nearly an identical amount of points per game (UF 82.3, MICH 82.2). Michigan has been the better team shooting the ball with a 49.7% field goal rate, but the Gators have been better on the glass, grabbing 44.6 rebounds per game compared to Michigan's 37.5.
Florida will hope to get another strong performance out of Walter Clayton Jr., who put up 22 points last week against East Carolina. They'll also need a bounce back game from Riley Kugel, who only had two points against the Pirates.
Hopefully for Todd Golden and his team, the tough losses to the other good, out of conference teams the've played have prepared them for this matchup tonight.
If the Gators go 0/4 in their early season challenges, they'll have a lot of ground to make up during SEC play to secure an at-large bid.