Beware the Gators: Everybody is about to be healthy again

Alex Condon's return will make the Gators deeper and that much better (UAA Photo)

LSU coach Matt McMahon perfectly summed up how the Tigers went from a 6-point halftime lead to a 79-65 loss to second-ranked Florida (24-3, 11-3 SEC) Saturday evening in Baton Rouge.

“Second half, I think when you look at the story of the game it’s that they physically dominated us in the paint,” McMahon said after the Gators outscored the Tigers 44-24 in the paint and had a 48-33 rebounding advantage.

LSU defended well enough on the perimeter to win the game, but the Tigers couldn’t handle Florida on the inside where Rueben Chinyelu had his best game as a Gator with 19 points, 13 rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots and Tommy Haugh had 16 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, a blocked shot and a steal. For good measure, Micah Handlogten came off the bench to score one point but he grabbed six rebounds.

On the perimeter, Alijah Martin scored 14 points, but he was 4-13 from the field. Martin also had six rebounds and one assist. Walter Clayton Jr. scored 13 but he was 5-16 overall from the field and 2-8 from the 3-point line. He also had six rebounds, two blocked shots and two steals but no assists. Will Richard was scoreless on 0-3 shooting but he had three rebounds, five assists and a steal. Off the bench Denzel Aberdeen scored 11 on 5-9 shooting and had two steals, and Urban Klavzar went 2-6 from the field, 1-4 from the 3-point line.

“If you had told me that we’d hold (Walter) Clayton, (Will) Richard and (Alijah) Martin to 9-of-32 from the floor, I would have taken that every day,” McMahon said. 

Probably every coach in the country would say the same thing.

What Florida did on the inside should be a shot across the bow of every team in the country. Florida’s perimeter game gets plenty of publicity and for good reason. They’re that good, but the inside guys are maturing and turning the Gators into a beast of a team to defend.

Pack the paint to snuff out the inside game and the perimeter guys can go into a collective shooter’s coma when they start raining threes seemingly from the ceiling. Try to shut down the perimeter game and the inside guys are proving capable of taking a game over, which they’ve been doing short handed in the last four games.

Playing short handed has been a blessing in disguise because it has forced Chinyelu and Haugh to play bigger roles at both ends of the court. It also convinced the 7-1 Handlogten to elect to forget taking a redshirt to give the Gators added depth and defense. Haugh has scored 15.6 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game in the last six. Chinyelu has scored double figures the last four in which he’s averaging 12.5 points and 6.5 rebounds. In his three games, Handlogten has 10 rebounds, eight assists and three blocked shots off the bench.

Short handed is about to become a thing of the past. Alex Condon, out since the first 30 seconds of the Mississippi State game, could have played against LSU. Figure he’s in the rotation Tuesday night at Georgia. Sam Alexis, also out since the Mississippi State game, could be back as soon as Saturday when No. 7 Texas A&M comes to Gainesville.

Condon is averaging 10.6 points and 7.8 rebounds per game, while Alexis chips in off the bench with 4.9 points and 3.6 rebounds. Add those two guys to the front court rotation and the Gators have rim protection, rebounding, scoring and unselfish guys who know how to find open shooters.

Equally important, at full strength, the Gators will have 25 fouls 6-9 or taller in the paint, which can help neutralize a zebra with a quick whistle.

Todd Golden prefers an 8-man rotation, but with the emergence of Klavzar to help the perimeter foursome of Clayton, Martin, Richard and Aberdeen and Handlogten to go with Condon, Chinyelu, Haugh and Alexis, the Gators might be as strong a team as any in the country. The Gators are on everybody bracketologist’s No. 1 line. In these next four games and the SEC Tournament, it’s entirely possible they could be the overall No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

THE SEC THROUGH 14 CONFERENCE GAMES

No. 4 Alabama (22-5, 11-3 SEC): Lunardi and Jerry Palm still have the Crimson Tide as a No. 1 seed, largely due to a 9-5 record against Quad 1 teams. They could get bumped off the No. 2 line Saturday when they pay a visit to Tennessee.

Arkansas (16-11, 5-9 SEC): The win over Missouri is huge for the Razorbacks, who have two very winnable games this week. Seven SEC wins and Arkansas is solidly in the NCAA field even before the SEC Tournament. That’s the power of John Calipari as the head coach.

No. 1 Auburn (25-2, 13-1 SEC): Nobody in the country has a resume quite like Auburn, which is 14-2 in Quad 1 games. Barring a total collapse in the last four SEC games and an early bow-out at the SEC Tournament, the Tigers will be the overall No. 1 seed. Someone on the radio threw out the idea of Duke as the No. 1. Oh please.

No. 2 FLORIDA (24-3, 11-3 SEC): The Gators are 6-2 on the road and they are the only team in the country that has two wins over a No. 1 ranked team (Tennessee and Auburn). Mortal lock for a No. 1 seed. Roadie with Georgia Tuesday is dangerous. The Aggies (Saturday) always play the Gators tough.

Georgia (16-11, 4-10 SEC): Georgia desperately needs some Quad 1 wins. A 2-11 record against Quad 1 teams isn’t going to cut it on selection Saturday. The Bulldogs are home against No. 2 Florida Tuesday night. They’ve got a winnable game at Texas Saturday but that won’t be a Quad 1 win.

No. 17 Kentucky (18-9, 7-7 SEC): Kentucky is a lock for the NCAA Tournament and despite a rotten (2-6) road record Lunardi and Jerry Palm have the Wildcats as a No. 3 seed. Two reasons for that: UK has eight Quad 1 wins so far and nobody in college basketball travels quite like the Wildcats. Wherever they play in March will be sold out.

LSU (14-13, 3-11 SEC): The Tigers could still make it to the NIT but they probably need to go 3-1 in the last four regular season games to make it. Going to be tough. The Tigers are home against No. 6 Tennessee and on the road at Mississippi State this week.

No. 21 Mississippi State (19-8, 7-7 SEC): The Bulldogs will make the NCAA Tournament but they need some wins to stay ahead of a 7-10 seed. They’re at No. 4 Alabama Tuesday night, home against LSU Saturday. A 7-7 record against Quad 1 teams is helpful for their NCAA seeding.

No. 15 Missouri (20-7, 9-5 SEC): Mizzou probably blew any chance of getting a top four seed by losing to Arkansas. The Tigers need two wins this week (South Carolina, at Vanderbilt) to stay in the hunt for a five or six. The Tigers are 6-7 against Quad 1 teams.

Oklahoma (17-10, 4-10 SEC): The Sooners are still on NCAA life support, but they’re breathing easier after their win over Mississippi State. They can substantially boost their chances of making the tournament if they can beat No. 17 Kentucky Wednesday night. Kentucky is dreadful on the road.

No. 24 Ole Miss (19-8, 8-6 SEC): The Rebels are as good as in the NCAA Tournament, but their seeding took a dip when they lost to Vanderbilt. They’ve got Auburn on the road this week and a homer with Oklahoma. Ole Miss is 5-8 against Quad 1 teams.

South Carolina (11-16, 1-13 SEC): The Gamecocks avoiding a reverse run of the SEC table and in the process they might have torpedoed any chance Texas has of getting in.

No. 6 Tennessee (22-5, 9-5 SEC): Saturday is the biggie for the Vols, who are currently sitting on the No. 2 line. Any chance they get on the No. 1 line depends on a win over Alabama at Thompson-Boling.

Texas (16-11, 5-9 SEC): The Longhorns suffered a huge blow to their NCAA chances when they lost to South Carolina, which hadn’t won an SEC game all season. They can’t afford even one loss this week against Arkansas or Georgia.

No. 7 Texas A&M (20-7, 9-5 SEC): Just when the Aggies were thinking they could sneak into the No. 2 seed for the NCAA Tournament, they went 0-2 last week, clocked on the road at Mississippi State, then beaten at home by No. 6 Tennessee.

Vanderbilt (18-9, 6-8 SEC): Vanderbilt could be on shaky ground if the Commodores get their doors blown off at Texas A&M on Wednesday and home against Missouri on Saturday. They are 3-8 against Quad 1 opponents so two losses could be problematic.

SEC BASKETBALL

Tuesday’s games

No. 2 FLORIDA (24-3, 11-3 SEC) at Georgia (16-11, 4-10 SEC)

No. 21 Mississippi State (19-8, 7-7 SEC) at No. 4 Alabama (22-5, 11-3 SEC)

No. 6 Tennessee (22-5, 9-5 SEC) at LSU (14-13, 3-11 SEC)

South Carolina (11-16, 1-13 SEC) at No. 15 Missouri (20-7, 9-5 SEC)

Wednesday’s games

No. 24 Ole Miss (19-8, 8-6 SEC) at No. 1 Auburn (25-2, 13-1 SEC)

Vanderbilt (18-9, 6-8 SEC) at No. 7 Texas A&M (20-7, 9-5 SEC)

No. 17 Kentucky (18-9, 7-7 SEC) at Oklahoma (17-10, 4-10 SEC)

Texas (16-11, 5-9 SEC) at Arkansas (16-11, 5-9 SEC)

Saturday’s games

No. 7 Texas A&M (20-7, 9-5 SEC) at No. 2 FLORIDA (24-3, 10-3 SEC)

No. 1 Auburn (25-2, 13-1 SEC) at No. 17 Kentucky (18-9, 9-5 SEC)

No. 4 Alabama (22-5, 11-3 SEC) at No. 6 Tennessee (22-5, 9-5 SEC)

No. 15 Missouri (20-7, 9-5 SEC) at Vanderbilt (18-9, 6-8 SEC)

LSU (14-13, 3-11 SEC) at No. 21 Mississippi State (19-8, 7-7 SEC)

Oklahoma (17-10, 4-10 SEC) at No. 24 Ole Miss (19-8, 8-6 SEC)

Georgia (16-11, 4-10 SEC) at Texas (16-11, 5-9 SEC)

Arkansas (16-11, 5-9 SEC) at South Carolina (11-16, 1-13 SEC)