Florida Gator Hoops: Golden’s team has the potential to repeat

Todd Golden might not come right out and say it, but all the attention given to Florida football with its coaching change and speculation about Lane Kiffin leaving Ole Miss to come coach the Gators has been a welcome distraction. Instead of speculating whether or not Golden’s basketball Gators can repeat as NCAA champs, the focus has been on football and Kiffin. Golden has been able to quietly prep the 3^rd-ranked Gators for a season opener in Las Vegas November 3 against 13^th-ranked Arizona.

Despite the attention given to football, the large target on the back of Florida basketball isn’t going away. It is always there for an NCAA champ because repeat championships are so hard to achieve. Golden knows the history of NCAA basketball champions and how few teams have gone back-to-back. Since UCLA pulled off its astounding seven straight titles, a streak ended by North Carolina State in 1974, a repeat championship has been accomplished only three times – Duke 1991-92; Florida 2006-07; and UConn 2023-24.

The pressure is very real for the Gators, a task is made difficult by the loss of arguably the best backcourt in the country. Walter Clayton Jr. (18.3 points per game), Alijah Martin (14.4) and Will Richard (13.3) have all moved on to the NBA. Their contributions went far beyond scoring. The Gators had the best chemistry of any team in the country as evidenced by the 6-game run to the national championship. The Gators had to come from behind to win four of the games including the erasure of a 12-point deficit to Houston in the national championship game.

Finding the right team chemistry will be a necessity for Golden if the Gators are to make a serious run at a repeat title. He likes what he’s seen so far but knows the Gators have yet to overcome any obstacles.  

“There's been no adversity for this team, like we haven't lost any tough games,” Golden said just prior to the official opening of practice. “We haven't had to deal with any injuries. So it's easy right now, because we haven't had to go through any of that for us to all get along with each other and everybody to be putting the team first. But once we deal with a little bit of that, I think we'll be … the way we react to that will be the key. But right now, I think this team has a chance to be really tight. We have really good guys. We have mature guys, and I think similar to last year, our personnel and kind of the roles that we have for specific guys fits pretty well where everybody should be able to, you know, have success with what we're trying to do.”

Team chemistry will begin with the four big guys who return from the national championship team. Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu started last year with Tommy Haugh coming off the bench. When injuries struck in early February, Micah Handlogten burned his redshirt to ensure enough depth in the frontcourt. Without his contributions, Golden says the Gators couldn’t have won the national title.

Condon and Chinyelu have benefitted from offseason workouts. They are bigger and stronger, ready to assume their roles in the paint. Haugh, who blossomed in the tournament, will move to the wing which means Golden will go with what was once the traditional lineup of three big guys and two guards. Handlogten is fully recovered from the serious leg fracture in the SEC Tournament championship game in 2024. He was sufficiently recovered in February that he was willing to burn his redshirt. He’s a solid 7-1 who has added plenty of muscle to his now 265-pound frame.

The Gators have the best and most experienced frontcourt in the nation. With Haugh versatile enough to play the wing or both high or low post positions, Golden has plenty of options to force opponents to play his style, not the other way around.

The final pieces of the starting lineup puzzle will come from transfers Xaivian Lee (from Princeton) and Boogie Fland (from Arkansas). They bring firepower that will help offset the losses of Clayton, Martin and Richard, but they are equally adept at getting teammates involved. At Princeton, Lee averaged 16.9 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game. Fland averaged 13.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 5.1 assists at Arkansas.

Last season, the Gators were No. 2 in offensive efficiency per kenpom.com. They were big yet they played fast. This year, Golden has a team that will be bigger, have more depth and will still play fast. Perhaps even faster. If they can do a better job of limiting turnovers, the Gators should be lethal offensively.

“We want to play as many possessions in transition as possible,” Golden said. “So if we can find a way to play five percent more of our possessions in transition, I think that would really help us be able to make up for some of that lost efficiency. And I keep going back to the ball handling. We haven't done nearly enough job yet taking care of the ball. But Boogie had a great assist-to-turnover ratio last year. Xaivian was fantastic, and Tommy and those guys are great for front court players in terms of taking care of it. So I think collectively, as we continue to get comfortable playing together that should be an area that - I think we're 73rd I think we're 73rd in America in turnover rate last year. My goal is to be top 25 that way with this year's teams."

Last season, the Gators played eight guys down the stretch. That’s an ideal rotation, but this year the Gators have the most depth of any Florida team since the one that made it all the way to the 2000 NCAA championship game against Michigan State. There is an extra big guy in Viktor Mikic to add to the frontcourt. In the backcourt, Golden has Urban Klavzar, the Brown brothers (Isaiah and Ohio U transfer AJ), and freshmen Alex Lloyd and CJ Ingram.

That is 12 talented players. Some might say too much depth, but if Golden can manipulate the minutes to keep everybody fresh and energized, the Gators will have a team capable of duplicating the 2006-07 Florida teams that went back-to-back.

“On a macro level our goal is to win again, but with this team specifically we’re not talking a lot about repeating, but we are talking about doing everything we can to play deep into March,” Golden said.

THE ROSTER

Big Guys: Micah Handlogten (7-1, 260, SR); Rueben Chinyelu (6-10, 265, JR); Tommy Haugh (6-9, 215, JR); Alex Condon (6-11, 236, JR); Viktor Mikic (6-11, 260, SO); Olivier Rioux (7-9, 305, RFR)

Perimeter Guys: Xaivian Lee (6-4, 180, SR); AJ Brown (6-4, 210, RJR); Cooper Josefsberg (6-4, 195, JR); Urban Klavzar (6-1, 190, JR);  Alex Kovatchev (6-5, 195, RSO); Boogie Fland (6-3, 185, SO); Isaiah Brown (6-4, 210, SO);  Alex Lloyd (6-3, 180, FR);  CJ Ingram (6-6, 205, FR)

COACHES TOP 25: 1. Purdue; 2. Houston; 3. FLORIDA; 4. UConn; 5. Duke; 6. St. John’s; 7. Michigan; 8. BYU; 9. Kentucky; 10. Louisville; 11. Texas Tech; 12. UCLA; 13. Arizona; 14. Illinois; 15. Arkansas; 16. Alabama; 17. Tennessee; 18. Iowa State; 19. Kansas; 20. Gonzaga; 21. Michigan State; 22. Auburn; 23. Creighton; 24. Wisconsin; 25. North Carolina

ASSOCIATED PRESS PRESEASON TOP 25: 1. Purdue; 2. Houston; 3. FLORIDA; 4. UConn; 5. St. John’s; 6. Duke; 7. Michigan; 8. BYU; 9. Kentucky; 10. Texas Tech; 11. Louisville; 12. UCLA; 13. Arizona; 14. Arkansas; 15. Alabama; 16. Iowa State; 17. Illinois; 18. Tennessee; 19. Kansas; 20. Auburn; 21. Gonzaga; 22. Michigan State; 23. Creighton; 24. Wisconsin; 25. North Carolina

ESPN PRESEASON TOP 25: 1. Purdue; 2. FLORIDA; 3. Houston; 4. UConn; 5. St. John’s; 6. Louisville; 7. BYU; 8. Michigan; 9. Kentucky; 10. Duke; 11. Texas Tech; 12. Arkansas; 13. Arizona; 14. UCLA; 15. Iowa State; 16. Illinois; 17. Auburn; 18. Tennessee; 19. Alabama; 20. Gonzaga; 21. Wisconsin; 22. Kansas; 23. Creighton; 24. North Carolina State; 25. North Carolina

LINDY’S PRESEASON TOP 25: 1. Houston; 2. Purdue; 3. FLORIDA; 4. Michigan; 5. Duke; 6. Kentucky; 7. St. John’s; 8. Iowa State; 9. Alabama; 10. UConn; 11. Texas Tech; 12. BYU; 13. Tennessee;14. Louisville; 15. Arizona; 16. UCLA; 17. Oregon; 18. Arkansas; 19. Creighton; 20. Auburn; 21. Kansas; 22. Gonzaga; 23. Illinois; 24. Ole Miss; 25. Michigan State

ASSOCIATED PRESS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA

First team: Braden Smith, Purdue; JT Toppin, Texas Tech; Yaxel Lendenborg, Michigan; AJ Dybantsa, BYU; Alex Condon, FLORIDA

JAY BILAS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA

First team: Braden Smith, Purdue; PJ Haggerty, Kansas State; Donovan Dent, UCLA; JT Toppin, Texas Tech; Yaxel Lendenborg, Michigan

Second team: AJ Dybantsa, BYU; Darren Peterson, Kansas; Cameron Boozer, Duke; Otegah Oweh, Kentucky; Nate Ament, Kentucky

Third team: Darrion Williams, North Carolina State; Emanuel Sharp, Houston; Alex Condon, FLORIDA; Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue; Tahaad Petiford, Auburn

LINDY’s PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA

First team: Braden Smith, Purdue; Darryn Peterson, Kansas; Yaxel Lendenborg, Michigan; Cameron Boozer, Duke; JT Toppin, Texas Tech

Second team: Donovan Dent, UCLA; PJ Haggerty, Kansas State; AJ Dybantsa, BYU; Darrion Williams, North Carolina State; Zuby Ejiofor, St. John’s

Third team: Boogie Fland, FLORIDA; Bennett Stirtz, Iowa; Alex Karaban, UConn; Alex Condon, FLORIDA; Graham Ike, Gonzaga

JOE LUNARDI BRACKETOLOGY: GATORS NO. 1 SEED IN EAST

Apparently there is no time like the present to project the NCAA Tournament field. Joe Lunardi of ESPN has the Florida Gators the No. 1 seed in the East, beginning their quest for a second straight NCAA championship in Tampa. The Gators are one of 11 SEC teams in Lunardi’s brackets, tied with the Big Ten for the most teams in the tournament. It should be noted that the Southeastern Conference has won four NCAA championships (Florida 3, Kentucky 1) since 2006, seven since 1994 (Florida 3, Kentucky 3, Arkansas 1). The Big Ten, despite all the hype, hasn’t won an NCAA championship since Michigan State in 2000 and just two (Michigan State 1, Michigan 1) since 1989.

SEC teams in Lunardi’s brackets:

No. 1: Florida (East)

No. 2: Kentucky (West)

No. 3: Tennessee (Midwest)

No. 5: Arkansas (East); Alabama (Midwest)

No. 6: Auburn (South)

No. 8: Missouri (South); Texas (West)

No. 9: Mississippi State (East); Vanderbilt (Midwest)

No. 10: Ole Miss (East)

SEC COACHES PRESEASON RANKINGS

1. FLORIDA; 2. Kentucky; 3. Alabama; 4. Tennessee; 5. Arkansas; 6. Auburn; 7. Missouri; 8. Ole Miss; 9. Mississippi State; 10. Texas; 11. Oklahoma; 12. Texas A&M; 13. Vanderbilt; 14. Georgia; 15. LSU; 16. South Carolina

SEC COACHES PRESEASON ALL-SEC

First team: Otega Oweh, Kentucky; Josh Hubbard, Mississippi State; Nate Ament, Tennessee; Tahaad Pettiford, Auburn; Alex Condon, FLORIDA

Second team: Labaron Philon, Alabama; Boogie Fland, FLORIDA; Keyshawn Hall, Auburn; Malik Dia, Ole Miss; Tommy Haugh, FLORIDA

LINDY’S SEC PRESEASON RANKINGS

1. FLORIDA; 2. Kentucky; 3. Alabama; 4. Tennessee; 5. Arkansas; 6. Auburn; 7. Ole Miss; 8. Texas; 9. Oklahoma; 10. Mississippi State; 11. Vanderbilt; 12. Missouri; 13. Texas A&M; 14. Georgia; 15. LSU; 16. South Carolina

LINDY’S PRESEASON ALL-SEC

First team: Darien Acuff, Arkansas; Boogie Fland, FLORIDA; Josh Hubbard, Mississippi State; Nate Ament, Tennessee; Alex Condon, FLORIDA

Second team: Ja’Kobi Gillespie, Tennessee; Aden Holloway, Alabama; Labaron Philon, Alabama; Otega Oweh, Kentucky; Tahaad Pettiford, Auburn

Third team: Jalaand Lowe, Kentucky; Dedan Thomas Jr., LSU; Jayden Quaintance, Kentucky; Malik Dia, Ole Miss; Mackenzie Mgbako, Texas A&M