PG Kyle Lofton another vital piece in Golden's roster rebuild

Todd Golden’s roster rebuild isn’t complete just yet, but it added another vital piece to the ongoing puzzle Friday when the Gators signed Kyle Lofton (6-3, 185), a grad transfer from St. Bonaventure who was one of the more highly regarded point guards in the portal. With the addition of Lofton, the Gators have 11 scholarships filled with two still open.

“Kyle has experienced a lot of success both from a team and individual standpoint during his time at St. Bonaventure,” Golden said. “He’s a proven winner and leader. He makes others around him better and cares only about one thing: winning.”

In four seasons at St. Bonaventure, Lofton scored 1,613 points, averaging 13.9 points, 3.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 1.6 steals per game. As a senior last season in leading the Bonnies to a 23-10 record, Lofton averaged 12.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 2.0 steals per game. He was money at the foul line, hitting 82 percent of his free throws. He ranked ninth nationally in assists per game. He had a season high 17 assists in a win over UMass

Lofton was a three-time All-Atlantic 10 Conference performer.

Lofton’s strengths are getting the ball to shooters whether in the half court or running the floor on the break and protecting the basketball. He is a creative passer who excels at getting into the paint, drawing defenders and then dumping off to big guys.

Lofton prepped at Putnam Science Academy (Putnam, Connecticut) along with Osun Ossiniyi (6-10, 220). The two became teammates at St. Bonaventure and both entered the transfer portal. Ossiniyi remains a priority target for the Golden, who needs to add one more big guy to the front court roster. At St. Bonaventure, Ossiniyi was the two-time Atlantic 10 Conference Defensive Player of the Year and a member of the Lefty Driesell Defensive All-America team. Last season he averaged 11.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.9 blocked shots per game.

The chief target for the final spot on the rebuilt roster is wing guard/forward Riley Kugel (6-5, 185, Orlando, FL Dr. Phillips), a high school teammate of UF signee Denzel Aberdeen. A former Mississippi State commitment and a 4-star recruit, Kugel averaged 16.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game for Dr. Phillips, which won the 2021 state championship and finished runner-up in 2022.

The Florida roster as of May 13, 2022

BIG GUYS (3)

Colin Castleton (6-11, 240, 5th Year): Back for a COVID year, Castleton is recovering from surgery to repair a torn labrum. He’s made All-SEC two straight years. Averaged 16.2 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.2 blocked shots per game. Jason Jitoboh (6-11, 285, 4th Year): Jitoboh averaged 4.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game before suffering a season-ending eye injury that required surgery. He has two years remaining. CJ Felder (6-7, 231, 4th Year): Injuries and illness curtailed his effectiveness last season when he averaged only 3.5 points and 2.3 rebounds. He has a 7-1 wingspan and can guard multiple positions. He actually shoots well from 3-point range, which should make him a good fit in the new offense. It’s his fourth year, but he has two years of eligibility remaining.

WINGS (3)

Niels Lane (6-6, 206, JR): Lane emerged as a defensive stopper who wasn’t afraid to guard four positions on the floor. He got three starts, averaged 7.6 points per game in the final five games of the season and had an impressive 16 points and nine rebounds against Texas A&M in the SEC Tournament.

Kowacie Reeves (6-6, 182, SO): The second half of the Texas A&M game where he scored 21 points to lead Florida back from a double-digit deficit to force overtime was a prelude of things to come. It’s puzzling why Mike White didn’t play him more. Reeves averaged 5.5 points and 1.4 rebounds per game.

Alex Fudge (6-8, 190, SO/TR): Fudge has the scoring range of a guard and a 7-foot wingspan that allow him to defend small and power forwards. A 5-star recruit out of Jacksonville Lee, Fudge averaged 3.3 points and 3.2 rebounds as a freshman at LSU last year.

GUARDS (5)

Myreon Jones (6-3, 175, 5th Year): Mike White’s stagnant offense had a lot to do with Jones hitting only 32.1 percent of his 3-pointers and averaging just 8.3 per game after he was a long range bomber who averaged double figures two straight years at Penn State. Recently Golden said, “I feel like he’s got his confidence and swag back.”

Kyle Lofton (6-4, 185, GR/TR): Golden loves to surround the big guys with shooters and that requires a facilitator, which is exactly what he’s getting in Lofton. Lofton is a pass first point guard who gets the ball to shooters. His career average of 5.2 assists per game would rank third at UF (Nick Calathes 6.28, Andrew Nembhard 5.48).

Trey Bonham (6-0, 170, JR/TR): At VMI, Bonham averaged 13.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. He is water bug quick and a driver who gets into the lane regularly, he looks to pass first and score second.

Will Richard (6-5, 195, SO/TR): Richard is very capable of playing three positions, which makes him an ideal fit in Golden’s offensive and defensive schemes. He averaged 12.1 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists at Belmont, which won 25 games in the same league as Murray State and Morehead State.

Denzel Aberdeen (6-4, 180, FR): Aberdeen played the point at Dr. Phillips but he’s more of a natural wing. Signed by Mike White last November, he hasn’t wavered from his commitment to Florida since the transition from White to Golden.