Thoughts of the Day: November 10, 2021

A few thoughts to jump start your Wednesday morning:

GOOD FIRST HALF, NOT SO GOOD SECOND BUT UF BEATS ELON Mike White liked what he saw in the first half Tuesday night but the second left plenty to be desired as the Gators opened their basketball season with a 74-61 win over Elon at the O-Dome.

The Gators dominated the first half when they went on a 21-7 run in the final 7:23 to take a 47-24 lead into the locker room. The Gators played with energy at both ends of the floor, scoring 16 points off turnovers, 11 second chance points and 11 off fast breaks. The Gators shot 51.6 percent from the field while holding the Phoenix to 9-26 shooting.

Then came the second half and the Gators played like a team that couldn’t wait to get the game over.

White said he liked how the Gators played the first 20 minutes “but what I didn’t like is we didn’t play for 40. I thought we let our foot off the gas pedal and didn’t play with a lot of maturity down the stretch.”

That’s an understatement.

The Gators were just 9-28 from the field and 4-11 from the foul line in the second half when they were outscored by Elon, 37-27. Although Florida held a final rebounding edge of 43-34, White had to be concerned that the undersized Phoenix outrebounded UF, 22-17, in the second half. Defensively, Florida’s intensity tapered off considerably in the second half.

White did substitute liberally and gave his younger players plenty of time off the bench, but even though the young guys had their struggles, it was the play of the veterans that concerned him.

“We did play a lot of young guys late, but that’s not an excuse for the older guys playing, not finishing defensively,” White said.

Colin Castleton, who finished the game with 18 points, five rebounds, four assists, six blocked shots and a steal, did almost all his damage in the first half when he had 17 points, four rebounds, two assists and three blocked shots. In the second half he scored only one point and was 1-4 from the foul line. For the night, he was 4-10.

“We came out playing hard on every level, and then we just let up,” Castleton said. “It was really disappointing.”

Penn State transfer Myreon Jones couldn’t find the range on his shot in the first half (1-6 overall, 0-3 from the 3-point line) but he got into a comfortable groove in the final 20 minutes. Jones was 5-7 overall in the second half and 4-5 from the 3-point line, finishing the game with 18 points, six rebounds, three assists and a steal.

Jones was miffed at Florida’s lack of second half intensity.

“We’re an older team, so guys should know better that we have to play two halves and we can’t play just one,” Jones said. “We haven’t shown that yet and we have to fix it. I have confidence in this team that we’ll fix it and get better for the next game.”

Tyree Appleby had a good night shooting the ball – 3-6 on 3-pointers, 5-5 from the foul line for 14 points – but turned the ball over four times against only three assists. Appleby and Castleton combined for nine of Florida’s 13 turnovers.

Anthony Duruji was the only other Gator to score in double figures, finishing the game with 10 points, a game-high seven rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal.

The next game is Sunday afternoon against Florida State at the O-Dome. The Seminoles open their season tonight against Pennsylvania.

First game observations: For much of the first half, White had the Gators in a 2-2-1 full court press, dropping into man when Elon crossed half court. If they can stay out of foul trouble, this can be a nice way to compensate for their overall lack of size. Transfers Brandon McKissic and Phlandrous Fleming Jr. are particularly effective playing a full court defensive game but they don’t get beaten in the half court either. Florida’s half court defense will be a step up over last year’s team.

When the Gators spread the floor, Castleton can be very effective putting the ball on the deck and going to the rack. This is an area that is much improved over last year. He’s not a dominating post up player but he’s very capable of scoring on the move if the Gators can keep the paint free.

Jones showed something in the second half. He’s pretty much in range from the moment he crosses midcourt.

I like what I’m seeing out of Duruji. He’s playing under control and seeing the floor better. He’s not launching threes indiscriminately. He will have to stay out of foul trouble.

THIS QUOTE SAYS IT ALL ABOUT WHY MULLEN IS FEELING THE NEED TO MAKE CHANGES

At his Monday press conference this comment was telling about the pressure Dan Mullen was feeling after losing a third straight game to drop to 4-5 on the season.

“We’re not better than we were earlier in the year,” Mullen said. In fact, we’re worse than we were earlier in the year. At that point I looked and I said we’ve got to make some changes with what we’re doing and where we’re at.”

Mullen also took ownership for the current state of the program:

“Me, I’m the head coach, so I bear all of it. It’s on my shoulders. I’m the one that’s responsible for this program. I’m the one that’s responsible for the this team and how we’ve got to perform … It’s my responsibility to find a way to fix that.”

GEORGIA, ALABAMA 1-2 IN PLAYOFF POLL Georgia and Alabama remained 1-2 when the second week of the College Football Playoff poll was revealed Tuesday night. Moving up one notch to 3rd was Oregon with Ohio State moving one spot to 4th. Last week’s No. 3 Michigan State dropped to 7th behind Michigan, which is strange considering Michigan State owns the head-to-head win over Michigan.

Undefeated Cincinnati moved up one place to 5th while Oklahoma, which is also unbeaten, remained at No. 8. San Diego State (8-1) and UT-San Antonio (9-0) were the other grou of five teams in the poll, with San Diego State at 22 and UTSA at 23.

In addition to Georgia and Alabama, four other teams from the SEC made the top 25 – 11. Texas A&M, 15. Ole Miss, 17. Auburn and 25. Arkansas. The Big Ten also had six teams in the poll.

WEEK 2, College Football Playoff poll: 1. Georgia 9-0; 2. Alabama 8-1; 3. Oregon 8-1; 4. Ohio State 8-1; 5. Cincinnati 9-0; 6. Michigan 8-1; 7. Michigan State 8-1; 8. Oklahoma 9-0; 9. Notre Dame 8-1; 10. Oklahoma State 8-1; 11. Texas A&M 7-2; 12. Wake Forest 8-1; 13. Baylor 7-2; 14. BYU 8-2; 15. Ole Miss 7-2; 16. North Carolina State 7-2; 17. Auburn 6-3; 18. Wisconsin 6-3; 19. Purdue 6-3; 20. Iowa 7-2; 21. Pittsburgh 7-2; 22. San Diego State 8-1; 23. UT-San Antonio 9-0; 24. Utah 6-3; 25. Arkansas 6-3

OVER, UNDER, AROUND AND THROUGH THE SEC (FOOTBALL):

Alabama (8-1, 5-1 SEC): Cornerback Marcus Banks, who has played in eight games this season, has entered his name in the NCAA transfer portal. A former 4-star recruit, Banks had six tackles and one interception. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining.

Arkansas (6-3, 2-3 SEC): What a difference a year makes. A year ago the Hogs averaged 25.7 points per game and gave up 34.9. This season they’re averaging 32.6 and giving up 24.

Auburn (6-3, 3-2 SEC): Auburn hasn’t scored a touchdown in six quarters, which prompted HBC Bryan Harsin to say, “We need to have better plays. We need to have better play calls. We need to have opportunities to score and create those on the offensive side, so we’ve got to make plays and we’ve got to be a whole lot better.”

Georgia (9-0, 7-0 SEC): Chris Fowler of ESPN offers this formula to beat the Bulldogs: “I don’t put them in that category of dominance because I still think there are some limitations on offense. They’re not going to overwhelm you, but defensively they’re so good they don’t have to. They’re playing to the strength of their team ... Can you hold up against Georgia’s running game? You have to make (Stetson) Bennett beat you or have them bring in (JT) Daniels in off the bench cold. You have to make them throw to beat you.”

Kentucky (6-3, 4-3 SEC): Sophomore right guard Eli Cox is probably done for the season due to an injury … HBC Mark Stoops said the Wildcats gave up “an obscene amount of yards” on 10 explosive plays by Tennessee.

LSU (4-5, 2-4 SEC): On ESPN Radio Baton Rouge Tuesday morning, Coach Oeaux says he is “fired up” about his final three regular season games as LSU’s HBC, adding “We want to win out and go to a bowl. I want the best for these young men. They deserve it.” LSU’s final three games of the regular season will all be played at Tiger Stadium.

Mississippi State (5-4, 3-3 SEC): Will Rogers has thrown for 3,309 yards and 23 touchdowns through nine games.

Missouri (4-5, 1-4 SEC): Starting QB Connor Bazelac, who missed the Georgia game, is still not 100 percent according to HBC Eli Drinkwitz.

Ole Miss (7-2, 3-2 SEC): Lane Kiffin says injured wideout Jonathan Mingo will “be back by a bowl game at least” and that Braylon Sanders is “nowhere near 100 percent.” Sanders played in the win over Liberty, catching two passes for 64 yards.

South Carolina (5-4, 2-4 SEC): If the Gamecocks can knock off Missouri Saturday, they will be bowl eligible for the first time since 2018.

Tennessee (5-4, 3-3 SEC): Defensive back Theo Jackson, who has 60 tackles and 10 pass breakups this season, is looking forward to Saturday’s matchup with Georgia. Jackson said Tuesday, “We look at them like they put on their pants and shoulder pads the same way we do … not that they’re Superman.”

Texas A&M (7-2, 4-2 SEC): Swedish tight end Theodor Melin Oherstrom (6-6, 245) is reclassifying and will enroll at Texas A&M in 2022.

Vanderbilt (2-7, 0-5 SEC): Backup quarterback Jeremy Moussa has entered his name in the NCAA transfer portal. In limited action this season, Moussa completed 5-8 passes for 24 yards.

SEC BASKETBALL

Alabama (1-0): Keon Ellis had 18 points, nine rebounds and three assists as Alabama opened the season with a 93-64 blowout of Louisiana Tech.

Arkansas (1-0): JD Notae had 30 points, two rebounds, two assists and seven steals to lead Arkansas past Mercer, 74-61.

Auburn (1-0): Eastern Kentucky transfer Wendell Green Jr. had 19 points, five rebounds and three assists to lead four Auburn players in double figures in a 77-54 win over Morehead State.

Georgia (1-0): Georgia outscored Florida International 36-24 in the second half to pull out a 58-51 win in the season opener.

Kentucky (0-1): The Wildcats got 17 points and 19 rebounds from West Virginia transfer Oscar Tschiebwe but it wasn’t enough as Duke pulled away in the second half for a 79-71 win over UK.

LSU (1-0): Darius Days hit 8-9 from the 3-point line in a 30-point effort as the Tigers opened with a 102-39 win over Louisiana-Monroe.

Missouri (1-0): Five Tigers scored in double figures led by Javon Pickett’s 18 as Missouri opened with a 78-68 win over Central Michigan.

Ole Miss (1-0): Four Rebels scored in double figures in an easy 82-61 win over New Orleans.

South Carolina (1-0): Jermaine Couisnard had 14 points, six rebounds and seven assists to lead the Gamecocks past USC-Upstate, 78-60.

Tennessee (1-0): Santiago Vescovi and Kennedy Chandler each scored 20 in Tennessee’s 90-62 win over UT-Martin.

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The folks who whined last week about Cincinnati starting out sixth in the College Football Playoff rankings should feel silly after week two. The Bearcats have moved up to fifth and they’ll have a legitimate chance to crack the top four if they win out the rest of their games. Ohio State still has games remaining with Purdue, Michigan State and Michigan. Oregon has a habit of losing a game it shouldn’t and Alabama still has to play Auburn and if it gets to the SEC Championship Game, Georgia. I’m not convinced that Cincinnati is one of the four best teams, but if the Bearcats go unbeaten and there are losses ahead of them, they’ll probably make the playoff.