Pregame Stuff: No. 25 Florida at Arkansas (Thursday, 9 pm)

Wednesday, December 28, 2016 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry

A nuts and bolts look at UF's Southeastern Conference opener.

By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer

No. 25 FLORIDA at ARKANSAS

When: Thursday, 9 p.m. (ET)
Where: Bud Walton Arena, Fayetteville, Ark.
Records: Florida 9-3 (0-0), Arkansas 11-1 (0-0)
TV: SEC Network (Mike Morgan and Jon Sundvold)
Radio: Gator IMG Sports Network (Mick Hubert and Bill Koss)

STAKES (The Setup)

Bud Walton Arena is 23 years old, but remains not only one of the best venues in the SEC, but one of the best in all of college basketball.

The start of the Southeastern Conference season comes before the first of the new year for the first time in 25 years. Ten of the league's 14 teams will be in action Thursday night (all but the ones who won't compete in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge on Jan. 28), with the Gators drawing the Razorbacks in the debut for both teams. ... Florida has won two straight, while Arkansas is on an eight-game winning streak. ... UF leads the all-time series 20-11 and is currently riding a five-game run that dates to a 71-54 home win on Feb. 23, 2013. The Gators won both meetings against the Hogs last season, their first under Coach Mike White, including a 68-61 victory in second-round play of the SEC Tournament last March 10 at Nashville, Tenn. In that one, point guard Kasey Hill came off the bench to score 18 points, while forward Dorian Finney-Smith scored all 13 of his points in the second half to help offset a red-hot 33-point outburst from Hogs guard Dusty Hannahs.

STARTERS (Probable Lineups)

Florida	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Class	Per Game
Devin Robinson	F	6-8	200	Junior	12.4 pts / 5.8 reb
Justin Leon	F	6-8	206	Senior	6.5 pts / 3.3 reb
Kevarrius Hayes	C	6-9	220	Sophomore	5.3 pts / 3.8 reb
KeVaughn Allen	G	6-2	183	Sophomore	13.6 pts / 2.3 reb
Kasey Hill	PG	6-1	175	Senior	9.4 pts / 4.8 asts

Arkansas	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Class	Per Game
Dustin Thomas	F	6-8	225	R-Junior	7.1 pts / 4.2 reb
Moses Kingsley	F	6-10	230	Senior	11.3 pts / 8.3 reb 2.9 blx
Dusty Hannahs	G	6-3	210	R-Senior	14.9 pts / 1.7 reb
Daryl Macon	G	6-3	185	Junior	13.3 pts / 3.2 reb
Manuale Watkins	G	6-3	222	Senior	5.8 pts / 4.2 reb

STANDING OUT (One to Watch)

**Moses Kingsley** is one of the premier big men in the SEC and a projected second-round pick in the NBA Draft next June. He is a force on both ends in the paint area and will outwork guys on defense and the glass. Kingsley shoots 48.8 percent from the floor and when fouled converts 78 percent of his free throws. His 7-foot-2 wingspan makes it difficult for even bigs to get shots off. As something of a late-bloomer on the court, Kingsley is more athlete than basketball player right now. His skills remain on the developing side, even as a senior, but there's no questioning his explosiveness and aggression, evidence by those nearly three blocked shots per game. If he has a weakness, it's being foul-prone. In two games against the Gators last season he went for 15 points and nine rebounds before fouling out in a tight game at Gainesville, then scored 10 points and grabbed 15 boards while playing with four fouls in UF's win in the SEC Tournament. Whether it's **Kevarrius Hayes** or **John Egbunu** (or both) patrolling the post for the Gators, they're in for a full night against this guy.

STUFF (Miscellaneous Info)

ABOUT THE GATORS: Florida had opened SEC play at home three of the last four seasons, with the lone exception coming in 2015 at South Carolina. The Gators have not lost their league opener since falling at Tennessee in 2012. ... UF is on a modest two-game winning streak after beating Charlotte in the Orange Bowl Classic at Sunrise, Fla., on Dec. 17, followed four days later with a win over Arkansas-Little Rock in the first home game of the season and unveiling of the renovated Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center. ... UF ranks last among SEC teams in defensive rebounding (just 24.3 per game), which means the Gators will have their hands full with an Arkansas bunch that rates as one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the league (13.3 per game). ... The Gators also sit near the bottom of the conference in defensive field-goal percentage (41.1), while the Razorbacks are the fourth-best shooting team (46.6 percent) and third-best from beyond the arc (36.7). ... Forward Devin Robinson has averaged 18 points and eight rebounds over his last two games, while making 12 of his 17 field-goal attempts (70.6 percent) and five of six from the 3-point line. ... The status of center John Egbunu, who missed the previous two games with a hamstring injury, likely will be determined on game day. Egbunu returned to practice on a limited basis when the team returned Monday from holiday break. In his place, Kevarrius Hayes was his normal bundle of energy, in averaging 10 points, 6.5 rebounds and going 8-for-10 from the floor. ... Guard KeVaughn Allen, a native of Little Rock, Ark., combined to go just 5-for-15 overall and 2-for-8 from deep in two games against his home-state team last season. ... Hill (11 points, 11 assists vs UARL) is coming off the first double-double by a UF player since Finney-Smith went for 16 points and 10 rebounds in the NIT at Ohio State last season -- and the first by a guard since Scottie Wilbekin against Missouri in '13. It marked the first time Hill hit double-figures in assists since dishing 10 against UCLA in the Sweet 16 round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament against UCLA. In that UALR game, Hill passed both Greg Williams and Wilbekin on the program's all-time assist list with 427 and now sits at No. 5, needing two to move past Vernon Delancy into the No. 4 spot. Both Hill and backup Chris Chiozza will play big roles in this game against the Hogs' 94-foot pressure defense. If they can break it, especially with some blow-bys, the Gators will have some easy basket opportunities. ... ABOUT THE RAZORBACKS: The non-conference schedule currently ranks 117th and is littered with some mid- and low majors (Sam Houston State, Mount St. Mary's, Austin Peay, North Dakota State), but they beat Fort Wayne (which shocked Indiana), UT-Arlington (which beat Texas) and Stephen F. Austin (annually one of the top defensive programs in the country). The Hogs' lone loss was an 85-71 setback at Minnesota, which is currently 12-1 and just outside the Top 25. ... Arkansas is 113-65 in five seasons under Mike Anderson, the longtime Nolan Richardson protege who likes the same "40 Minutes of Hell" style of play as his mentor. ... Hannahs, the Little Rock native and Texas Tech transfer, figures to be one of the top scorers in the SEC again this season, after averaging 16.8 per game in '15-16. He is a sensational 3-point shooter (37.1 percent), but when he's run off the line, Hannahs is solid on a dribble penetration -- and great when he's fouled going to the basket (89.4 percent from the FT line). Case in point: In his 33-point effort vs the Gators last season, he was just 2-for-8 from the arc, but 12-for-23 from the floor. He is not just a long ball guy. ... Both Thomas (46.8 percent) and Watkins (53.6) are efficient scorers around the basket and excellent free-throw shooters (74.3 and 84.3, respectively). ... During its current eight-game winning streak, Arkansas's margin of victory has averaged 18.2 points. The closest game was the 77-74 win at Texas.

STATS (Some Numbers of Note)

* .779 — Arkansas's percentage at the free-throw line this season. That ranks second in the SEC and is better by more than 3 percentage points than the vastly improved Gators (.744).

* 2 — Florida's place in the RPI standings as it heads into conference play, in great part due to a schedule that rates the fourth-hardest nationally (and with just one home game to date). Only top-ranked and undefeated Villanova is ahead of the Gators.

* 16 — Arkansas's place in the RPI standings, which ranks third among SEC teams, after UF and Kentucky (7th).

* 1988 — The last year Florida opened its league schedule in the month of December. On Dec. 10 that year, LSU freshman guard Chris Jackson erupted by 53 in his league debut, an O'Dome scoring record that still stands.

* 2009 — The last year a UF player had at least 11 assists in a game, as Hill did against UALR last week. That player was Nick Calathes, who dished 13 against Georgia.

STATEMENT (Random thought)

The Gators can make a statement to themselves about how good a team they can be by beating the Hogs on the road, but it will require a much different mentality -- and a higher, more consistent level of execution -- to go into a place like Bud Walton and steal a victory.