Pregame Shootaround - Florida at LSU (Saturday, 8:30 pm)

FLORIDA at LSU

When: Saturday, 8:30 p.m. (ET)
Where: Baton Rouge, La.
Records: Florida (17-11, 8-7), LSU (16-12, 9-6)
TV: ESPN (with Bob Wischusen and Dan Dakich)
Radio: Radio: Gator IMG Sports Network (with Mick Hubert and Bill Koss). Check for availability here.

STAKES, STARS AND STATS

>>> Background: Big SEC game against two teams headed in the wrong direction. Florida, sitting in an enviable spot two weeks ago relative to an at-large NCAA Tournament berth, has dropped three of four, including its last two home games to fall into a tie for sixth-place with Ole Miss in the league standings. LSU, despite one of the most talented rosters in college basketball, is in a two-way tie for fourth, but has dropped four of five, all by double-digits, most recently an 85-65 wipeout defeat Tuesday at Arkansas. The loser could be eliminated from NCAA consideration. ... The Gators and Tigers are playing for the second time this season, with UF going for a sweep following its 68-62 win at Gainesville on Jan. 9. In that one, forward Justin Leon scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds, but Florida needed four huge free throws from center John Egbunu in the final minute to hold off LSU and forward Ben Simmons, who finished with 28 points and 17 rebounds. ... The Tigers lead the all-time series 62-44 and have a big 34-13 edge in games played at Baton Rouge.

>> About the Gators: UF has not lost three straight this season (though did drop four in a row last season), but now enters an historically difficult venue for the Gators. All venues would be difficult, however, when Florida struggles as it has of late on offense. Then again, the Gators will have no chance to win if they play the kind of defense -- supposedly the team's strength -- it did in allowing Vanderbilt to shoot 58 percent Tuesday, including 10-for-20 from the 3-point line. ... Senior forward Dorian Finney-Smith (14.9 ppg, 8.4 rpg) has made just 11 of his last 31 shots, dating back four games, including just 4-for-21 from the arc. In two of the last three games, Finney-Smith was held to just seven points. To his credit, however, Finney-Smith has continued to rebound at a high level, with 40 in the last four games. ... UF needs to shake freshman guard KeVaughn Allen (11.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg) from his two-game funk. Following a splendid 19-point performance in a road win at Georgia, Allen is just 3-for-15 those last two and missed all six of his 3-balls. He was 0-for-7 against Vandy and finished with just three points. ... Egbunu (10.7 ppg, 6.5 rpg) had 13 points and four rebounds in the first LSU meeting. He'll be the biggest guy on the court, but he's not going to out-rebound Simmons. The Gators need Egbunu to play a really good defensive game and try to stay out of foul trouble, which has been a huge problem for him on the road. ... Point guard Chris Chiozza (7.3 ppg), who has not started the last three games, has 12 assists and 13 turnovers over the previous five games after leading the league in assist/turnover ratio through the first 10 league games. ... Sophomore forward Devin Robinson (9.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg), after a terrific 17-point, 8-rebound effort at South Carolina, got the start against Vanderbilt and went 4-for-5 from the floor on his way to 11 points, but did not grab a rebound.

>>> About the Tigers: They're second in the SEC in scoring (79.5 ppg) and field-goal percentage (.465), but next to last in scoring defense (76.5) and dead-last in field-goal percentage defense (.447). ... Guard Keith Hornsby (13.1 ppg), LSU's top 3-point shooter (.415) and one of the best in league, is expected to miss a second straight game after aggravating the sport hernia injury that sidelined him for nearly the first two months of the season. ... Simmons (19.5 ppg, 11.9 rpg), the 6-10 freshman point forward, remains on his track to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft. He is one of just 26 players in the country -- and among nine from a major conference -- to average a double-double. Among those nine, Simmons ranks first in points and rebounds. ... Neither Forward Craig Victor (12.5 ppg, 6.1 rpg) nor guard Tim Quarterman (10.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg) had good outings in the first meeting; Quarterman in particular. After Simmons, he is the guy who can really make them go -- a Robin to Simmons' Batman -- but against UF the first time he got in early foul trouble, never found a groove and finished with just three points on 1-for-6 shooting. ... LSU went just 2-for-20 from the arc against the Gators last time, and that was with Hornsby, who went 0-for-5. ... Antonio Blakeney (11.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg), the McDonald's All-America guard from Orlando, is a guy who can heat up in Hornsby's place.

SOME NUMBERS OF NOTE

* .212 -- Chiozza's 3-point percentage the last seven games, based on 7-for-33 shooting.

* .571 -- Robinson's field-goal percentage over the last three games (12 of 21), since an 0-for-5 outing in the home loss to Alabama. Inside those numbers is 5-for-10 marksmanship from the 3-point line.

* .750 -- Free-throw percentage by freshman backup center Kevarrius Hayes since starting the SEC season with eight straight misses from the line. He's made nine of 12 since the West Virginia game on Jan. 30 to improve his season's overall mark from 34.6 percent to 44.7.

* 5 -- Home-and-home series on the SEC schedule, with the LSU game. This will mark the fourth for the Gators, who already have swept Ole Miss and Georgia, but got swept by Vanderbilt. UF's final rematch game is the home finale Tuesday against Kentucky, which defeated the Gators 80-61 on Feb. 6 at Lexington.

* 80 -- The Gators had a six-game stretch that bridged January and February when they scored at least 80 points five times. Not surprisingly, with their capability to defend at a high level, they won all five. In the six games since their last 80-point effort (Feb. 3 vs. Arkansas), the Gators have failed to hit 80 and four times haven't reached 70.

WATCH FOR IT

Before the game, LSU will honor Hall-of-Fame alumnus Bob Petit, who starred for the Tigers in the 1950s -- he remains the No. 6 scorer in school history with 1,916 points -- and went on to become the NBA's first Most Valuable Player, as well as a single-season scoring leader and league champion while playing for the Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks. Petit will join Shaquille O'Neal, who will also be in the house Saturday, as the only two players in program history to have statues outside the Maravich Assembly Center.

Gators Calendar

Pregame Shootaround - Florida at LSU (Saturday, 8:30 pm)

Players Mentioned

KeVaughn Allen

Chris Chiozza

John Egbunu

Dorian Finney-Smith

Kevarrius Hayes

Justin Leon

Devin Robinson

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Pregame Shootaround - Florida at LSU (Saturday, 8:30 pm)

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Players Mentioned

KeVaughn Allen

Chris Chiozza

John Egbunu

Dorian Finney-Smith

Kevarrius Hayes

Justin Leon

Devin Robinson

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