Larson shows improvement early in practice; Gators 10th in USA Today/ESPN poll
Thursday, October 20, 2011 | Men's Basketball, Women's Basketball, Scott Carter
Cody Larson has yet to step onto the court when it matters for the Gators. He played in a couple of exhibition games as a true freshman, but he was redshirted and then faced a summer of uncertainty due to off-the-court issues.
With his legal woes behind him, the 6-foot-9, 231-pound Larson is trying to work his way into a meaningful role with the Gators' frontcourt.
He appears to be making progress in the first week of practice.
“He's doing a lot of really, really good things right now just in terms of little things that aren't going to show up on the stat sheet,'' Gators coach Billy Donovan told reporters Thursday. “I've been pleased with what he has been able to do for our team physically. We need another physical presence up front.''
If Larson can prove that he is ready for a key role, it would be a huge boost for the Gators as they attempt to replace the frontcourt trio of Alex Tyus, Chandler Parsons and Vernon Macklin from last season's Elite Eight team.
While the Gators have an experienced backcourt returning, junior Erik Murphy and sophomore Patric Young are the most experienced players up front. Young is a physical presence who can get tough rebounds and defend around the basket; Murphy is more of a finesse player with a nice shooting stroke from the outside.
Larson offers a rugged presence defensively and a lot of energy around the basket according to his teammates.
“He's not forcing anything,'' said guard Kenny Boynton, who sees Larson's confidence improving. “It's not like he is just scoring a bunch of points. He is taking the right shots and he is finishing. On defense, he is very intense.''
While it's still two weeks until the Gators' exhibition opener on Nov. 3, Larson at least seems on the right track following his anxious summer.
“I think I've learned a lot," he said on media day. “I've been doing things now to help me and really help the team. That's my main goal right now, just to pay the team back for [sticking by me]. I feel like I need to work as hard as I can every day and do the right stuff.''
A few quick notes from Thursday:
--Donovan said Murphy missed much of Wednesday's practice after getting poked in the eye but that he expected the 6-foot-10, 230-pound forward to return to practice Thursday.
--Senior guard Erving Walker is playing the role of point guard the way Donovan wants. Donovan said Walker is distributing the ball well and was in the bottom half on the team in terms of shots taken so far in practice. Donovan said on media day that Walker's goal should be to lead the SEC in assists.
--The Gators learned Thursday that they will open the season ranked No. 10 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll.
“That's a good accomplishment, but we haven't proven anything yet,'' Boynton said. “We haven't stepped on the floor. We've got to go out and prove that we're worthy of that ranking.''
