Gators Freshman Patric Young Flexing Muscles at Perfect Time
Wednesday, March 23, 2011 | Men's Basketball, Scott Carter
NEW ORLEANS – He was just doing what he is supposed to be doing. The rebounds, the bone-jarring defensive stops, the hard picks – that's why he says he is here. At least that's how Gators freshman center/forward Patric Young sees his performance in Saturday's win over UCLA.
What about those three dunks? Well, those were like icing on the cake.
The victory earned Florida a trip here to face BYU in the Sweet 16 on Thursday night, a rematch of last season's first-round NCAA Tournament game won in double overtime by the Cougars.
Young isn't too interested in talking about what happened in last year's game. He was still a man-child walking around the hallways of the Providence School of Jacksonville, his friendly smile and unassuming demeanor making him stand out just as much as his 6-foot-9, 245-pound frame.
He stood tall for other reasons on Saturday, playing a key role in a physical game to help the Gators advance to their first Sweet 16 since 2007. It was the kind of game Young is made for at this point in his career.
The Gators needed some extra muscle, and Young flexed his at the perfect time trying to defend Bruins center Joshua Smith on one end and taking a more aggressive approach on offense to get Smith into foul trouble on the other.
“I wanted to come out and play hard and make a difference,'' Young said. “You've got to come out and bring your A game or you're going to get beat.''
Rugged UCLA forward Reeves Nelson went back home with a few bruises courtesy of Young.
“They're physical, especially No. 4,'' Nelson said. “He had his way a few times there with some of my teammates.”
Young scored eight points, grabbed four rebounds and blocked two shots. There were stretches in each half where Young seemed to be everywhere. Three of his baskets were dunks, including his final score in the second half that nearly brought CBS announcer Ian Eagle to his feet.
After Smith's layup trimmed Florida's lead 50-49 midway into the second half, Chandler Parsons slid a nifty pass to Young for a thunderous dunk.
“That's a man's jam,'' Eagle roared.
Still a teenager, Young is looking more and more like a man on the court with each game, a big reason the Gators defeated UCLA in one of their most physically grueling games of the season.
Young is averaging just 3.5 points and 3.8 rebounds in 35 games, but in five postseason games – three in the SEC Tournament and two NCAA Tournament games – Young's production has picked up. He is averaging 4.4 points and 6.0 rebounds over that span, showing more and more on each trip down the court why he was a McDonald's All-American a year ago.
Senior center Vernon Macklin has helped tutor Young and saw obvious signs of growth in Young's play against the Bruins. Macklin played only 22 minutes because of foul trouble but wasn't concerned with his younger teammate replacing him for extended stretches.
“He was huge for us,'' Macklin said. “I'm telling you, I'm exciting to watch him play as the Gators' staring center when I'm gone. He has come a long way.''
Since winning back-to-back national titles in 2006 and 2007, the Gators have lacked the kind of inside toughness that Al Horford, Joakim Noah and Chris Richard provided. With Macklin's improvement and the addition of Young, Gators coach Billy Donovan talked about the difference following the UCLA win.
“We'd have no shot to win [this game three years ago],'' Donovan said. “We weren't big enough, we weren't strong enough, we weren't physical enough.”
How has Young's addition helped? Donovan put it in simple terms.
“Patric Young is as strong and as physical as any freshman in the country,'' Donovan said.
The Gators face a veteran BYU team that is led by Jimmer Fredette, the nation's leading scorer who is averaging 33 points a game in two NCAA Tournament games. But as the Gators gathered to discuss BYU on Tuesday night at their team hotel, Donovan and assistant Larry Shyatt made sure the players knew that Fredette isn't the only dangerous Cougar.
BYU forward Noah Hartsock, swingman Charles Abouo and forward Kyle Collinsworth all average 4.8 rebounds or more and are constantly banging around the basket for rebounds and loose balls as Fredette fires away from the outside.
Another physical effort will be needed for the Gators to move on a face the Butler-Wisconsin winner in the Elite Eight on Saturday.
“I can definitely see them in the Elite Eight and possibly the Final Four,'' UCLA's Nelson said of the Gators. “They can beat you in a lot of different ways. They definitely earned our respect.''
Young's effort against the Bruins certainly earned him more respect. If he continues to play with that same kind of energy and production, this Florida team's identity will continue to change from the too-much-finesse, not-enough-muscle teams of the past three years to a team that knows isn't afraid to get down and dirty.
“We were never really able to get defensive stops and defensive rebounds at a high enough rate against really, really good teams,'' Donovan said. “That eventually always broke our back.”
