Embedded With the Gators: Monday afternoon in Valley of the Sun
Monday, March 19, 2012 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
PHOENIX -- Touchdown, Arizona.
Our chartered flight from Omaha arrived at Sky Harbor International at 2:17 p.m. local time (that's 5:17 back in Gainesville). The team flew a tiny 48-seater that was pretty tough on some of the bigger guys. There were several groans from the passengers when the pilot announced the flight would be 2 1/2 hours.
There's really no quick way to fly nearly halfway across the country.
The plan for the rest of the day is to get the team checked into the Hilton Suites in downtown, get the players fed and then meet for the first time to introduce them to Marquette, an altogether different kind of team than either of the Virginia programs -- UVa or Norfolk State -- the Gators beat by a combined 60 points over the weekend.
Donovan and his staff watched tape late last night of the Golden Eagles -- coached by Buzz Williams and led by Big East Player of the Year Jae Crowder -- and was thoroughly impressed (naturally) by a wildly athletic bunch that improved to 27-7 with regional wins over Brigham Young and Murray State.
“The one thing watching them last night, they have great speed and quickness,” Donovan said. “People may look at at their size and say they're undersized. I disagree. I think they're a great offensive rebounding team, an attack team, [they] push the ball really hard. Not only can they shoot and have a great player in Crowder, they get a lot of balls back, create a lot of steals, they get out in transition. So I think the game will certainly be played at a very fast pace.”
So will Florida's practices, which start Tuesday at a site to be determined.
