Pregame Shootaround: Florida at Navy, (21:30 ET Friday)
Friday, November 13, 2015 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
FLORIDA at NAVY
(The Veterans Classic)
When: Friday, 21:30 (ET)
Where: Alumni Hall, Annapolis, Md.
Records: UF 0-0, Navy 0-0
TV: CBS Sports Network (with Tom McCarthy, Steve Lappas and Lauren Gardner)
Radio: Gator IMG Sports Network (with Mick Hubert and Mark Wise). Check for availability here.
STAKES, STARS & STATS
>>> The season opener for both teams will mark the official debut of Florida coach Mike White (left), who came from Louisiana Tech last May to replace the greatest coach in UF history -- any sport -- when Billy Donovan left after 19 seasons to chase his NBA dreams with the Oklahoma City Thunder. ... White, 38, went 101-40 in four seasons coaching the Bulldogs, winning three regular-season Western Athletic Conference titles, but never reaching the NCAA Tournament. ... This will be the first time since 2004 that UF has not opened its season in Gainesville. That year, the Gators tipped off against Jacksonville at the Memorial Coliseum, winning a so-called “neutral site” game 81-59. ... Florida is unranked to start a season for the first time since 2000-10. ... UF and Navy have met twice, as the two teams played neutral-site games in the Gator Bowl Tournament in Jacksonville in both 1960 and '61. The Midshipmen won 69-62 in overtime the first meeting, while the Gators returned the favor 68-63 in regulation the following season. ... No. 1 North Carolina and Temple will play in the first game of the double-header, beginning at 19:00 ET.
>>> UF semi-opened the White era last week, albeit in a 89-42 exhibition defeat of Division II Palm Beach Atlantic. Despite the lopsided score, the new coaching staff wasn't crazy about the results, given Florida's 23 turnovers. At LA Tech, White's teams prided themselves on assist-to-turnover ratio. That will be a point of emphasis at UF, too. ... In that PBA game, five Gators scored in double-figures, but no one scored more than 12. That included fifth-year senior Dorian Finney-Smith, who led last year's 16-17 team in both scoring and rebounding (13.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg). This season, “Doe-Doe” figures to have help on both fronts. White hopes sophomore forward Devin Robinson makes a big jump from last year's numbers (6.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg) and heeds his coaches orders to attack the glass on both ends. A guy who already will be underneath is 6-11, 255-pound center John Egbunu, who averaged 7.4 points and 6.2 rebounds as a freshman -- and basically a basketball neophyte -- at USF two years ago before transferring to Florida. And then there's 6-2 freshman guard KeVaughn Allen (above right), the former Arkansas prep superstar. The Florida coaches believe Allen will score a whole bunch of points during his UF career, but also play a lot of defense and card a bunch of steals. ... The point guard position, whether it's junior Kasey Hill or sophomore Chris Chiozza with the ball, bears watching. White played point guard and knows what he wants there. Both players will have to shoot better (from the floor and free-throw line) than they did last season and run the team better than they did in the preseason game. ... Senior forward Alex Murphy did not make the trip. He's out 4-6 weeks after suffering a plantar fascia tear in the exhibition. Junior college transfer forward Justin Leon (hyperextended knee) will be held out as well.
>>> There are no David Robinsons on this Navy squad, so that's a good thing for the Gators. ... The Midshipmen return three starters from a team that finished 13-19 last season, including an 8-10 mark in Patriot League play. The top returner on the perimeter is 5-10 senior guard Tilman Dunbar (9.1 ppg, 3.3 apg) and top post player is is 6-9 center Will Kelly (6.1 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.8 bpg, middle right). ... Navy is coached by Ed DeChellis, who is 33-89 in his four previous seasons in Annapolis. Prior to that, DeChellis was at Penn State, where in 2009 he led the Nittany Lions to the NIT championship, including a 71-62 defeat of Donovan and the Gators in the quarterfinals. ... The Midshipmen will wear custom Under Armor uniforms that say “Don't Tread On Me,” inspired by the Navy Jack flag. In 2002 Secretary of the Navy Gordon R. England ordered all United States Navy ships to fly the First Navy Jack with both the motto and moving rattlesnake in place of the regular Navy Jack for the duration of the global war on terror. The First Navy Jack, with its red and white stripes, was used by the Continental Navy during the American Revolution.
SOME NUMBERS OF NOTE
* 1 -- Previous Veterans Classics. The inaugural event was held last year with Navy giving eventual Final Four participant Michigan State fits before falling 64-59. Soak that in before making any assumptions about this game.
* 11 -- Times since 1950 that Florida has tipped off a season with a true road game. The Gators are 3-7 in the previous 10 such circumstances, with the last one an 85-70 victory at Florida State to start the 2000-01 season.
* 24 -- Consecutive season-opening victories for the Gators (more below).
* 588 -- Days since fourth-year UF junior swingman DeVon Walker (left) played his last game for the Gators. That was April 5, 2014 at the Final Four against Connecticut. Walker suffered a season-ending knee injury the following July, sat out the 2014-15 season as a medical redshirt and is expected to start tonight. He knocked the rust off against Palm Beach Atlantic with 4 points and 5 rebounds in 18 minutes.
* 1990 -- Last time UF opened a season with a true road game and lost. The Gators lost 70-61 at South Florida in the debut game for Coach Lon Kruger.
* 2001 -- Last year the Gators opened a season outside the Sunshine State. UF brought in the '01-02 seasons by defeating Temple 72-64 in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic at Madison Square Garden.
WATCH FOR IT
In case you are wondering about CBS Sports Network, here's a link to its “channel finder.” You're welcome.
