Florida 104, North Carolina A&T 54 (Instant Analysis)
Tuesday, November 17, 2015 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
AT THE BUZZER
FLORIDA 104, NORTH CAROLINA A&T 54.
WHAT HAPPENED: Three days after putting just one player in the double-figure scoring column in a season-opening win at Navy, the Gators stuffed the stat in Mike White's home opener. Again, it was sophomore forward Devin Robinson leading the way as he did against the Midshipmen, but Robinson's 15 points were joined in the dub column by five other teammates, as UF -- behind 51-percent shooting from the floor and 52 from long-distance -- eclipsed the 100-point milestone for the first time since defeating Jacksonville in the 2009. Fourth-year junior DeVon Walker equaled Robinson with a career-high 15 points, senior forward Dorian Finney-Smith had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds and center John Egbunu had 13 points on 6-for-7 from the floor to go with five rebounds. It was Florida's 25th straight home-opener win and 15th time the Gators have won by 50 at the O'Connell Center.
WHAT IT MEANS: Florida played a lot better than it did at Annapolis, but the Gators also are a lot better than an A&T team that returned its top seven scorers from a team that went 9-22 last season and 6-10 in the Mid-American Athletic Conference. The Gators, with the 18-point win Friday at Navy, have beaten up on two outmanned opponents. The competition will pick up significantly this weekend -- and even more so come December.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Walker is one of the nicest kids you'll ever meet. Roll in the fact he sat out last season as a medical redshirt after suffering a season-ending knee injury playing summer pickup ball and the fourth-year junior is a great comeback story. In addition to his 15 points (including 2-for-3 from deep), Walker grabbed four rebounds and played the kind of defense that makes him one of White's favorites.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: At Navy, the Gators went 3-for-19 from 3-point range (15.8 percent) and had seven different players miss shots from beyond the arc. Against A&T, five different Gators made 3-balls -- in the first half alone. UF shot 6-for-14 from deep before intermission and by the time the night was done eight players hit from deep, including 6-foot-10 center Schuyler Rimmer, on the way to going 15-for-29 as a team overall.
UP NEXT: The Gators (2-0) head to Uncasville, Conn., where Saturday they face St. Joseph's (2-0) in the first round of the first game of Hall of Fame Tipoff (2:30 p.m.) at Mohegan Sun Arena. Pending the outcome, UF will face either Old Dominion (1-0) or No. 21 Purdue (2-0) on Sunday at either noon or 5:30 p.m.
