UF doubled up Division II Eckerd after halftime, outscoring Tritons 58-29 in final 20 minutes.
By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Gators knew it was an exhibition game and treated the first 20 minutes like it didn't count. Which it didn't.
Eckerd College took a different approach.
The Division II Tritons, who won 25 games last season and dominated the Sunshine State Conference, outplayed their big, bad Southeastern Conference foe in the first half at Veterans Memorial Stadium and even led at intermission by a point. During the time with his players in the locker room, Coach Mike White convinced the Gators that more than one needed to play.
Enter UF's full-court pressure, which White turned loose to start the second half and sparked a blitz of Florida runs and an eventual 91-63 victory, complete with some lessons about energy level, regardless of the foe. Junior center John Egbunu led six teammates into double-figures with a game-high 18 points, hitting eight of his 10 field-goal attempts, to go with 13 rebounds. Junior forward Devin Robinson, coming off offseason foot surgery, had 12 points and eight rebounds, while sophomore guard KeVaughn Allen had 13 points and six steals. Point guard Chris Chiozza, starting for injured Kasey Hill (hamstring), had 11 points, five rebounds and four steals.
"We finally matched [Eckerd's] intensity and energy level, and there's no excuse for that, regardless of who you're playing," White said of his team taking much of the first half off. "This was about us getting better, and our guys understand that. They know we were much better and played harder in the second. We have a veteran group. They understand we can't afford to do that and win Division I games without giving maximum effort for 40 minutes. This was good for us."
Junior forward Devin Robinson throws down a couple. He finished 5-for-7 from the floor for 12 points and eight rebounds.
The Tritons led 34-33 at halftime. Twice inside the first three minutes of the second half the Gators took the lead by a point, only to see Eckerd answer with 3-pointers from guard Kevin Walsh.
The second of those treys had the Tritons up 40-38 when UF swingman Canyon Barry, the fifth-year graduate transfer from College of Charleston, threw in a couple free throws that not only tied the game, but kicked in a 19-2 run that blew things open. The Gators led 61-47 when they took off on another run, this one of 17 straight points, as UF's pressure defense forced 24 turnovers that led to 31 points.
"We came out and underestimated them, I think. We didn't have the intensity we needed," Robinson said. "As the game went on, we got the jitters out and had a lot of newcomers playing. This is a big scene now. I feel after we got those out, we got comfortable and got on a roll."
UF didn't press much in the first half, but maybe the Gators should have. The Tritons, working almost exclusively in their halfcourt offense, made 14 of their 26 shots (53.8 percent), while the Gators were just 11 of 28 from the floor (39.3 percent). The former digit aligned with the defensive digits the Gators put up in their two intrasquad scrimmages when they shot a collective 61.3 percent and 50 percent, respectively, against each other. Florida's free-throw shooting also was an issue the first 20 minutes at just 8-for-13.
"Obviously, the second half was better than the first," Barry said.
Way better.
The Gators put up the 53.8 field-goal number (21 of 39) after intermission, while limiting the Tritons to just 10-for-30 from the floor (33 percent). UF also went 14-for-16 from the free-throw line to finish at 75.9 percent for the game.
When it was done, Florida had doubled up Eckerd, 58-29, over the final 20 minutes.
The root of that success definitely was the press. That's where Florida was at its best last season, but White wants a more well-rounded team this season; one that can play (offense and defense) in the halfcourt for 40 minutes, if needed.
But also a team that plays hard for 40 minutes.
"As much as possible, we want to get out in the open floor and we can feed off turnovers and pressure and get some easy ones," White said. "As of right now, that's when we're at our best."
The regular season doesn't start until Nov. 11. The next couple weeks will be about working on some areas where the Gators aren't at their best. Eckerd identified a few of those.
