Coach Mike White talks to Kasey Hill, who had a busy Tuesday night dishing assists and guarding Ole Miss scoring machine Stefan Moody.
Next-Day Takeaway (Florida 77, Ole Miss 73)
Wednesday, February 10, 2016 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Three follow-up observations from Florida's home win Tuesday over Ole Miss that improved the Gators to 16-8 overall for the season and 7-4 in Southeastern Conference play.
1) Backup guard Kasey Hill went 2-for-7 from the floor. A couple of those misses weren't pretty, but his two makes were undeniably big. The first was a 3-pointer he banged on a tremendous cross-court pass over the Rebels' zone defense from Devin Robinson that gave UF a 10-point first-half lead. The second, of course, was the hanging, acrobatic, throw-it-up bank shot with 1:19 left that came after Ole Miss had cut UF's lead to one. Was there luck involved? No doubt. But Hill, playing his second game with a broken nose, gets credit for having the wherewithal (not to mention athleticism) to direct the ball goal-ward while in a ridiculously awkward position and through contact. While we're at it, give him credit for those six assists and just one turnover while being the guy most responsible for chasing Rebels waterbug Stefan Moody all over the floor. Moody, the Southeastern Conference's leading scorer, eventually got 19 points, but that was four below his average and he was pressured into eight turnovers and three — count 'em, 3! — player-control fouls on drives to the basket.
2) More on UF's two-headed point guard. Sophomore Chris Chiozza definitely had a hand in the Moody defensive assignment. That can wear on a guy over the course of a game. On the offensive end, Chiozza went 2-for-10 from the floor and just 1-for-7 from the 3-point line. It was a few weeks ago that Coach Mike White lobbied for Chiozza to be more aggressive with his offense. Chiozza has complied. The guy is coachable. Over the last six games, though, Chiozza has gone a combined 20-for-69 from the floor (28.9 percent) and 8-for-29 from the arc (27.5percent), with his assist-to-turnover ratio dipping from 5-to-1 since becoming a starter to just below 2-to-1 (34 assists, 18 turnovers). Is his aggression — again, at the request of his coach — coming at the expense of running the offense and ball security? Not saying it is or isn't (UF has won four of those six games), but it's something White figures to keep an eye on. Chiozza definitely has some flair to his offensive skill set. My guess is White looks to find some middle ground that doesn't compromise Chiozza's assertiveness.
3) Ole Miss was a good matchup for Robinson, who was the most athletic front court player on the floor. But that type of effort from the kid known as "DRob," especially defensively and on the glass, simply put is a game-changer for the Gators — and the reason he's projected as the team's best NBA prospect. The challenge is to do it with more consistency. And on the road.
1) Backup guard Kasey Hill went 2-for-7 from the floor. A couple of those misses weren't pretty, but his two makes were undeniably big. The first was a 3-pointer he banged on a tremendous cross-court pass over the Rebels' zone defense from Devin Robinson that gave UF a 10-point first-half lead. The second, of course, was the hanging, acrobatic, throw-it-up bank shot with 1:19 left that came after Ole Miss had cut UF's lead to one. Was there luck involved? No doubt. But Hill, playing his second game with a broken nose, gets credit for having the wherewithal (not to mention athleticism) to direct the ball goal-ward while in a ridiculously awkward position and through contact. While we're at it, give him credit for those six assists and just one turnover while being the guy most responsible for chasing Rebels waterbug Stefan Moody all over the floor. Moody, the Southeastern Conference's leading scorer, eventually got 19 points, but that was four below his average and he was pressured into eight turnovers and three — count 'em, 3! — player-control fouls on drives to the basket.
2) More on UF's two-headed point guard. Sophomore Chris Chiozza definitely had a hand in the Moody defensive assignment. That can wear on a guy over the course of a game. On the offensive end, Chiozza went 2-for-10 from the floor and just 1-for-7 from the 3-point line. It was a few weeks ago that Coach Mike White lobbied for Chiozza to be more aggressive with his offense. Chiozza has complied. The guy is coachable. Over the last six games, though, Chiozza has gone a combined 20-for-69 from the floor (28.9 percent) and 8-for-29 from the arc (27.5percent), with his assist-to-turnover ratio dipping from 5-to-1 since becoming a starter to just below 2-to-1 (34 assists, 18 turnovers). Is his aggression — again, at the request of his coach — coming at the expense of running the offense and ball security? Not saying it is or isn't (UF has won four of those six games), but it's something White figures to keep an eye on. Chiozza definitely has some flair to his offensive skill set. My guess is White looks to find some middle ground that doesn't compromise Chiozza's assertiveness.
3) Ole Miss was a good matchup for Robinson, who was the most athletic front court player on the floor. But that type of effort from the kid known as "DRob," especially defensively and on the glass, simply put is a game-changer for the Gators — and the reason he's projected as the team's best NBA prospect. The challenge is to do it with more consistency. And on the road.
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