Pregame Stuff: No. 5 Florida vs Loyola Chicago (Wednesday, 8 pm)

FLORIDA vs LOYOLA CHICAGO

When: Wednesday, 8 p.m. (ET)
Where: Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center, Gainesville, Fla.
Records: Florida 5-2, Loyola Chicago 8-1
TV: SEC Network (Mike Morgan and Dane Bradshaw)
Radio: Gator IMG Sports Network (Mick Hubert and Mark Wise)

STAKES (The Setup)

The schedule-makers were good to the Gators, though unintentionally. The best thing that can happen for the Florida team following Monday night's home debacle against Florida State is to be back on the floor ASAP. Not that a anything that happens Wednesday night against the Ramblers, out of the Missouri Valley Conference, will rid the Gators of the nightmare memories -- 36 percent from the floor, 6-for-25 from 3-point range, 17 turnovers, 23 offensive rebounds surrendered -- following the worst home performance of Coach Mike White's three seasons. They just need another game and another opponent to hasten the moving-on process. … Florida and Loyola Chicago have never played. … The Gators are 5-2 all-time against opponents from the Missouri Valley, including a current run of five straight wins, but have not played a MVC team during White's time at UF.

STARTERS (Probable Lineups)

Florida	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Class	Per Game
Egor Koulechov	F	6-5	205	G-Transfer	16.7 pts / 6.6 reb
Jalen Hudson	F	6-6	192	R-Junior	20.9 pts / 4.4 reb
Kevarrius Hayes	C	6-9	225	Junior	4.7 pts / 4.3 reb
KeVaughn Allen	G	6-2	193	Junior	13.7 pts / 3.4 reb
Chris Chiozza	PG	6-0	180	Senior	11.7 pts / 5.6 reb / 6.4 ast

LOYOLA CHICAGO	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Class	Per Game
Donte Ingram	F	6-6	215	Senior	12.3 pts / 6.9 reb
Aundre Jackson	F	6-5	230	Senior	13.8 pts / 4.2 reb
Cameron Krutwig	C	6-9	260	Freshman	7.2 pts / 6.0 reb
Marque Townes	G	6-4	210	Junior	13.4 pts / 5.2 reb
Clayton Custer	G	6-1	185	R-Junior	13.4 pts / 4.3 ast

STANDING OUT (One to Watch)

He's a wide load, at 6-5 and 230, but Aundre Jackson is just the kind of active, physical low-post presence the Gators have had no answers for the first seven games. Last season, Jackson was the Missouri Valley Sixth Man of the Year after leading the league and finishing fourth in the nation in field-goal percentage (.669). This season, he's starting and again having an incredibly efficient time shooting the ball at 66.7 percent for the season, including a 10-for-11 effort in the Ramblers' 85-61 defeat of Illinois-Chicago over the weekend. He had a 10-for-13 performance on his way to 25 points earlier in the season in a win over UNC-Wilmington, an NCAA Tournament team last year. Jackson doesn't stray far from the paint. He's taken just 18 3-point attempts this season -- but he's made 10 of them. That's 55.6 percent.

STUFF (Need-to-Know Info)

ABOUT THE GATORS: Where to begin? From the moment they left the court after the thoroughly lopsided 83-66 eyesore loss to the unbeaten Seminoles, the Gators have been talking about toughness and physicality — specifically, the lack thereof — that struck them in such a resounding manner. Florida was destroyed on the glass, 51-34, gave up 36 points in the paint, and 24 second-chance points, courtesy of those 23 offensive rebounds surrendered. Finding a solution won't be simple. The Gators' best lineup is a small one that is vulnerable inside, and it's not like White can go sign a big imposing center off the street in December. A guy they could use, obviously, is 6-11, 255-pound John Egbunu, but the fifth-year senior center remains on a rehab timeline from reconstructive knee surgery last February. He won't be ready anytime soon. In the interim, UF needs to get something/anything out of the "5" position, where Kevarrius Hayes, back in the starting lineup after a great week of preparation, scored just three points and grabbed three rebounds in 22 minutes. … Florida shot 24 percent from the 3-point line against FSU, with top scorers Jalen Hudson, Egor Koulechov and KeVaughn Allen combining to go 4-for-19. The Gators could maybe persevere with two of those guys going stone cold, but not all three. … UF's best player against FSU was freshman backup wing Deaundrae Ballard, who drew praise from White for his aggression. He finished with eight points and a career-best nine rebounds. … Senior point guard Chris Chiozza figures to bounce back from his worst outing of the season (3 points, 0-for-5 shooting, 4 assists, 4 turnovers). It's worth noting that FSU jumped on UF by swarming and pressing Chiozza, thus taking the Gators out of their rhythm, especially in the open floor. Not many teams have the personnel to do that, but the ones who do may have a blueprint defense to try and stop Florida's (usually) high-scoring attack. ... ABOUT THE RAMBLERS: They're in the seventh season under Coach Porter Moser, who needs three wins to become just the sixth coach in the program's history -- and it has some storied history, by the way (read on) -- to reach 100 victories. ... Two years ago, Loyola played in the CBI, which marked its first postseason appearance since its last NCAA Tournament berth in 1985. Last season, the program's third since leaving the Horizon Conference for the Missouri Valley, the team went 18-10 and defeated Washington State and San Diego State. ... The Ramblers won their first seven games, including a 102-78 of UNCW, before dropping their first of the season last week in a blowout 83-57 loss at Boise State. LCU bounced back Saturday with that 24-point win over Illinois-Chicago. ... As a team, Loyola is hitting 52.2 percent from the floor and defending at 40.9. The Ramblers are making nearly 41 percent of their 3s versus 36 for opponents. ... After Jackson, LCU has three other players averaging in double figures, with four of their top six players hitting better than 50 percent from the floor. The backcourt of Marques Townes (.556) and Clayton Cluster (.525) knock down 3s at nearly 46 and 40, respectively. ... The Ramblers have eight players with double-figure assist totals for the season (for comparison, UF has four), so they obviously share the ball and get good shots, given their high shooting percentages.

STATS (Some Numbers of Note)

* minus-37 — UF's scoring differential over its past 50 minutes of basketball. The Gators were outscored 31-11 in the final 10 minutes against Duke in the PK80 Invitational, then by 17 in 40 minutes against Florida State.

* 2 — Fastbreak points for the Gators against the Seminoles. Need defensive rebounds to get out on the break.

* 26 — Consecutive free throws made by Allen, the fifth-longest streak in school history. Canyon Barry set the UF record with 42 in a row last season.

* 408 — Career assists by Chiozza, whose four Monday moved into 10th on UF's all-time list. He needs four to pass Andrew Moten (1983-87), who currently sits at No. 9.

* 1963 — The year Loyola Chicago won the NCAA men's basketball championship, when the Ramblers defeated two-time reigning national champ Cincinnati 60-58 in overtime of the title game at Louisville. That team, coached by George Ireland (pictured right in the tie) ignored what at the time was a "gentlemen's agreement" among coaches about having no more than two African-American players on the court at the same time. Loyola played four at a time, thus paving the way for a shift in the game's integration landscape, and served as an eventual springboard to the historic 1966 Texas Western championship team that defeated Kentucky with five black players.

STATEMENT (Random thought)

Where do the Gators go from here? Seriously, can you say for certain?

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Pregame Stuff: No. 5 Florida vs Loyola Chicago (Wednesday, 8 pm)

Players Mentioned

KeVaughn Allen

Deaundrae Ballard

Chris Chiozza

John Egbunu

Kevarrius Hayes

Jalen Hudson

Egor Koulechov

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Pregame Stuff: No. 5 Florida vs Loyola Chicago (Wednesday, 8 pm)

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Players Mentioned

KeVaughn Allen

Deaundrae Ballard

Chris Chiozza

John Egbunu

Kevarrius Hayes

Jalen Hudson

Egor Koulechov

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