The Season Goes On ... to Mississippi State

Saturday, February 18

Starkville, MS

2 PM

Florida Gators

Mississippi State

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Mike White and the Gators are facing ssome challenges on the adversity, but also trying to win a SEC championship.

The Season Goes On ... to Mississippi State

Friday, February 17, 2017 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry

The 15th-ranked Gators lost starting center John Egbunu, but there's still a bunch to play for, starting with an SEC title, and the quest continues Saturday at Starkville.

By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer

STARKVILLE, Miss. — The Florida Gators had Wednesday off, but Coach Mike White called an emergency meeting to gather his team to deliver the news about John Egbunu that all of his players feared, but none wanted to hear. In fact, White had Egbunu, the junior center and defensive stalwart, tell them.

Torn ACL. Out for the season.

"It was devastating," senior forward Justin Leon said. "You just feel so much for John."

Several players, most wearing faces as long as a Leon transition 3-pointer, stayed in the room well after the meeting had broken up. No one said a word.

"Couple guys had tears in their eyes," junior guard Chris Chiozza said. "It just doesn't seem fair for him. Doesn't seem fair or for us."

No, it does not. And yet 24 hours later, the Gators — still with the same sparkling 21-5 record, still ranked 15th in the country, still on a seven-game winning streak, still tied for first place in Southeastern Conference standings with an 11-2 league record— walked onto the practice floor and got back to work. Time goes on. The season goes on. In this case, back on the road for Saturday's game at Mississippi State (14-11, 5-8) against a bunch of Bulldogs who will have a collectively sympathy quotient of zero for their opponent.

[Read senior writer Chris Harry's UF-Mississippi State 'Pregame Stuff' preview here]

The 6-foot-11, 255-pound Egbunu averaged 7.9 points and a team-best 6.6 rebounds. Defensively, he was invaluable when it came to protecting the rim and ball-screen defense. So what does this Florida team, with so much to play for and an NCAA Tournament ticket basically punched, do from here?

"Collectively, we've got to find a way to replace him," White said.

In his last nine starts, sophomore center Kevarrius Hayes has averaged 8.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and shot 79.4 percent from the floor.

It's not exactly uncharted territory. Egbunu injured his hamstring during practice in December, elevating 6-9, 220-pound sophomore Kevarrius Hayes (aka "Spidey") into the main pivot spot. The Gators won their two games with Egbunu on the sidelines (granted, against mid-majors Charlotte and Arkansas-Little Rock) and went on to go 7-0 in the games Hayes started before Egbunu returned to the front line.

Last March, Egbunu tore ligaments in his thumb during practice the week of the Southeastern Conference Tournament. He played three games in a splint — two in the tourney, then in UF's opening game of the NIT — before being shut down for surgery. The Gators went 1-1 without him, but Hayes played the best basketball of his freshman season in Egbunu's absence. In the two starts last season, plus the seven this season, Hayes averaged 8.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and shot better than 79 percent from the floor. In a reserve role at Oklahoma, he came off the bench to score 20 points and grab nine rebounds. No one doubts his ability.

Now Hayes needs to play even more, but also better in games that mean even more. And so does senior walk-on center Schuyler Rimmer, who is about to get the most pivotal minutes of his career. So will Leon and redshirt freshman Keith Stone, both of whom took practice reps in the post this week.

"Guys have to step up," Rimmer said. "We have to lean on each other more."

Those "guys" also include every perimeter player in the game. Egbunu's big body and shot-blocking presence not only helped prevent baskets, but discouraged opponents from entering his area. To compensate for his loss, a UF defense that was playing at a phenomenally high level, has to reinvent itself. Every player has to rebound better. Every player has defend better. Every player has to stay out of foul trouble.

If the task sounds daunting it's because it will be. But the process of the Gators figuring out how they can best play without their best big man begins Saturday at Humphrey Coliseum.

"This is the second year in a row we've had to finish the season without him and I thought we finished strong last year, even though we were in the NIT," Chiozza said. "I know we can do it. We all know we can do it. But we also know everybody is going to come at us even harder because we're down one of our best players. They're going to think without him, we're not as good. We have something to say about that."

As in all of them. Together.

One guy cannot replace what Egbunu did for the Gators. But a little bit more from each can be a patch-work start to figuring some things out.

"Everyone has to put on their hard hats and continue on with the season and keep finding ways to win," Leon said. "Everyone's role expands. I have to get more rebounds. So does 'Spidey.' So does [Devin Robinson]. We all need to be in better shape now to play more minutes. We have play smarter on defense. It's a lot of adversity to face, but what choice do we have? We have to get through it."