Mike White watches over Wednesday's open shoot-around at Wells Fargo Arena, as the Gators readied for Thursday's NCAA West Region first-round game against Nevada.
Good Timing: UF's' Best Rotation Crystalized Late in Season
Thursday, March 21, 2019 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
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By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer
DES MOINES, Iowa — It began gradually late (very late) in the season.
As the Florida Gators' up-and-down 2018-19 campaign churned on, the coaching staff tinkered here and there with the rotation, as increased minutes loads went to players who had gained the most performance-based trust. There were instances where time, score and situation dictated lineup combination and personnel decisions, but what played out last week over the course of the Southeastern Conference Tournament was awfully pronounced compared to the run-up to the postseason.
The minutes distribution in UF's 65-62 tournament semifinal loss Saturday to Auburn showed five starters all playing at least 32 minutes. The day before, in a thrilling, buzzer-beating upset of ninth-ranked and regular-season champion LSU, four starters played at least 34 minutes, with the fifth at 27. The day before that, when the Gators raced past Arkansas late for a cushy 16-point victory, four starters went at least 32 minutes. UF coach Mike White
So for three games over three grueling days, each member of the UF starting five averaged at least 30.3 minutes, with only two reserves hitting double figures in court time. If that seems taxing and extreme, well, consider Coach Mike White's take on the situation.
"We're playing our best basketball of the season," he said.
If marathon minutes for the most reliable players got the Gators to this point it only makes sense to expect 10th-seededFlorida (19-15) to proceed accordingly when it takes on No. 7-seed Nevada (29-4) in Thursday's night's opening round of the NCAA Tournament West Region at Wells Fargo Arena. How the Gators — with two starters and their top backup making their freshmen NCAA debuts — go about their business figures to differ considerably from that of the Wolf Pack, regular-season champions of the Mountain West Conference.
Nevada set a school single-season record for victories and along the way started five fifth-year seniors — all transfers — and leaned on a bench that played another two key reserves who were also transfers. The Wolf Pack has a bunch of guys who have played a ton of games and scored a ton of points. In fact, the eight eligible transfer players — from the likes of North Carolina State, Southern Illinois and Portland — combined to score 5,928 points beforeever playing a game at Nevada.
[Read senior writer Chris Harry's comprehensive "Pregame Stuff" preview here]
"Experience in college basketball is everything," said Wolf Pack shooting guard and scoring leader Caleb Martin, who along with twin brother Cody transferred to Nevada following two years at NC State. "One thing I will say for our team … even though we do have a lot of experience, it's a lot of guys' first time in this tournament."
For the Pack, it will also be a rare crack at an opponent from a so-called power conference, having played just three such foes, all from the Pac-12, over the course of the season. Nevada defeated Southern California on the road, beat Arizona State at a neutral site, then won at Utah before starting Mountain West play. Only one of those three teams reached the NCAA Tournament's field of 68, with ASU barely squeaking into the play-in round games at Dayton, Ohio.
Now, compare that to Florida's schedule that included 29 power-conference contests and 13 games against nine different teams that made the NCAA field, including eight games against No. 2 or 3 seeds in the tournament.
The Gators didn't win a lot of those games, but it prepared them what now lies ahead.
"They're a very experienced team that's had a lot of success," UF's most seasoned player, fifth-year senior JalenHudson, said of the Wolf Pack. "I don't think they've seen a team like us in a long time."
CHARTING THE GATORS' OPPONENT: Nevada is "Transfer U" Ten of the University of Nevada's 13 scholarship players arrived to Reno via transfers. Eight of them are prominent players in the Wolf Pack's rotation and will see time Thursday against Florida. Combined, the 10 current Nevada transfers scored 6,939 points at their previous schools (including 5,928 points from players who will suit up against the Gators). Compare that to UF's lone transfer, fifth-year senior Jalen Hudson, who brought 515 points with him from Virginia Tech.
Player
Pos.
Year
Previous school
Prior points
The buzz
Tre'Shawn Thurman
F
G-Transfer
Nebraska-Omaha
1,164
Honorable Mention All-Summitt League; started 80 of 83 games for Mavericks.
Corey Henson
G
G-Transfer
Wagner
1,150
Two-time second-team Northeast Conference selection who averaged 33.9 minutes his last two seasons.
Nisre' Zouzoua
G
R-Junior
Bryant
1,025
First-team All-Northeast Conference in 2017, led team in scoring as freshman and sophomore (20.3 ppg).
Jazz Johnson
G
R-Junior
Portland
740
Shot 41 percent as sophomore in West Coast Conference; compares favorable to Auburn's Jared Harper.
Trey Porter
F
G-Transfer
George Mason & Old Dominion
731
6-11 center who left his mark at two Virginia schools before heading West.
Caleb Martin
G
R-Senior
North Carolina State
551
Averaged 11.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 30.5 minutes as sophomore for Wolfpack in ACC.
JoJo Anderson
G
Junior
Northern Arizona
548
Sitting out, per NCAA transfer rules.
Jalen Harris
G
Junior
Louisiana Tech
463
Sitting out, per NCAA transfer rules.
Jordan Caroline
F
R-Senior
Southern Illinois
303
9.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and fifth-most points by a freshman in SIU history.
Cody Martin
G
R-Senior
North Carolina State
264
Averaged 6.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 25.8 minutes as sophomore for Wolfpack.
Truth be told, it took a long time for the Gators to become the team they brought to Iowa. Think about the path taken. From getting destroyed in the season opener at Florida State; the benching and offensive struggles of Hudson, their preseason All-SEC selection; a 1-3 start in league play; a season-ending injury to fourth-year junior forward Keith Stone the same day three freshmen started for the first time in 20 years; a 12-11 overall record and 4-6 mark just past the midpoint; then a five-game SEC winning streak, including a huge upset of LSU on the road; then a hideous home loss to Georgia and three-game skid to finish the regular season; then the SEC Tournament.
So who are these guys, anyway?
"We went through winning streaks, losing streaks. We've been through different guys starting, seniors going off and seniors having slumps. Freshmen trying to figure it out and freshmen leading us to victories," White said. "It's been unique, to say the least. We've had several opportunities, having lost some very close games, to lose interest, if you will. To lose a little fight. Instead, it was, 'Next practice, next play, next timeout, next film session,' and obviously we won our share down the stretch. You wish you could have some of those close ones back, but maybe if we did we're sitting here getting ready to play Nevada. It speaks to resiliency, toughness, character — because we know we have flaws — and a team that collectively kept plugging away and made it happen."
The play and leadership of Kevarrius Hayes(left) and offensive resurgence of Jalen Hudson (right), two seniors in their last UF hurrah, were keys to the Gators reaching the NCAA Tournament for a third straight year.
It took a confluence of events, with the gradual development of the freshmen — point guard Andrew Nembhard, a starter from Day 1, plus shooting guard Noah Locke, and the recent ascension of forward Keyontae Johnson — at the forefront of those developments. Roll in the resurrection of Hudson, who two-thirds through the season was averaging less than seven points per game, but has relocated his rhythm and confidence to the tune of 14 points per game over the previous dozen outings. Hudson's resurgence (and vastly improved defense) has allowed him to play (and guard) the "1" through "4" spots at times and taken minutes from guards Mike Okauru and Deaundrae Ballard, as well as forward Isaiah Stokes, who is a defensive mismatch against faster teams. In January, Hudson played 16.6 minutes per game. In March, he's doubled that to 33.3.
And then there's senior center/forward Kevarrius Hayes. He was having a year like most of his previous years, but upped his leadership to another level over the last month and did the same with his on-court play — two-fold — at 12.0 points and 8.1 boards over the last seven games.
"I would say that Kevarrius Hayes, over the past four or five weeks, has become one of my favorite guys I've ever coached," White said.
And not because of the increased numbers, either.
Hayes has always been the hardest-playing and most vocal Gator, but he's managed to find another gear to both of those traits and his teammates have followed his lead. Where some have seen their playing time decreased (in some cases, drastically), Hayes has managed to keep the locker room unified and moving with the same purpose, even after that imbalanced SEC Tournament when all five starters (in addition to those lopsided minutes) averaged double-figure scoring while no reserve averaged more than 3.3 points.
Point guard Andrew Nembhard and his freshman classmates basked in the glow of their first NCAA Tournament setting during Wednesday's open practice.
The reward for their sacrifices and coming together was a third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament.
"We owe that to our chemistry and how we are off the court," Hayes said. "It's starting to transition on the court, understanding each other's playing style and playing around our strengths. Our bench has actually been good when it comes to keeping up the energy. When we keep it going it snowballs, and even when something goes wrong we can band together."
Like rallying from 13 down to beat LSU two games ago. And from eight down late against Auburn last time out, but falling one possession short.
UF was really good in the Music City. Now the Gators need to be great in the Hawkeye State.
The rotation may be down to seven players, but somehow, there remains strength in numbers with this group. It's a team of young and old, that lacks size, but not flaws, yet covers up their shortcomings with a heavy dose of substance.
It took a lot of ebbs and flows, but the Gators got here. They want to stick around.
"They're bigger than us and have more experience than us," Locke said of his first NCAA foe. "But it's like Coach White tells us all the time … it's all about the team that's better in those 40 minutes. That's all that matters and that's all we have to focus on."
