Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The uncertainty of the offseason and interminable nature of the preseason are nearing their respective ends. 

Seriously. Finally. 

The start to the 2020-21 college basketball season is now less than two weeks away. The Florida Gators will open their sixth year under Coach Mike White against UMass-Lowell on Nov. 25 at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn., in the first of a two-game event that will be played in a so-called "Bubbleville" setting. Two nights later, UF will take on reigning national champion Virginia in what figures to be not only a measuring stick game of just where the Gators are, but also a test of wills, given the their turn to an uptempo system vs. the Cavaliers' notoriously turtle-like pace and vaunted pack-line defense. 

Under non-pandemic circumstances, Florida would have opened the season last week against Samford and already have a pair of games under its belt. For now, though, the Gators have had to rely on the extended preseason and breakneck practices that have emphasized pace and tempo to ready themselves. 

"It's a process. It's something that we're going through to where any change takes time to perfect what you're doing, and really you're talking about college basketball offenses are never perfect," White said during a Zoom call with media Wednesday. "You're always striving for it, but will it ever be perfect? I don't think so. But it will certainly be better in a month than it is today. We're better offensively now than we were last week."

Along the way, the Gators have staged two formal intra-squad scrimmages, with officials, the last two Sundays. The results confirmed some things the coaching staff already knew (Keyontae Johnson remains the team's best player, for example, and Scottie Lewis appears poised for a breakout season) and provided them with some clarity with regard to separation at certain positions (Tre Mann, with his ability to score and improved passing skills, still holds a slight edge on Tyree Appleby for the starting point guard spot). The "live" work also left some questions unanswered (Will it be Omar Payne or Colin Castleton in the post? Which newcomer will hop off the bench first?). Junior guard Noah Locke, by far the team's best pure shooter, did not play in either scrimmage while recouping from offseason surgery, but took part in his first contact work Wednesday. If Locke continues to progress the next couple weeks it's safe to assume he'll be in the starting lineup (along with Johnson, Lewis, Mann and either Payne or Castleton) when the ball is tossed up against the River Hawks, out of the America East Conference and coming off a 9-13 record last season.

The rest of the rotation likely will sort itself out based on performance during non-conference play, with big emphasis on ball security on offense and outstanding defense, especially in transition, given the team's commitment to an uptick in pace. 

Clearly, though, a significant role awaits Appleby, the transfer from Cleveland State who had a solid second scrimmage and showed both a command of the offense and terrific leadership between the lines. Forward Anthony Duruji, who sat out last season after transferring from Louisiana Tech, missed both scrimmages but looms as the first or second guy off the bench.  Junior college transfer Osayi Osifo also was held out of both scrimmages, but has earned raves for his effort and work ethic the last two months. A pair of freshmen in forward Samson Ruzhentsev (good shooter) and guard Niels Lane (good defender) are very much in mix, for now. They'll get early season looks. Sophomore point guard Ques Glover has improved his assist-to-turnover ratio in practice and now must show his decision-making translates to games. Jason Jitoboh remains unable to practice after undergoing foot surgery last month.

There's been talk, both internally and externally, of this being White's deepest team. That may bear out, but the 2016-17 team that reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament was 10 deep when it had to deal with the season-ending knee injury to starting center John Egbunu in February of that year. That team did a pretty good job checking egos with regard to minutes distribution, which engendered a positive culture and it translated to victories.

Will this one do the the same when roles are being defined? 

"We're closer than we were a month ago, [and] pretty pleased with seven, eight, nine guys in terms of what we're getting. But things change too," White said. "When that thing is tipped up for the first time in a couple weeks and you've got certain guys that don't start, and you've got certain guys that don't play as much as they would have liked; certain guys that maybe get yanked out of the game that didn't want to get yanked out of the game. Those are all factors in terms of how deep you're going to be. Getting back to the culture piece, how much are we all willing to sacrifice for the greater good?"

It's a question that is about two weeks from getting the first answer. How each player responds will be closely scrutinized, as the UF coaching has made it clear that the culture will not be compromised. The Gators saw how that undermined a talented, albeit youthful group a season ago.

"Assuming we continue to make the strides that we're making, I think this could be our deepest team, potentially, just can't say that for certain," White continued. "I like our athleticism, I really like the competitive spirit in practice. It's been better than it's been the last couple years. I like that, again, without a senior [on the roster], still, it's nuts to say this, but we're just significantly older than a year ago."