Florida leads the all-time series 43-29, but Florida State has reeled off seven straight wins, including three at the O'Dome, dating to the 2014-15 season and infamous "own goal" by walk-on forward Jacob Kurtz that marked Billy Donovan's last one on the UF sidelines. FSU's streak is the longest for either team in the 70-year-old rivalry that began in 1951. The Seminoles have won the last four by an average margin of 15.5 points, most recently an 83-71 victory at Tallahassee on Dec. 12, 2020. FSU got 17 points and five assists from freshman forward Scottie Barnes, as well as 17 points from guard M.J. Walker, but the story of the game occurred barely four minutes in and the Gators leading 11-3 after a transition alley-oop dunk by UF forward Keyontae Johnson. Out of the ensuing timeout, Johnson infamously collapsed leaving the Florida huddle, completely turning the Gators' season upside down.
Tale of the Tape
Florida
2020-21 Stats
Opponent
74.0
Scoring
105.0
.424
Field-goal percentage
.493
.320
3-point percentage
.318
61.0
Scoring defense
70.0
.385
Field-goal percentage defense
.396
.250
3-point percentage defense
.333
28
KenPom.com overall ranking
22
29
KenPom.com offensive efficiency
20
40
KenPom.com defensive efficiency
27
Team Snapshots
The Gators
They opened the seventh season under Coach Mike White on Tuesday by defeating Elon 74-61, a game UF led by 25 with less than seven minutes remaining, only to get sluggish and sloppy over the final minutes, mostly with backups in the game. ... The Florida quartet of four Division-I transfers made their collective orange-and-blue debuts, with guard Myreon Jones, by
Tuongthach Gatkek
way of Penn State, leading the way by hitting four 3-pointers in the second half. Guard Brandon McKissic (Missouri-Kansas City) had just four points, but showed what he could do in an exhibition a week earlier when he made five 3s and scored 20 points. Wing Phlandrous Fleming Jr. (Charleston Southern), slowed last week and limited at practice with a groin pull, had just four points in 17 minutes, but Fleming was the guy with a double-double when the Gators played North Carolina in a closed scrimmage late last month. The fourth transfer, forward CJ Felder, had just two points and three rebounds in 12 minutes, but figures to get more playing time, especially in a game that will be as physical as this one. Felder came from Boston College, so he knows what to expect from the Seminoles. ... Forward Colin Castleton had 18 points against Elon, but the coaches have challenged him to be more active on the glass after he cleared just five rebounds against a smallish opponent. He'll have to do more than that against the skyscrapers FSU can put on the floor. He'll also have to do better than 4-for-11 from the free-throw line. Castleton shot 78.1 percent there last year. ... Point guard Tyree Appleby got the start because of Fleming's lost practice time and answered with 14 points, but also had four turnovers to just three assists. The Gators saw too many games of negative assist-to-turnover ratio last season (not just from Appleby, but everyone), and ball security will be paramount against a defense as handsy and aggressive as Florida State ... Forward Anthony Duruji appears to be in a much better place entering this season, especially with his confidence, after heading into last year coming off of COVID and being the guy who to replace Johnson in the starting lineup. ... It'll be pivotal that Castleton and Duruji, the team's lone proven "bigs," stay out of foul trouble against a team as big and deep up front like FSU. ... Underclassman reserve guards Niels Lane, Kowacie Reeves and Elijah Kennedy combined to go 0-for-5 shooting with three turnovers in 21 minutes against Elon. The first one of those three to step up and show some consistency will get the first call. ... Center Jason Jitoboh (2 points, 1 rebound), the 6-11, 29-pound junior, fouled out in eight minutes in the opener. He'll find the going much more difficult today. So will bouncy 6-9, 172-pound freshman forward Tuongthach Gatkek (2 points, 2 rebounds, 3 fouls). If called on, he will be going against some much, bigger and broader bodies. ... The basketball team got caught up in the flu bug that's whisked across campus (and decimated the football team) the last couple weeks, so there could be some late scratches.
The Seminoles
Coach Leonard Hamilton, set to start his 20th season in Tallahassee, has the program on an absolute roll. The Seminoles have averaged 24.4 wins over the last five seasons and gone to four straight NCAA tournaments. FSU went 18-7 last season, including 11-4 (good for second place) in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Hamilton's latest FSU edition is another freaky collection of athleticism, size,
RayQuan Evans
length, experience and tenacity that has become the identity of the program. Hamilton is 11-8 vs Florida. ... Florida State opened the season Wednesday night by crushing Penn 104-70 at Tallahassee (which followed two exhibition games the Seminoles won by 43 over Mississippi College and 47 over Florida College). ... This time last year, guard Caleb Mills was at Houston and entered his sophomore campaign as the preseason American Athletic Conference Player of the Year. His season, however, lasted just three games due to injury and some off-the-court circumstances that landed Mills in the portal, where he was as sought-after as any transfer in the country. As a freshman, he averaged 13.2 points and shot better than 50 percent from the floor. He is an absolute bucket-getter who can score from all three levels. ... Shooting guard Anthony Polite, who hit a trio of 3s against UF last season, and strong safety-like point guard RayQuan Evans are the lone starters back for the Seminoles. They combined for 31 points and four 3s in the opener. ... Malik Osborne is the most experience big man back, but far from the only big on this roster. He debuted the other night with 13 rebounds, including seven on the offensive glass. ... FSU has four players listed at at least 7 feet, the best of which is freshman John Butler, the No. 1-ranked recruit from South Carolina last year. ... Cam'Ron Fletcher, a former McDonald's All American, transferred from Kentucky, where he struggled in limited action last season. ... FSU's top freshman is 6-6 guard Jalen Worley, considered one of the best recruits ever to sign with FSU and already being talked about as perhaps the fifth one-and-done for the Seminole since 2016. Worley had just six points in his collegiate debut, but also was in foul trouble.
Numbers of Note
UF coach Mike White
* .562 — Florida's free-throw percentage in the opener, based on 16-for-29 from the line. Last year, the Gators shot 75.5 percent as a team, which was the fifth-best collective free-throw performance in program history (and the best in 45 years).
* 10 — Blocked shots by the Gators against Elon, marking the ninth time under White that UF has blocked at least 10 in a game.
* 77.4 — Average inches in height of UF's players, which equates to about 6-foot-5 1/2 inches, and ranks 101st in the country, according to KemPom.
* 79.4 — Average inches in height of FSU players, which equates to about 6-foot-7 1/2, and ranks second in the country behind only Stanford (79.5).
* 2013 — The year White, then coach at Louisiana Tech, defeated Hamilton in opening-round action of the National Invitational Tournament. The date was March 19. The place was Tallahassee. The final score: Bulldogs 71, Seminoles 66, as La Tech rallied from a nine-point second-half deficit behind 27 points from guard Raheem Appleby (yes, Tyree's older brother). The two programs had a NIT rematch in 2014, with FSU winning that third-round match and advance to the tournament semifinals at Madison Square Garden. White is 1-8 vs. Hamilton.
Bottom Line
Regardless of the game's outcome, expect overreaction. Externally, that is, not so much internally.