Wednesday, November 30, 2022 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
Share:
By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer
WHAT HAPPENED: Junior guard Trey Bonham scored 23 points, nailing all seven of 3-point attempts, sophomore wing Kowacie Reeves threw in 17 points and the Gators, behind a season-high 62-percent shooting from the floor and 59 percent from the arc, routed the Rattlers Wednesday night at Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center. UF was down a pair of starters, as sophomore guard and No. 2 scorerWill Richard (knee) and fifth-year point guard Kyle Lofton (back) were game-day scratches. Their absences opened a spot of Reeves, who was back in the rotation after playing just eight total minutes during the team's three games in the Phil Knight Legacy at Portland, Ore., over the Thanksgiving weekend. Reeves responded in a big way, hitting seven of 13 from the floor and three of seven from deep in a season-high 29 minutes. Not bad, right? But then there was Bonham, the 6-footer transfer from Virginia Military Institute who was coming off an 0-for-9 shooting night in Florida's 84-55 loss Sunday night against West Virginia. Bonham, making his fourth consecutive start, nailed all but one of his eight shots (a 2-pointer) to go with two rebounds and four assists. Freshman guard Riley Kugel made his first career start and scored six points. Fifth-year forward Colin Castleton added 11 points, six rebounds, five assists and four blocks, while backup sophomore forward Alex Fudge had 16 points, a team-high 10 rebounds for his first career double-double and a couple thundering slams. Reeves got things going on the first possession with a driving baseline slam dunk, Kugel scored on a layup off a turnover and Bonham bombed his first 3 inside the first two minutes, as the Gators scored the game's first seven points, and built a 19-2 lead barely five minutes into the game. UF went to shoot 69 percent in the first half (20-for-29) and 67 from the 3-point line (8 of 12), opening up a 50-32 lead at the break, with Bonham a perfect 5-for-5 from deep for 17 points and Reeves six of nine and 3-for-5 from 3 for 15 points, hitting his season-high scoring output before intermission. The Gators went 13-for-22 from the arc as a team.
UF junior guard Niels Lane (4) walls up on FAMU's Tarig Eisa during Wednesday win over the Rattlers.
WHAT IT MEANS: The Gators just needed to play a game and, of course, win to get the nasty taste of Sunday's loss out of their collective mouths. The performance from Reeves, whose previous season-high was 11, was a feel-good story for the home team, given his DNPs in Portland against Xavier and WVU.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Welcome back, Kowacie.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: Bonham's 7-for-7 performance from the arc tied the school single-game record for most 3-point attempts without a miss, equaling what Matt Walsh did to Bethune-Cookman on Dec. 22, 2002. The Gators won that game 99-64.
UP NEXT: Florida (5-3) is back home Sunday to face Stetson, out of the Atlantic Sun Conference. The Hatters (4-2) already have knocked off a pair of in-state teams, upsetting Florida State 83-74 in the season opener at Tallahassee and then winning 68-67 at South Florida a week later. The matchup will be just the second between UF and Stetson over the last 12 seasons.
Florida Men's Basketball | Todd Golden on Hanging 2025 National Championship BannerFlorida Men's Basketball | Todd Golden on Hanging 2025 National Championship Banner
Friday, November 07
Florida Men's Basketball | Players Press Conference | North FloridaFlorida Men's Basketball | Players Press Conference | North Florida
Friday, November 07
Florida Men's Basketball | Head Coach Todd Golden Press Conference | North FloridaFlorida Men's Basketball | Head Coach Todd Golden Press Conference | North Florida
Friday, November 07
Haugh, Handlogten, Condon and Rioux Postgame Press Conference 11-6-25Haugh, Handlogten, Condon and Rioux Postgame Press Conference 11-6-25
