Florida Gators

What Happened

Sophomore guard Riley Kugel led all scorers with 23 points and carded six steals, while Florida's trio of bigs announced themselves in their UF debut, as the Gators defeated Loyola Maryland 93-73 in the 2023-24 season opener for both teams Monday night at Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center. Kugel, the preseason All-Southeastern Conference selection, went 10-for-15 from the floor and also had three rebounds and four assists over 34 minutes. Kugel was a good story, but not the only story of the game. Coach Todd Golden, who vowed to improve the Florida front court after watching his first Gators team get beaten up routinely in the post last season, got a preview of coming attractions, albeit from a low-major, Patriot League opponent. Forward Tyrese Samuel, the 6-foot-10 transfer from Seton Hall, had 15 points and grabbed eight rebound. He teamed in the starting unit with 7-foot-1 Micah Handlogten, the transfer from Marshall, who was seven of eight from the floor, grabbed six rebounds and blocked a shot in 21 minutes. And then there was 6-11 Alex Condon, the freshman from Australia. He came off the bench to score 13 points to go with three rebounds over 17 minutes in his first taste of collegiate basketball. As a team, the Gators shot 58.1 percent for the game, including 62.9 in the second half, and outscored the Greyhounds, out of the Patriot League, 54-34 in paint points. UF scored the game's first 16 points and four times led by 17 in the first half before the Loyola scored the last five points of the period to make the score 42-30 at the break. The Gators, who also got nine points, eight rebounds and five assists and three steals from point guard and Iona transfer Walter Clayton Jr. in his UF debut, tallied the first seven points out of the locker room and opened a quick 20-point lead just over four minutes into the period, swelled the margin to as high as 26 and were never seriously challenged after.

What it Means

Obviously, this Florida team is much bigger, faster and more athletic than the one that finished 16-17 last season for just the second losing record for the program in the last 24 years. This group should get better and better, with a challenging non-league slate on the horizon to sharpen up for what figures to be a deep SEC. Make that 30 consecutive home victories in season openers for the Gators, dating to 1984. UF last dropped a true home opener on Nov. 26, 1983, in a 77-73 loss to Stetson. Florida improved to 39-3 in overall openers since the '84-85 season.

In the Spotlight

UF's three bigs — Samuel, Handlogten and Condon — combined to make 17 of 25 shots and clear 17 rebounds. 

Staggering Statistic

The Gators played two closed scrimmages in the preseason (winning at Miami and at home against Florida International) and did not shoot free throws well in either. Guess what? It carried over. On a night they were red-hot from the field, the Gators were atrocious from the line, making just 15 of 30. Even Clayton, who led the nation in free-throw percentage last season at 95.3 percent, was a confounding 0-for-3. Fifty percent is unsustainable going forward. 

Up Next

Florida (1-0) won't wait long to get its first significant test of the season, what with a neutral-site meeting against Virginia (1-0) Friday night at Charlotte, part of a scattering of the Hall of Fame Series games across the country. The Cavaliers won their season opener Monday night, beating Tarleton State 73-47 at home. The UF-UVA game will mark the first meeting between the programs -- who have three NCAA titles between them since 2006 -- since the Gators and Cavs squared off in second-round play of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Orlando. UF won that one 65-39 on the way to the Elite Eight. Two years later, with a handful of the same players, UVA won its first national championship.