College basketball is right around the corner and it?s no surprise that the Florida Gators are everyone?s consensus Number One. They should be. Florida returns all five starters and their first two off the pine from last year?s National Championship squad and has also brought in some talented newcomers.
Florida came out of nowhere to win it all last year after losing its top three players to the NBA draft. Talented but young, the Gainesville faithful had to wonder if the Gators would even get an invite to The Big Dance. An undefeated non-conference schedule against schools from the witness protection program built enough confidence to carry Florida to a 10-6 conference slate and easy run through the SEC tournament culminating in a blowout of LSU in the final.
Billy Donovan did a masterful job of guiding Florida through Minneapolis where the Gators handily beat a very tough Villanova squad in the regional and dismantling UCLA 73-57 in the final. Donovan?s biggest job this year will be keeping his kids from reading their headlines and staying interested for five months before crunch time.
Florida is led by Player of the Year candidate Joakim Noah. The 7-foot son of ex-tennis great Yannik Noah, Joakim is an already established defensive presence and a flyswatter in the middle. His soft hands and quick feet give him unlimited untapped offensive potential and he should greatly improve on last year?s 13.8 ppg.
The Gators other top performers are guard Taurean Green 13.8 ppg while dishing out 4.9 assists per outing. Corey Brewer (12.5/4.8) and Al Horford (11.2/7.2) are veteran front court players that are tough on the glass. Lee Humphrey (10.8 ppg) offers scoring from the perimeter.
Florida has done some upgrading to their non-conference schedule opening with Samford, North Florida, Jacksonville, Chattanooga, and Prairie View A&M before playing Western Kentucky and Kansas. In December they?ll meet Florida State, Providence, and Ohio State ? all at home. The Gators play 18 of their first 19 at home and don?t leave the state until January 13th trip to South Carolina.
This team is a monster and has the best chance of any team in recent memory to repeat as NCAA champs.
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