Vandy Edges the Gators at Home

I spent the afternoon in Nashville for the game and was pleasantly surprised the Gators even came close in this one. The game was phenomenal; an emotional roller coaster careening at unsafe speeds all afternoon through the Memorial Gym. It was a tidal wave back and forth as Vandy took the lead, then Florida came back and went back on top.

First Impressions

Florida’s defense was better, but not great. We still gave up several open looks at the basket. Vanderbilt made two 3-pointers right out of the gate. On both plays it looked like Dan Werner was standing in the lane guarding air. We forced 13 turnovers to our 10. We out-rebounded the ‘Dores 34 to 31.

Key Numbers:

1… The number of fouls Vanderbilt was charged with in the first half.

2… The number of fouls Vanderbilt had 30 minutes into the game (more on this later).

1… The Gator’s made one 3-pointer the entire game. One! Werner was 1-6 and continues to put up bricks. Werner needs to develop his inside shot and stop putting up prayers. He is barely making 1 of 4 shots from behind the arc, and is costing points.

11… Florida’s leading scorers, Calathes and Speights, had only 11 points. Walter Hodge also had 10 points. Unless our bench is averaging 9 points a peice, that’s not going to win ball games with the way the defense has been. It is amazing we stayed in the ballgame with this kind of production from the offense. We did make 11-13 free throws, which was encouraging. Speights was 5-6 from the line.

Final Score: 58-61

Alex Gordon sinking the game-winning free throw.

College Basketball Games of the Week

This week’s games begin with #5 Kansas vs. #12 Texas tonight at 9 Eastern on ESPN. Big 12 supremacy is on the line, and Texas looks to knock Kansas off their roost.

Tuesday’s game to watch will be #9 Michigan St. taking on #23 Purdue. Purdue has a hot hand right now coming off a big upset at #8 Wisconsin. The Boilermakers are 10-1 in the Big Ten and at the top of the conference. Purdue, on a 9-game win streak, lost its last game by three points January 8th at Michigan State. The game is at 7 PM Eastern on ESPN.

Wednesday’s game to watch is a toss up. You could go with SEC East leader #4 Tennessee hosting Arkansas, who is coming on strong in the West (8 PM Eastern, ESPN Full Court/Raycom Sports formerly Lincoln Financial). No. 14 Wisconsin at #12 Indiana is another top 25 match up of conference powers (7 PM Eastern, Big Ten Network). Or if your in Big East country, #18 Notre Dame at #17 Connecticut looks to be a great match up.

Thursday night lacks a marquee top 25 match up, but #7 Stanford at Arizona State looks to be the game of the night for those up late in the East (10:30 PM Eastern, FSN)

Friday night at 9 PM Eastern on ESPN you can catch #24 Pitt at #25 Marquette in Big East action.

Saturday I’ll be at the Florida vs Vandy game to let you know how that one goes. In other action, #9 Michigan St. is at #12 Indiana (9 PM Eastern, ESPN). If each team wins their game this week, this could be a battle for the top spot in the Big Ten.

That rounds out your week of television viewing.