NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Florida had just the ending to their non-conference slate they needed on Sunday. They took care of business with a 79-58 blowout of Yale on Sunday in a rare visit to a mid-major school. The score tells the story for the game but doesn’t tell why it looks good for Florida going forward.
No one expected this game to turn into an upset. This isn’t one of James Jones’ best teams at Yale, and the last few minutes of the first half and the opening minutes of the second half, where the Gators scored the first 12 points and gave Yale fits with their press, ensured that the outcome of this one would not be in doubt. Yale didn’t mount much of a rally after that, although they were able to score a little more.
The Gators won despite being without starting forward Erik Murphy, who hails from just over 80 miles east of New Haven. The senior has a rib injury, the extent of which is still unknown, but Florida head coach Billy Donovan is hopeful it won’t be for long. He said Murphy was doubtful for the SEC opener on Wednesday night.
“He’s at a point with where his pain is that even stretching and reaching is a problem for him right now,” said the Florida mentor.
Instead, Will Yeguete started and was an energy guy from the get-go and one of the bright spots. He made plays and scored early and often en route to 14 points and nine boards and was one player Yale couldn’t match up with.
“I thought Will got back to himself tonight,” said Donovan.
Another big bright spot was Kenny Boynton breaking out of his shooting slump. Starting with an 0-5 outing from three-point range against Marquette, the senior went 4-32 from there over a month. A 3-7 outing against Air Force, followed by going 8-10 from long range on Sunday night (including 7-8 in the second half), look to be evidence that he’s out of the slump. He was 9-12 overall from the field en route to a 28-point outing against Yale, the kind of game that could jump-start him for the rest of the season.
The Gators didn’t get the toughest test right before SEC play, but they have had a few of those already. While most SEC teams play home-heavy non-conference slates, Florida will end up playing half of their games away from the O’Connell Center. They actually should have ended up with one more away from home, but the season opener against Georgetown only lasted for a half before weather forced the game to be called.
Sunday was their fourth true road game, in which they are 2-2, and they went 2-0 in neutral site games. That means this team will be about as well-tested as most in the SEC, and it will help early on. After opening on Wednesday with a visit from Georgia, the Gators play four of the next five on the road.
“I think our schedule has tested us pretty good,” said Donovan. “We’ve played against some different styles.”
Donovan also noted that a number of games on the slate were ones they could have lost. But if you’re a talented, veteran team like the Gators are, you test yourself against good teams and away from home. They did that, and Boynton echoed the benefit of seeing many different styles of play.
“We feel like as a team, we’ve seen every style of play possible,” said the senior guard. “We’re just ready to get out there and play our hardest.”
Donovan also noted that Florida also gone a good deal of non-conference without their whole team together. For one reason or another, Wilbekin, Casey Prather and Murphy have all missed a game or more. Wilbekin was suspended for the first two games of the season, while Prather, who played well with nine points and six rebounds in 26 minutes on Sunday, and Murphy have missed time due to injury. All told, the Gators have had their entire roster available for just seven games heading into SEC play, but they were the last seven before Sunday so they may be trending positively should Murphy not miss much time.
“There hasn’t been a whole lot that we’ve all been together as a group,” said Donovan. “When we get there, I think we’ve got to utilize each other better. I thought we played the right way tonight.”
The Gators proved their mettle in beating Wisconsin and blowing out Marquette and Florida State, while dropping tough ones at Arizona and Kansas State. Both of the losses could have gone either way. All in all, that makes them and Missouri the two most proven teams in the SEC as conference play begins. Kentucky has plenty of talent but hasn’t looked the part of a contender to this point the way Missouri and Florida have.
Sunday’s win at Yale was expected. How Florida won the game bodes well for SEC play, as Boynton looked like a confident shooter again, the press worked very well and the inside players were solid and unspectacular.
