Takeaways from Florida’s Narrow Loss at Kentucky

Analyzing three takeaways from Florida’s narrow road loss to Kentucky on Saturday.

Photo: Colin Castleton; Credit: Zach Goodall

Following a monumental upset over the nation's No. 2 on Wednesday, Florida looked to ride the wave of momentum into Rupp Arena, a place UF has historically struggled to win, to steal another season-altering victory from a team that currently sits ahead of it in the NET rankings.

That wasn't the case.

The Gators failed to reign victorious — falling 72-67 — to record its eighth loss in Quad I games this season. However, unlike their other losses, it wasn't all bad.

Amid a poor shooting night, they found a way to weather the blue storm in front of them in one of the SEC's most hostile environments. They trailed by 14 at one point in the contest, and 11 at halftime, but surged back in the second half to allow themselves a chance to tie the game with time expiring.

Refusing to roll over — as it has on multiple occasions against the Cats in the past — Florida slowly cut the deficit to make the closing stretch of the contest meaningful.

It surely wasn't perfect, evident by the tally in the loss column, but the performance signified the team's upward trajectory under first-year head coach Todd Golden. Unfortunately for Florida, moral victories and close losses won't get the unit into the NCAA Tournament come March.

The defeat, albeit expected, keeps Florida on the outside looking in at the field of 68 as part of the first four out (second out behind Texas A&M), according to ESPN's Joe Lunardi in his latest predictions.

Opportunities remain to push UF forward in the upcoming stretch of games, which includes a meeting with No. 3 Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Wednesday.

However, before moving forward, All Gators will take a look back at the near-upset victory over Kentucky on the road. The analysis includes two glaring factors for the defeat and a positive that could be the potential reason Florida can topple John Calipari's squad when the programs rematch in Gainesville on Feb. 22.

Gators couldn't keep Kentucky off the offensive glass when it mattered

The Gators were outrebounded 38-30 overall and 15-8 on the offensive boards against Kentucky. That reality is a casualty to the new small ball lineup Florida's operating with Will Richard at the four spot.

However, the rebounding battle throughout the game as a whole isn't to blame for the loss. Instead, there's a snapshot of the contest that Kentucky noticeably dominated that resulted in the Cats' ability to fend off UF.

With 7:30 remaining in the second half, the Gators trailed by 11 after a brief UM run to re-extend its lead. Weathering the storm to start climbing back, the Gators began to cut the deficit by turning defensive stops into points on the opposite end.

However, its inability to force the opposition off the offensive glass halted Florida from finishing off the comeback.

Failing to find bodies to hit on shot attempts, UF allowed five offensive rebounds during that 7:30 span to give multiple second-chance opportunities. Oscar Tshiebwe and Jacob Toppin recorded two each, with Sahvir Wheeler snagging a long board to maintain possessions.

That struggle to box out on crashers resulted in time ticking off the clock, shortening Florida's window to capitalize on another promising defensive effort.

Without the length to make up for sloppy hits on the defensive end, the Gators dropped their 10th game of the year in a contest that was open for the taking.

Florida bench was nonexistent

The Gators starting five did their part to topple the SEC's most prominent blue blood. Accounting for 62 of the 67 points, 10 of the 11 assists and 25 of the 30 rebounds, Richard, Kyle Lofton, Myreon Jones, Riley Kugel and Colin Castleton clicked to give Florida a chance on the road for a second straight Quad I victory.

The bench was a different story.

With an ever-changing lineup to maximize the production on both ends of the floor, the Gators have landed on their sixth combination of the season for their past three contests. It seems optimistic for those coming off the pine for rotational minutes to have experience in the starting lineup from earlier in the year.

That wasn't the case on Saturday. 

The most impactful bench player, at least on the scoreboard, was sophomore Kowacie Reeves Jr. But, despite recording the other five points on the board for UF, Reeves was largely inefficient as he shot just 1-of-7 from the field. 

Alex Fudge continued his inconsistency as he tries to regain rhythm after an injury suffered against Mississippi State that sidelined him for one game and pushed him out of the starting lineup. He did record four rebounds to close the gap on the boards between UF and UK. Meanwhile, Jason Jitoboh and Trey Bonham saw just three minutes each in relief of the starters at center and guard, respectively.

Overall, the four pieces on the bench proved to be merely bodies on the floor rather than substantial contributors. It was evident in the distribution of points when the starting group wasn't on the floor together.

For Florida to take strides forward against higher-rated teams, complementary production from bench members is crucial.

On Saturday, that didn't come. Neither did a win.

Colin Castleton dominated Oscar Tshiebwe

The matchup of the bigs did not disappoint, at least from Florida's perspective.

Despite his aforementioned loss in the rebounding battle, the Gators forward, Colin Castleton, won the war against the reigning National Player of the Year, Oscar Tshiebwe.

The two-way effort produced arguably the most impressive tape on Castleton's resume for his jump to the next level following the 2022-23 season.

Holding Tshiebwe to just four points on 2-of-14 from the floor, he consistently forced the 6-foot-9 center to play over his length on the inside without fouling. Castleton forced Tshiebwe out of the deep post to start the game, pushing him out to take an array of jump shots from 12 feet or further — serving as a testament to Castleton's added physicality on the interior compared to the past matchups between two of the SEC's best fives.

The early misses snowballed into the all-around poor performance.

On the offensive end, Castleton kept the Kentucky big man moving with his elite post footwork and pump fakes to not only get him off the spot, but force him into the air where he could attack him for multiple trips to the line.

He went 7-for-7 from the charity stripe and got Tshiebwe into foul trouble. He fouled out with 1:38 remaining as a result.

Castleton kept the Gators afloat in the second half with his impressive finesse and two-inch height advantage to post 25 points on 56.3% from the floor. He added eight rebounds, five assists and three blocks to catalyze Florida's comeback attempt.

The Deland, Fla., native displayed a clinic for attacking the Kentucky interior despite the eventual loss, simultaneously building his case for the pros.

When the two NBA hopefuls face off again in Gainesville in 16 days, Castleton will look to replicate the dominance he displayed over Tshiebwe on both ends of the floor. That's precisely what will need to happen For Florida to reign victorious in the rematch.

That game will likely be the last opportunity to secure a much-needed Quad I win, making it a win-or-go-home-type contest just before March. But, even if Florida fails to make it to the tournament, this outing reigns as Castleton's individual "one shining moment" in orange and blue.

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