No. 7 Florida Gators Begin 2-Final Tune-Ups before SEC Play

The No. 7 Florida Gators take on UNF and Stetson before SEC play begins. What challenges to Osprey and Hatters present the Gators?

Walter Clayton Jr. leads the Florida Gators in scoring with 18.1 points per game. / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

With two games remaining in the month, the University of Florida men's basketball team can use each to improve. Granted, the schedule lists these as games, but in the big picture, the Gators should not struggle against North Florida and Stetson. 

Yet these matchups provide an opportunity to hone aspects that will assist them when the conference schedule begins. In two weeks, UF faces the fourth-ranked Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington.

Following that, they welcome the No. 1-ranked Tennessee Volunteers to Gainesville. As a result, the tune-up games to close out the month become far more important to what the program wants to accomplish.

North Florida: Perimeter Defense

The Gators take on UNF at Noon on Saturday. The game will be televised by the SECNetwork.

While 7-5 in the Atlantic Sun, the Osprey present a wrinkle for the Gators to contend with. The Ospreys are No 8. in Division 1 scoring (87.9) and lead the nation in shots (69.7), attempts (37.3), and made-three pointers (13.6). UNF wants to make this game an old-fashioned shootout. 

Florida can truly work on guarding the arc because their opponents would rather stand behind it and launch shots left, right, and center. Five players take more than five-threes per game. Ironically, their best scorer, freshman Josh Harris takes just one, preferring to score from close in as his 64.7 field goal percentage attests. 

Yet, the Gators truly do not need to collapse down on Harris to stop him. Instead, staying outside the paint and allowing the Ospreys lone-post threat to be singled will not hurt. What could hurt is the high volume of threes headed for the UNF basket,

Stetson: Free Throws and Steals

Staying in the A-Sun, Stetson enters the O'Connell Center as a struggling team. The fact that the Hatters sit 1-10 should make UF brim with confidence. Yet, the Gators can definitely experiment with techniques that work for steals.

Stetson turns the ball over 14.6 times during a game, bad enough for 324th out of 364 teams. So, anything creative as far as setup on inbounds or aggressive ball denial can work. Meanwhile, when Florida does possess the ball, Stetson's inability to play disciplined defense will send UF to the line.

In committing 15.2 fouls per game, they will send the Gators to the line with a high degree of frequency. This actually grants them the chance to work on in-game free throws. 

Overview

On balance, Florida should cruise easily versus both North Florida and Stetson. However, these game, despite their presumed easiness will eventually help UF smooth out what they consider aspects they still need to work on. Plus, nothing sets up a better start to the season like a team buoyed by momentum and excelling on both sides of the ball.