No. 5 Florida Gators Swarming the Boards, Leading Nation

The Florida Gators take a team approach to crashing the boards, and they lead the nation despite lacking a singular-dominant presence.

Florida Gators forward Alex Condon leads the team in rebounds at 7.5 per game. / Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

The Florida Gators do not have a single seven-footer on the roster. Likewise, no one weighs over 245 pounds. Yet, through all of that, no one in Division 1 basketball grabs more total rebounds. UF pulls down 45.7 boards per contest. 

When the ball caroms off the glass, the Gators as a whole, attack the glass with reckless abandon. Like a cornerback that believes that any ball in his direction is solely his, Florida displays a serious aggressive streak on the glass. Six players, two of which are guards snare at least five rebounds per game. 

The United Mindset

The Gators , from the last man on the bench to the starting five, will fight and claw for everything. In the SEC, you cannot underestimate a team that uses attitude to positively affect the outcome of a game. No, rebounding is not a glamorous job. 

Bloody noses, teeth missing and bruises become part of the game. With so much on the line, and a high tournament seed at stake, Todd Golden fully recognizes what rebounding means. He articulated that point early in the season. 

"(It's) super important... It’s been such a big reason as to why we’ve been successful," said Golden. "If we’re not rebounding well, it just closes our margin for error – a lot. We want to get back to what has allowed us to become the team we are right now."

Extra Possessions

Outside of ending possession for opposing offenses, UF's attention to detail on the glass leads to extended possessions. According to teamrankings.com, Florida enjoys 7.2 extra chances per game, ranking 15th nationally. 

Moreover, that number jumps to 11.2 when they compete at the O'Connell Center, which becomes the stronger home-court advantage, especially when four ranked SEC teams make their way to Gainesville this winter, looking to improve their tournament's chances at Florida's expense.

Bottom Line

While scoring and defense does win games, for Florida, working the glass like a window washer allows them to not only stay close in  games, but put teams away. Second chance points serve two purposes. First, the momentum stays firmly in Florida's favor. Next, opposing teams fall apart with the inability to secure a rebound and push the ball. T

hat level of frustration and desperation seeps in. After a few unsuccessful defensive trips down the court, teams will start launching threes and veering far away from their original plan of attack.

Solid rebounding wins games, and also breaks wills.