So you think the Gators are playing at the same high level now as they did in Portland and were ranked solidly in the Top 10 and were the talk of the college basketball world. How far have they fallen in the polls since that opening week? Don't get me wrong, I hope our Gators win every game but the current level of play is very inconsistent.
Well:
1. After I posted, I realized maybe I should have just posted and posted it as a response to you.th
2. As far as Portland goes, UF went 2-1 out there which was the minimum UF needed to go there. Keep in mind UF beat a mediocre Stanford team, had to go to OT to beat a mid-major program though I guess the top one in recent years and lost to Duke. I knew at the time that is what UF had done.
3. Other than losing to Loyola Chicago, there was not that much of a surprise in the pre-season. I did hope UF would beat FSU, but losing was not a terrible surprise, though the way was. I guess I might have thought UF might have beat Clemson and lost to Cincy, but it happened the other way.
4. And as I suggested earlier, had UF lost at Rupp and beat SoCar at home, no one would really be puzzled about this team much at all. I think UF should win all their home SEC games, but alas that does not happen every year. I think your goal is to get a decent number of road wins. UF already has 3.
5. UF is who they are. They are a bit perimeter oriented. UF is probably better now than the were in Portland. Hayes is not getting suspended any more it seems/I hope. Hudson has gone from a terrible defensive player to maybe a poor or even an average defender and is a good rebounder for a 2. Stone has come around and is a factor. Koulechov has shown he can consistently contribute against high major talent. None of those thing had to happen and UF could have become aTm. Instead, UF has won 3 of its first 5 five SEC road games, but has lost one SEC home game UF shouldn't have.
6. So what matters is what happens from now. UF's next 4 games include 3 home games, so any less than 3 wins is a problem.
BTW, I think this is a great thread. A home loss to UAL two years ago put UF in a real bind that allowed UF to be once again cheated out of an NCAA bid.