Gator Basketball Gators trashed by Vols, 73-61

[Jbossgator8]

The lost season continues. I am not sure we win anymore games to finish the season and may very well end up 12-20 record wise. Idk if White survives a 20 loss season. We have Vandy on Wednesday, they are 0-10 in the SEC but we haven't been able beat them much losing 6 out of 7 games to them the last few years. I say we end up 15-17 to end our season with no postseason which we don't deserve it anyways...

 

[VAGator]

Here's the problem. These shooters aren't getting good looks because we're playing too slow. You can't have a small ball line up and try to win at a slow pace. Why did we not spread Tennessee out and make those big guys try to defend our guys like Hudson and Allen and nembhard off of the bounce? Why not make it a track meet? We're not good in the half court on offense so why not try to steal more buckets in transition? Again, you're not gonna win a bunch of low scoring games with a small lineup. We've recruited to play fast, were built to play fast but for some reason we're hell bent on grinding games out.

Ding Ding Ding...we have a winner! I am so sick of that slow down crap MW has them in. We were soooo looking like a good team vs Kentucky until we went to that 'wait til 10 seconds to run the play' crap at the 6 or 5 to go mark. Let them run! Hell, at this point ...let the team save your job for another 365. Damn MW wtf are you doing?

 

[VAGator]

Here's the problem. These shooters aren't getting good looks because we're playing too slow. You can't have a small ball line up and try to win at a slow pace. Why did we not spread Tennessee out and make those big guys try to defend our guys like Hudson and Allen and nembhard off of the bounce? Why not make it a track meet? We're not good in the half court on offense so why not try to steal more buckets in transition? Again, you're not gonna win a bunch of low scoring games with a small lineup. We've recruited to play fast, were built to play fast but for some reason we're hell bent on grinding games out.

Ding Ding Ding...we have a winner! I am so sick of that slow down crap MW has them in. We were soooo looking like a good team vs Kentucky until we went to that 'wait til 10 seconds to run the play' crap at the 6 or 5 to go mark. Let them run! Hell, at this point ...let the team save your job for another 365. Damn MW wtf are you doing?

 

[rogdochar]

t-gator is right that slow-playing is thwarting our development. But it's not just the overarching slowdown alone, it's that they are not being taught the value of:
1) moving fast without the ball,
2) passing the ball speedy enough so the D has to chase, stumbling, lagging behind,

When the ball stops moving, all 5 defenders can get set ready to shut down any attempt, any attempt. They can call out to each other because they have time to analyze likelihoods. Standing, high bounce dribbling makes them smarter and makes us dumb & doubting.

I'm thinking White has coached doubt and hesitation into his players. Making players think they have to think how to dive for a loose ball is installing doubt. Sorry, but White's put doubt into me.

 

[MertzJay26]

Here's the problem. These shooters aren't getting good looks because we're playing too slow. You can't have a small ball line up and try to win at a slow pace. Why did we not spread Tennessee out and make those big guys try to defend our guys like Hudson and Allen and nembhard off of the bounce? Why not make it a track meet? We're not good in the half court on offense so why not try to steal more buckets in transition? Again, you're not gonna win a bunch of low scoring games with a small lineup. We've recruited to play fast, were built to play fast but for some reason we're hell bent on grinding games out.

We are in the bottom 10 out of 351(!) teams in terms of pace. Cannot for one second tell me that’s not on coaching.

 

[oxrageous]

We were soooo looking like a good team vs Kentucky until we went to that 'wait til 10 seconds to run the play' crap at the 6 or 5 to go mark.

They run plays?

 

[Ocalaman]

Very disappointing season. In spite of the defection of C. Johnson and the injuries to Gak & Stone, there is plenty of talent on this highly underachieving team. They may win a few more games because we have several games against teams as bad as us - Vandy twice, Georgia, Missouri. But of the 8 games left, 4 are sure losses - LSU twice, Kentucky & Alabama. The other 4 are toss-ups IMO. We have to win 4 of the 8 to get into the NIT. Those guys talking about UF being one of the Last 4 in the NCAA tourney are full of crap. This team's best win is over Ole Miss and they'll be lucky to qualify for the NIT. Not even closwe to being a Big Dance team.

 

[rogdochar]

White has them where quitting is the next step. These Gators play like they've been out of basketball a long time. And the HC is providing zero BBall IQ. Nothing to look forward to.

 

[gator1946]

Here's what I don't get. When White started out, his offense was go as fast as you can but with no half court plan. It made no sense. Now it's go as slow as you can with no half court plan. It makes even less sense. Since I don't want to go bald from tearing my hair out I'm not watching anymore of this season.

I'll hang in there next season until I see the same ol' ****.

 

[no1g8r]

Does anyone know if Nemhard's high school style of play was mostly a half-court game? When he's running the point, it's almost always a slow walk across the time line, then start the "half court offense". If pressured, he speeds up just enough to get across midcourt, then slows things down again. When we switch to Kevaughn at the point, we work the ball across the timeline more quickly. It makes me wonder if we've adjusted to the Nemhard's style of play, without the bigs needed to pull it off.

I miss having Cheeze bring the ball up the court with lightning speed and see if there was a fast-break option available, and if not, set up a half-court offense. This year we're conceding any fast-break possibility in exchange for slowing the game down, without much in the half-court offense toolkit.

 

[gatorev12]

Here's the problem. These shooters aren't getting good looks because we're playing too slow. You can't have a small ball line up and try to win at a slow pace. Why did we not spread Tennessee out and make those big guys try to defend our guys like Hudson and Allen and nembhard off of the bounce? Why not make it a track meet? We're not good in the half court on offense so why not try to steal more buckets in transition? Again, you're not gonna win a bunch of low scoring games with a small lineup. We've recruited to play fast, were built to play fast but for some reason we're hell bent on grinding games out.

I agree that's what we're built for and Lord knows that what we've been doing on offense isn't effective AT ALL in getting us results; but the one critique I would observe is that our team struggles defensively defending an open game where the other team is playing fast. Tennessee scored on us at will when they played fast--and most of our recent opponents have had similar results. Our team only seems to get stops when they're able to get set defensively playing slow.

No clue what will work with this bunch. The players just aren't good and our coaching isn't up to the task.

 

[rogdochar]

The players getting scholarship offers stood out in high school = outstanding players. Entering college BBall everyone (including the players themselves) expects that their college coaches (paid millions of $) will make them greatly better than they have on their own improved themselves throughout high school. Just the opposite under White & crew! They all get worse, all of them!

Say our players are in this present floundering state and Stricklin introduces Mike White as the new-hire HC. Well, everyone of us would be rejoicing with the expectation that White would surely correct this quagmire. But White has sculpted this quagmire. Where is our HC to correct this quagmire? ... a dynamo at commanding improvement ?

 

[Ocalaman]

The Gators are 0-6 vs. ranked opponents and 1-9 in Quadrant 1 games this season … UF is 10-20 vs. AP Top 25 teams and 2-6 vs. top 10 teams under White.

 

[Gator Fever]

https://www.foxsports.com/florida/story/florida-gators-mike-white-crunch-time-011819

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida coach Mike White said he has a team of “clock-watchers,” guys seemingly content to coast through the final minutes of games and hope to win.

It’s the only way he can explain how the Gators have struggled down the stretch in Southeastern Conference play.

Florida (9-7, 1-3) has done little right in the closing minutes of league play, leading to the program’s worst conference start since 1996.

The Gators were outscored 10-2 in the final 2:51 of a 71-68 loss at No. 24 Mississippi State earlier this week and watched third-ranked Tennessee close with a 9-0 run in a 78-67 setback last weekend. Throw in blowing a 14-point, second-half lead to South Carolina and squandering most of a 16-point lead at Arkansas, and White’s team appears to lack mental toughness, intestinal fortitude and the ability to put anyone away.

 

[lizardbreath]

Ding Ding Ding...we have a winner! I am so sick of that slow down crap MW has them in. We were soooo looking like a good team vs Kentucky until we went to that 'wait til 10 seconds to run the play' crap at the 6 or 5 to go mark. Let them run! Hell, at this point ...let the team save your job for another 365. Damn MW wtf are you doing?

Packing his bags soon, I hope.

 

[lizardbreath]

I agree that's what we're built for and Lord knows that what we've been doing on offense isn't effective AT ALL in getting us results; but the one critique I would observe is that our team struggles defensively defending an open game where the other team is playing fast. Tennessee scored on us at will when they played fast--and most of our recent opponents have had similar results. Our team only seems to get stops when they're able to get set defensively playing slow.

No clue what will work with this bunch. The players just aren't good and our coaching isn't up to the task.

Talent is a problem, but the coaching is a catastrophe.

 

[gatorev12]

Talent is a problem, but the coaching is a catastrophe.

I saw similar results in 2007-2008 after Donovan lost the 04s and beat all of 1 ranked team that season--losing multiple games by failing to close out games and suffering several blowouts in the process and getting a NIT berth after going .500 in SEC play.

Mind you: this is with the best coach in Gator history who's in the NBA now.

I'm not saying White isn't failing at his job: he is. It's his responsibility to get the players motivated and to figure out what works. His game plans haven't been working and he's stubbornly refusing to do anything different. But with poor players in the rotation AND a young team: you're going to get poor results even IF we had a HoF coach (and that's not even mentioning the reality that the SEC is far tougher right now than it was in 07/08).

 

[Gator Fever]

I saw similar results in 2007-2008 after Donovan lost the 04s and beat all of 1 ranked team that season--losing multiple games by failing to close out games and suffering several blowouts in the process and getting a NIT berth after going .500 in SEC play.

Mind you: this is with the best coach in Gator history who's in the NBA now.

I'm not saying White isn't failing at his job: he is. It's his responsibility to get the players motivated and to figure out what works. His game plans haven't been working and he's stubbornly refusing to do anything different. But with poor players in the rotation AND a young team: you're going to get poor results even IF we had a HoF coach (and that's not even mentioning the reality that the SEC is far tougher right now than it was in 07/08).

I would give the young players even more minutes than he has been lately if some of these upperclassmen don't start producing.

 

[no1g8r]

I would give the young players even more minutes than he has been lately if some of these upperclassmen don't start producing.

The challenge with that is that right about now is when a lot of freshman players "hit the wall", because they aren't conditioned for the longer college basketball season. I think that might also be part of why our game pace is slower - White knows he has to depend on three freshmen for the whole season, and particularly can't afford for Nembhard to be worn down at this point.

 

[gatorev12]

I would give the young players even more minutes than he has been lately if some of these upperclassmen don't start producing.

Why he hasn't benched Hudson by this point is beyond me. He sits Stokes for FAR fewer mistakes--and Stokes has 1/4th the "experience" Hudson does. It's one reason why I can't quite bring myself to defend White very much at this point: his game management is bad and he's playing favorites when there's nothing to be gained by it. Hudson is gone next year: who cares if he sits? Let him sulk. Pissing Stokes off leaves the very real possibility he transfers--and he at least has several more years to put things together (not to mention our lack of depth down low if he does leave). That's bad coaching and bad planning.