Gators at a Glance
* Florida brings a three-game winning streak to Texas A&M, which enters with a six-game win streak of its own. Neither team has lost since the teams’ Jan. 4 meeting in Gainesville.
* Colin Castleton earned SEC Player of the Week honors behind two strong performances in the wins at LSU and vs. #20 Missouri last week. At LSU, Castleton posted 18 points and five blocks with a career night at the free throw line (12-for-15). He followed up with an all-around performance against Mizzou, tallying 16 points, 13 rebounds, a career-high six assists, three steals and two blocked shots.
* The Florida defense and Colin Castleton’s 18-point, five-block performance powered Tuesday’s win at LSU, which snapped the Tigers’ 13-game home winning streak. As they made their second-half run, the Gators got timely 3-pointers from Myreon Jones and Riley Kugel, each of whom assisted on the other’s big basket.
* The Gators had five players in double figures in their win vs. UGA, led by Kyle Lofton’s season-high 18. Colin Castleton posted 12 points, eight rebounds, seven blocked shots and five assists, while Will Richard added 14 points and nine rebounds. Myreon Jones (season-high 13 points) and Kowacie Reeves (12) both added a scoring spark off the bench, as UF enjoyed a 35-17 bench scoring edge.
* Colin Castleton leads UF in scoring (15.0), rebounding (7.8), blocked shots (52), assist (47) free throws made (70) and steals (19). Will Richard paces the squad with 25 made 3-pointers and a .424 3-point percentage.
* As a team, the Gators’ 5.8 blocked shots per game are tied for eighth in the NCAA. Individually, Castleton’s 3.06 blocked shots per game ranks third the nation.
* Alex Fudge had a four-game stretch from Nov. 30-Dec. 14 when averaged 13.3 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds, shooting 18-for-32 (.563) from the field, 3-for-6 from 3-point range, and hitting 14 of 15 free throw attempts (.933). Fudge had a pair of double-doubles over that span, posting 16 and 10 vs. FAMU and 13 and 10 vs. Ohio.
* Through Will Richard’s first seven appearances of the season, he displayed impressive efficiency scoring 13+ points six times while shooting .607 from the field, .586 from 3-point range and .947 from the free throw line.
* Riley Kugel made his first career start vs. Florida A&M, marking six straight seasons and 15 of the last 16 in which a freshman started at least one game for UF (every season since 2007-08 except 2016-17).
* Colin Castleton’s double-double vs. Xavier (11 points, 10 rebounds) was the 15th of his career, tying him with Joakim Noah and Chandler Parsons for fifth-most by a Gator since the 1996-97 season.
* UF’s 19-point rally at Florida State marked the fourth-largest in team history and the largest on the road since a 22-point comeback at South Carolina on Feb. 24, 1993. Castleton scored 19 of his 25 points in the second half.
* Colin Castleton opened the season on fire and posted back-to-back 30-point outings, notching a career-best 33 vs. Kennesaw State and 30 vs. FAU.
* Castleton became the first Gator with a 30-point double-double since Joakim Noah (37/11 vs. Georgia, 3/1/06) and the only SEC player since the 1996-97 season with 30 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots in a game, a stat line he accomplished vs. FAU.
