Gainesville, Fla. | Dec. 7, 2022 | 9 p.m.
TV
ESPN2 | ESPN App
PxP: Kevin Fitzgerald | Analyst: Jimmy Dykes
Radio
Gators Sports Network from LEARFIELD | SiriusXM 385 & SXM App 975
Streaming on FloridaGators.com<https://floridagators.com/showcase?Live=4973> & The Varsity Network App
PxP: Sean Kelley | Analyst: Lee Humphrey
Gators at a Glance
* Florida welcomes undefeated #5 UConn for the Gators’ first ranked showdown under head coach Todd Golden. While at San Francisco, Golden’s team knocked off a #4-ranked Virginia squad (61-60, 11/27/20).
* Florida is 22-61 overall vs. AP top-5 opponents, including 5-17 in regular season nonconference action, which includes a 2-3 mark at home and 1-2 in the O’Connell Center. The Gators’ only top-5 regular season nonconference win in the O’Dome came on Dec. 23, 2006, an 86-60 victory vs. #3 Ohio State.
* Florida is coming off a pair of wins vs. in-state foes that saw five Gators score in double figures in both games, led by Trey Bonham’s 23 points vs. Florida A&M and Will Richard’s 14 against Stetson.
* Will Richard has provided efficient scoring from the wing, tallying at least 13 points in seven of his eight appearances while shooting .607 from the field, .586 from 3-point range and .947 from the free throw line.
* Alex Fudge posted his first career double-double vs. Florida A&M, tallying 16 points and 10 rebounds. All 16 points and nine of his rebounds came in the second half.
* Colin Castleton’s double-double vs. Xavier (11 points, 10 rebounds) marked his 15th as a Gator, 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. An individual has recorded back-to-back 30-point games nine times in UF history and Castleton is the seventh different player to accomplish the feat (see page 6 for full list).
* 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.
* Kowacie Reeves stepped up with a pair of late 3-pointers in the win vs. Kennesaw State. Reeves had his strongest showing of the season with 19 points vs. Florida A&M, which included three 3-pointers and three authoritative dunks.
* 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).
* Grad point guard Kyle Lofton (Saint Bonaventure), a three-time All-A-10 player who scored 1,613 points in four seasons with the Bonnies, came to Florida via the transfer portal. UF also brings in a trio of transfers who all have three years of eligibility remaining: junior Trey Bonham (VMI), sophomore Alex Fudge (LSU) and sophomore Will Richard (Belmont).
* Golden compiled a 57-36 record over three seasons at San Francisco and led the Dons to their first NCAA Tournament bid since 1998 and their first at-large selection since 1982.
