Florida Men’s Basketball (10-4) at RV/#23 Ole Miss (13-1)
Florida Game Notes<https://floridagators.com/documents/2024/1/9/2024.01.10_atOleMiss.pdf> | 2023-24 Media Guide<https://floridagators.com/documents/2023/10/30/2023-24_Media_Guide_Web.pdf> | Media Resources<https://www.dropbox.com/sh/iv6cc1nl98a49pv/AAD_LkZm6hKvVz7FpyboOUR1a?dl=0>
SJB Pavilion at Ole Miss | Oxford, Miss.
Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 | 9 p.m. EST
TV/Streaming
SEC Network | ESPN App<http://www.espn.com/watch/player?id=36e6bd73-f4a3-404c-ad9d-08ff168c8971>
Play-by-Play: Kevin Fitzgerald | Analyst: Richard Hendrix
Radio
Gator Sports Network from LEARFIELD | FloridaGators.com<https://floridagators.com/showcase?Live=5270> | The Varsity Network App | SiriusXM 392 & SXM App<https://sxm.app.link/982>
Play-by-Play: Sean Kelley | Analyst: Lee Humphrey | Producer/Engineer: Steve Egan
The Tip-Off
* Florida hits the road for its first SEC road contest looking to bounce back from a razor-close setback vs. sixth-ranked Kentucky in the league opener. The Gators look to snap a three-game skid in Oxford, where UF was the first visiting team to win in the SJB Pavilion in 2016 before dropping the next three visits.
* UF has won six of its last seven games, as a 6-0 December accounted for its longest winning streak since another six-game streak in Nov. 2021. It also joins Nov. 2021 as UF’s only undefeated months of the past 10 seasons (since 2014-15).
* Both Walter Clayton Jr. and Zyon Pullin posted 23 points in Saturday’s SEC opener vs. Kentucky. Pullin has scored in double figures in all 11 appearances this season and ranks second in the SEC with 4.8 assists per game.
* Down low, Tyrese Samuel leads the SEC with 8.7 rebounds per game and a .646 field goal percentage and is one of three Gators averaging multiple offensive rebounds per game (3.2), along with Micah Handlogten (3.8) and Alex Condon (2.0).
2023-24 Highlights
* Zyon Pullin scored 22 and Tyrese Samuel posted 21 points and 11 rebounds in the Gators’ double overtime victory vs. Michigan in Charlotte. Pullin’s 3-pointer with 8.9 seconds remaining in the first overtime forced the second extra session, where an 11-0 UF run put the game away.
* In his homecoming game at Lakeland vs. East Carolina, Walter Clayton Jr. exploded for 20 first-half points on the way to a team-leading 22. Clayton scored 10 of the Gators’ first 12 points out of the gate playing just down the road from his hometown of Lake Wales.
* Will Richard earned Orange Bowl Classic MVP honors as he scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half to lead the Gators vs. Richmond. Richard posted a solo 9-0 run as he hit three 3-pointers in a 90-second span that helped create separation vs. the Spiders.
* Walter Clayton Jr. scored 21 of his 26 points vs. Merrimack in the second half. Freshman Alex Condon added his first career double-double with 12 points and 16 rebounds. Condon’s 16 boards were the most by a Florida freshman since Al Horford’s 18 vs. Alabama during the 2004-05 season.
* Florida came up just short against 13th-ranked Baylor in the NIT Season Tip-Off championship game as Riley Kugel exploded for 25 points and nine rebounds, both career highs. Tyrese Samuel and Zyon Pullin earned All-Tournament Team honors, and Samuel added SEC Player of the Week recognition.
* The Gators topped Pitt in the first game of the NIT Season Tip-Off behind 28 points from Walter Clayton Jr. on 6-for-8 shooting from 3-point range, a 20-point, 10-rebound performance from Tyrese Samuel and a 24-to-8 assist-to-turnover showing as a team.
* Florida blitzed Florida State, leading 27-5 before taking a 52-22 advantage into halftime. The Gators shot .643 and held the Seminoles to .258 from the field during the first half. Walter Clayton Jr. led UF with 19 points, while Zyon Pullin and Tyrese Samuel added 15 each and Thomas Haugh grabbed 10 rebounds.
* Micah Handlogten (14 points, 14 rebounds) and Tyrese Samuel (10 points, 11 rebounds) both posted their first double-double as Gators in a hard-fought loss vs. Virginia in Charlotte.
SEC Weekend 4-Pack
Fans have the opportunity to purchase seats for the remaining four SEC Saturday games. The SEC Weekend 4-Pack<https://am.ticketmaster.com/gators/flexplan/9629/1> features $189 plans in the 100 level and $99 plans in the 200 level and includes games vs. Arkansas, Georgia, Auburn and Vanderbilt.
