GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Three years ago, the Florida Gators were a wounded bunch when they went to Tallahassee for their annually rivalry series date against Florida State. Not wounded in the physical sense, but UF’s collective ego was badly bruised after being beaten at home four nights earlier by Florida Atlantic, a defeat that marked the program’s first since 2010 against an in-state program from a non-power conference.
Now came a road date against the Seminoles, who’d won seven of the previous eight meetings. FSU coach Leonard Hamilton, with his four decades of head-coaching experience, against youthful counterpart Todd Golden, in his first season (and just the fourth game) as UF’s coach.
The Seminoles, red-hot from the jump, surged to a 19-point lead in the first half, but the Gators staged the second-largest road comeback in program history, rolling behind 29 points from center Colin Castleton to win 76-67. A whopping 37-5 run bridging the halves ignited UF to its second straight win in the series.
Told you that to tell you this.
Just like Florida had no idea how good that FAU team would turn out to be (the Owls were in the Final Four five months later), neither Hamilton nor his Seminoles – nor anyone associated with college basketball – could have predicted the eventual trajectory of the Gators under Golden.
Let that be a lesson for the 10th-ranked Gators (1-1) as they enter Tuesday night’s 2025 edition of their game against the Seminoles (2-0) in what should be a lively home atmosphere at Exactech Arena/O’Connell Center. FSU, like UF three years ago, is under new management now with former walk-on-turned-standout Luke Loucks, just 35, leading his alma mater and playing a positively breakneck style of pressing, trapping and 3-point bombing that looks nothing like the physical, defense-first system the Seminoles played for 23 seasons under Hamilton. FSU wants to play fast, force turnovers and get a shot up within the first eight seconds of the shot clock, with that shot (overwhelmingly preferably) being a layup or 3. The Seminoles averaged 104.5 points in their first two games, home wins over Alcorn State and Alabama A&M. They took an Atlantic Coast Conference-record 47 3s in their last game.
So leaving town with a scalp of the reigning national champions would be quite a statement for the new-look Noles.
[Read senior writer Chris Harry’s “Pregame Stuff” setup here]
“They’re playing in transition a lot. They’re shooting a lot of 3s. The goal is to get a lot of attempts up. They don’t settle for any mid-range jumpers and they’re trying to get pressure on the rim,” Golden said of FSU, with its NBA blueprint Loucks brought with him after seven seasons as an assistant at Golden State and Sacramento. “They’re switching defenses quite a bit and just trying to keep teams on their toes, create a little bit of chaos, create some turnovers that’ll give them transition. But I think, first of all, they’re really good. I think they did a good job of putting this roster together.”
Fired-up Todd Golden celebrates with his players after winning his first meeting against rival Florida State in 2022 at Tallahassee.
That roster, like the style of play, is unrecognizable from a year ago. The top six players in the rotation are transfers – led by guards Robert McCray V (Jacksonville) and Lajae Jones (St. Bonaventure), along with 6-foot-10, 225-pound forward Chauncey Wiggins (Clemson) – and account for an average of 142 of 200 game minutes. Two games against overmatched low-major opponents, of course, is a small sample size. That needs to be considered when zeroing in on FSU’s volume of 3-point shots, which account for 53.5% of the Seminoles’ attempts to date. But they’ve converted at 40.3%, which rates 55thnationally (and also needs to be taken into account).
Worth noting: UF, which also wants to play fast, is ranked No. 8 in defensive efficiency and is holding opponents to 27.3% from the arc. Throw those numbers at FSU’s frenetic, full-court style of play and it should make for quite an entertaining first-go between these two coaches.
If the Seminoles drill a dozen or so 3s, it could make for an anxious night for the home crowd.
New FSU coach Luke Loucks (center) was an NBA assistant the last eight seasons.
“You got to do what you can to try and not allow them to be catch-and-shoot [3s] and be comfortable shots within their offense where they know they’re coming, and I think that’s going to be the big challenge,” Golden said. “They’re going to get some up. We got to make sure they’re difficult. We got to make sure they’re off the dribble. We got to make sure they’re not the ones that they’re really hunting. And if we do that, we’ll give ourselves a better chance to win.”
The 3-point storyline actually goes two ways, considering the Gators are struggling from the arc at just 22%, which rates 318th in the country, with no starters above 30%. The new, transfer backcourt tandem of Xaivian Lee and Boogie Fland has combined to go 5-for-24 (20.8%), with Fland 0-for-5. Even sharp-shooting backup Urban Klavzar is at 20%.
UF went just 7-for-27 in its season-opening loss against No. 13 Arizona and Las Vegas, then Thursday clanged to a six of 32 performance against North Florida, but still won by 40.
“It’s just two games,” said junior wing Thomas Haugh, who at 30% leads the team from distance. “Our [closed] scrimmages we shot it the ball well. We shoot the ball really well in practice. I think [it might be] a little bit of nerves, just being excited. I think this team is going to calm down. We’re a good 3-point-shooting team. We didn’t shoot it [vs. UNF], but I’m confident.”
Email senior writer Chris Harry at chrish@gators.ufl.edu. Find his story archives here.
