Toledo @ Florida 11/14

[shawn555]

Rockets to Open 2008-09 Campaign at Florida on Friday in Nationally-Televised Contest on ESPNU
Courtesy: Toledo Athletics
Release: 11/12/2008




Courtesy: Toledo Athletics

Head Coach Gene Cross will make his debut on the Rocket sidelines on Friday, Nov. 14 at Florida.

TOLEDO, OH - Toledo opens its 2008-09 campaign as well as its 94th season of intercollegiate basketball when it travels to Gainesville, FL to face No. 19 Florida as part of the 2008 O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic.

Head Coach Gene Cross will be making his debut on the Rocket sidelines against the Gators in a contest that will be televised live nationally on ESPNU and tip off at 6:00 p.m.

UT will be facing off against Florida for the first time ever, but Friday’s contest will mark the fifth straight season the Rockets have faced a Southeastern Conference school.

Toledo lost to Vanderbilt (73-57) and defeated Auburn (68-65) in 2004-05, lost to South Carolina (85-73) in 2005-06, lost to Vanderbilt in OT (98-93) in 2006-07 and Vanderbilt (77-70) in 2007-08.

In its lone exhibition contest, Toledo posted a 63-56 triumph over NCAA Division II foe St. Edward’s (TX) Univ. on Sunday night at Owens Community College. The Rockets improved their shot selection in the second half and posted a 56.0 field-goal percentage in the final 20 minutes en route to the win.

Senior guard Tyrone Kent tallied a game-high 27 points and tied for the team lead with eight rebounds to lead the Midnight Blue and Gold. Senior guard Anthony Byrd was the only other Rocket to score in double figures with 13 points and also grabbed a team-high four steals with Kent notching three thefts.

Sophomore forward Justin Anyijong grabbed eight boards to share team rebounding honors with Kent and help the Rockets register a 36-30 advantage on the boards.

Toledo was picked to finish fourth in the Mid-American Conference’s West Division in the upcoming 2008-09 campaign in a vote by the MAC News Media Association. Toledo received 71 points with Western Michigan tabbed as the division favorite with 122 points. Following the Broncos in the balloting were Eastern Michigan (105 pts.), Central Michigan (79 pts.), Ball State (55 pts.) and Northern Illinois (39 pts.).

Toledo will play its first six games away from John F. Savage Arena before opening its newly-renovated facility vs. UMass on Dec. 3.

Toledo (0-0) at No. 19 Florida (0-0)

WHEN: Friday, Nov. 14, 6:00 p.m. EST.

WHERE: Stephen O’Connell Center (12,000), Gainesville, FL.

2007-08 TEAM RECORDS:
• Toledo (11-19, 7-8 MAC)
• Florida (24-12, 8-8 SEC)

SERIES RECORD: First meeting.

ABOUT FLORIDA: The Gators are ranked No. 19 nationally and picked to finish second in the SEC’s East Division behind Tennessee. Sophomore guard Nick Calathes led Florida with 15.3 points and 6.1 assists last year. UF is one of five schools to win 20 or more games in each of the last 10 years.

THE COACHES:
• Gene Cross, 0-0 at Toledo (1st year), same overall.
• Billy Donovan, 285-115 at UF (13th year), 320-135 overall (15th year).

TV: ESPNU. Rich Waltz will handle play-by-play with Bob Wenzel providing analysis.

RADIO: WSPD (1370 AM) in Toledo. Mark Beier will handle play-by-play with Jay Lehman providing analysis.

Internet: Rocket radio broadcasts can be heard at www.utrockets.com. UT’s home games can also be seen live via RocketVision at www.utrockets.com.

 

[shawn555]

Game notes

Game notes

http://www.gatorzone.com/basketball/men/stats/notes/pre/20081114180000.pdf


http://www.utrockets.com/pdf4/153714.pdf?ATCLID=1622616&SPID=10721&DB_OEM_ID=18000&SPSID=89713

 

[shawn555]

Learning their lesson

By Antonya English, Times Staff Writer

Published Tuesday, November 11, 2008 7:19 PM

GAINESVILLE — Billy Donovan readily admits he has no idea what kind of season the Gators will have.

Florida returns three starters from a group that never seemed to find its identity last season, and last week, starting point guard Jai Lucas decided to transfer.

Yet, Donovan is much more optimistic about the upcoming season, which kicks off Friday, than he was at this same time last year.

"I feel totally different," he said. "I don't know how much better we are, but I feel better in terms of their focus on understanding and at least being a little bit bought into what we need to do to put ourselves in a position to win. And they are trying to do the things I'm asking them to do. I think a year ago, I felt like they never really bought in. The importance of defense never resonated with them. Now they have some things they can look at and realize they've got to do to get better. So I feel better about our team mentally."

The Gators find themselves in a similar situation as last season: short on players. Sophomore forward Adam Allen's sprained meniscus is taking longer than expected to heal, and he's doubtful for Friday's opener. Freshman Eloy Vargas had surgery to remove bone spurs in his ankle in June and is still recovering. And the loss of Lucas means the Gators will rely heavily on freshman Erving Walker at point guard, although sophomore Nick Calathes and senior Walter Hodge can also play the position.

"There's a lot that was lost with Jai, including experience," Donovan said. "There are some things we're going to have to do to find a way to continue to help Erv develop, and he'll have his ups and downs."

After the Gators failed to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 10 years, the returning players are eager to prove they're a better team.

"Everyone from last year really wants it, including me," Calathes said. "We know what it feels like to go into the NIT and not to be in the NCAA Tournament. This year we are going to have our heads straight and take each game one at a time."

Several players, particularly forward Chandler Parsons, spent significant time working on strength and conditioning training, hoping to better hold their own defensively against the SEC's big men in the paint. Also counting on several newcomers, including forward Kenny Kadji, Donovan is hoping for marked improvement defensively. In his efforts to motivate the younger players to think defense first, he has consistently mentioned the names of Corey Brewer and Al Horford — the former Gators who started as freshmen — because of their "accountability and reliability" on defense.

"With Erving and Shipman on the perimeter, we are a little quicker and more athletic and we've got a little more speed back there," Donovan said. "And both guys have a chance to be good defenders if those guys are reliable on the defensive end of the floor. I've told Ray, for our team, he doesn't need to even really worry about scoring. He needs to focus and worry about finding a way to become a defensive stopper. That's got to be his goal."

Florida opened last season 18-3, with many of those early victories against overmatched teams. The Gators faltered down the stretch, losing seven of their last 10 regular-season games. This year, the Gators open with Toledo, Bradley, then an early tournament that includes Syracuse, Washington and Kansas.

"Last year, people kept asking, 'Do you feel like you're battle-tested enough,' " Donovan said. "I'm not going to say our schedule was terrible; it is what it is and you try to make the most of it. But we're going to find out a lot about our team very early, and maybe more so than we did a year ago. The first five games, we're in the thick of it and we're going to find out a lot about ourselves."

Antonya English can be reached at english@sptimes.com.

 

[shawn555]

No. 19 Florida trying to build off NIT season
November 12, 2008

Associated Press

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- Last season was a humbling experience for two-time national champion Florida.

The Gators lost eight of their last 11 games in Southeastern Conference play and missed out on the NCAA tournament for the first time in a decade. Coach Billy Donovan even kicked his players out of their $12 million practice facility, trying to get them to appreciate what it took to get a program to this level.

They're back now, eager to get Florida back on track.

"We know what it feels like to go into the NIT and not to be in the NCAA tournament," guard Nick Calathes said. "Everyone from last year really wants it. This year, we are going to have our heads straight."

The Gators, ranked No. 19 in The Associated Press preseason college basketball poll, open play Friday night against Toledo.

They will be without two starters from last season's team that advanced to the semifinals of the NIT, but have five talented freshmen who could see playing time. Center Marreese Speights left school after his junior year and entered the NBA draft, and guard Jai Lucas decided last week he wanted to transfer somewhere he can play the point and run the offense.

Guards Ray Shipman and Erving Walker and big men Allan Chaney, Kenny Kadji and Eloy Vargas are expected to help fill the void.

Realistically, Florida could be a year away from making another run in the NCAA tournament, especially with nine underclassmen on the roster, Georgetown transfer Vernon Macklin sitting out under NCAA transfer rules and prized recruit Kenny Boynton finishing up his high school career.

But the Gators expect to be better than they were last season, which would be a step in the right direction.

"Last year was a good learning experience," forward Chandler Parsons said. "We were a really young team and we learned from our mistakes. To start the year already knowing what we have to do in practice and the right ways to prepare for games is already a step above last year."

With two freshmen in the starting lineup and three more coming off the bench, Florida opened 18-3 last season and was ranked in late January. But a soft early season schedule and a lack of defense caught up with the Gators down the stretch. The two-time defending national champions ended conference play with four consecutive losses and were relegated to the NIT.

It got worse, too.

Donovan banned his players from their plush facility. No hot showers. No massages. No laundry service. It was a dramatic adjustment for players who had grown accustomed to those comforts, but it also opened their eyes to the need to do more in practice and games.

Donovan made the move because he felt his players had settled into a state of complacency and entitlement. He blocked them from using the locker room, from working on the practice floor that is surrounded with reminders of all the program's recent success, from getting massage therapy and from wearing any Florida attire.

The Gators had to practice at an old court inside the O'Connell Center, had to trek across campus for treatment, wear their own clothes to practice and handle the extra loads of extra laundry.

Donovan also increased the intensity of practice, saying his players failed to realize how hard they needed to work, especially on defense, to win games.

"I'm hopeful it was a humbling experience for all of us last year," said Donovan, whose team rebounded to win three in a row in the NIT. "There's no way in their mind last year that they didn't see themselves competing in the NCAA tournament. If you would've talked to them in January or February, they thought it was a foregone conclusion. I just believe in life everything you get has got to be earned.

"We've talked to them a lot about the message that needs to be received about the experience they went through. If they have their own idea about what they're going to learn and figure out from last season, and it's really not in the line of what they need to be thinking about, then that's probably something that's not going to be good."

Donovan hopes they're thinking mostly about defense.

The Gators finished 10th in the SEC in field-goal defense, ninth in defending the 3-point line and ninth in rebounding -- numbers he believes have to improve to get back in the NCAA field.

"They need to make a commitment to do those things to get better because that's going to ultimately determine us making the type of strides we want to make," Donovan said. "We've laid it out to them pretty clearly what our deficiencies were and what we need to overcome coming into this year. I would say coming in they've got a lot more appreciation of how hard it is (to win). I don't think they really understood how hard it was."

No, and the results were humbling.

"We did not have a good season last year," Calathes said. "But we will get better."

 

[shawn555]

Rockets Open Season at Florida
By Brian Nowicki
Rocket Digest Managing Editor
Posted Nov 11, 2008


This Friday the Toledo Rockets open the 2008-09 men's basketball season when the Rockets face the Florida Gators on ESPNU. The game will mark the beginning of the Gene Cross era. Florida is ranked 19th in the country in the preseason polls.

This Friday the Toledo Rockets open the 2008-09 men's basketball season when the Rockets face the Florida Gators on ESPNU. The game will mark the beginning of the Gene Cross era.

Florida is ranked 19th in the country in the preseason polls. The Gators will be a very strong test for the Rockets, who are very young and also hit with some injuries.

Toledo defeated St Edward's (TX) in their exhibition game Sunday night, 63-56. Senior guard Tyrone Kent led the way for Toledo, scoring a game high 27 points and also grabbing 8 rebounds. The only other Rocket in double figures was senior guard Anthony Byrd, who scored 13 points.

Junior Ridley Johnson is joined by freshmen Zac Taylor, Stephen Albrecht, and Emeka Okafor with injuries. Okafor might be able to play against Florida, but Johnson, Taylor, and Albrecht will all be out for a while.

Freshman Larry Bastfield is the lone true point guard that saw action Saturday night against St Edward's, coming off the bench, and he should see a lot of time at point guard for Toledo against the Gators.

It will be the first ever meeting between Toledo and Florida in men's basketball. The Rocket football team will make their first appearace against the Florida Gators football team in the future as well, with a game scheduled to be played at Florida in 2013.

On top of ESPNU televising the basketball game live this Friday night at 6:00pm, WSPD will have the game live on the radio.

After Florida, the Rockets will turnaround quickly and play at Xavier next Monday. That game is scheduled for a 7:30pm tip-off and will air on Fox Sports Ohio.

 

[shawn555]

The Florida Times-Union

November 13, 2008

Donovan desires 'D' from young Gators



By Michael DiRocco,
The Times-Union


GAINESVILLE - Florida basketball coach Billy Donovan knows his 2008-2009 Gators won't be great defensively, but he certainly wants them to be better than last year's group.
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Through two exhibition games and four weeks of practice, Donovan is at least encouraged by the players' effort and attitude - and that goes a long way toward playing better defense.

"I feel a lot better with their commitment to trying to get better at it," Donovan said as 19th-ranked UF prepared for Friday night's season opener against Toledo at the O'Connell Center in the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic. "The one thing that's good is having five returning guys that were freshmen a year ago. I think they can at least share some experiences with those [new] guys.

"I don't look at us as being a great defensive team, but I look at us as being better and improved, and I look at them as, you know what, they're really trying to be committed to what we're asking them to do."

After having two of the best defensive teams in UF history, the 2007-08 Gators (24-12) finished among the bottom in Southeastern Conference stats in league play. UF was 10th in the 12-team league in 3-point field-goal defense (.372) and defensive rebounding (23.19 per game) and 11th in scoring defense (75.5) and field-goal defense (.475). The Gators' overall field-goal defense (.445) was the worst since the 1992-1993 team finished with the same percentage.

"Those are the areas we need to get better," Donovan said. "They need to make a commitment to do those things to get better because that's going to ultimately determine us making the type of strides we want to make. We've laid it out to them pretty clearly what our deficiencies were, what we need to overcome and how they need to view coming into this year."

The players understand.

"Last year, [defense] definitely wasn't one of our strengths at all," said sophomore point guard Nick Calathes, the SEC's co-freshman of the year and the league's assist leader last season (6.1 per game). "We were more focused on offense than defense. This year, we're more focused on defense."

That's nice for Donovan to hear, but he's taking a wait-and-see approach because he heard similar things from his players last season. They said they understood the importance of team defense and that they were committed to making that a priority, but they didn't follow through.

UF doesn't have a shut-down individual defender, although Donovan said freshman guard Ray Shipman might be able to grow into that role. The Gators have added enough front-court size in freshmen Kenny Kadji (6-10, 245), Allan Chaney (6-8, 231) and Eloy Vargas (6-10, 215) and athletic players in Shipman and point guard Erving Walker to be better than they were.

"No one's going to be a Bruce Bowen out there," Calathes said. "Together, if we come together to play defense and have each other's backs, we can be a heckuva defensive team."

michael.dirocco@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4500 COLLEGE BASKETBALL SEASON PREVIEWS Beginning today, the Times-Union will take a look at area men's college basketball teams: Today: Florida. Friday: Florida State. Saturday: Jacksonville. Sunday: North Florida.~~~FLORIDA'S PROJECTED STARTERS G NICK CALATHES (6-6, 194, So.): 2007-08 averages: 15.3 points, 6.1 assists per game. The primary point guard now that Jai Lucas has transferred. G WALTER HODGE (6-0, 170, Sr.): 2007-08 averages: 10.4 points, 2.9 assists per game. Shot 48 percent from the field last season and was second on the team with 50 steals. F DAN WERNER (6-8, 230, Jr.): 2007-08 averages: 9.1 points, 6.4 rebounds per game. Averaged 11.1 ppg in SEC play. Good passer (89 assists, third) and UF's best defender, coach Billy Donovan says. F CHANDLER PARSONS (6-9, 213, So.); 2007-08 averages: 8.1 points, 4.0 rebounds per game. Member of SEC All-Freshman team. Needs to improve his quickness or will be a liability on defense. C ALEX TYUS (6-8, 220, So.): 2007-08 averages: 4.3 points, 2.6 rebounds per game. Playing out of position, he might struggle against physical front courts in the SEC. THE BENCH F ADAM ALLEN (6-8, 225, So.): Missed several weeks of practice with a knee injury. His main role will be as a spot-up shooter. F ALLAN CHANEY (6-8, 231, Fr.): Play defense and rebound. That's all Donovan wants from him. F/C KENNY KADJI (6-10, 245, Fr.): Same as Chaney. Any offense will be gravy. G/F RAY SHIPMAN (6-5, 212, Fr.): Donovan wants him to become a shut-down defender and forget about scoring. F/C ELOY VARGAS (6-10, 215, Fr.): Rehabilitation from ankle surgery has limited him in practice. G ERVING WALKER (5-8, 161, Fr.): Backup point guard. A tough kid who's getting better defensively. Not afraid to drive or shoot. WALK-ONS: G Hudson Fricke (6-1, 93, So.); G Kyle McClanahan (6-1, 185, Fr.).~~

 

[spang]

Shawn, Thanks very much for your efforts to provide great information on these early season matchups. It is very much appreciated.

Cross should do very well at UT. Great catch for the Rockets.