Wreck'Em Red
Fansided

Texas Tech Basketball: Know Thine Enemy – Florida

By Matthew Conner

DALLAS, TX - MARCH 15: The Florida Gators bench celebrates against the St. Bonaventure Bonnies in the second half in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at American Airlines Center on March 15, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
DALLAS, TX - MARCH 15: The Florida Gators bench celebrates against the St. Bonaventure Bonnies in the second half in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at American Airlines Center on March 15, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Ahead of Saturday’s second round matchup between Texas Tech and Florida in the NCAA Tournament, here is a scouting report on the Gators.

Though not one of college basketball’s blue-blood programs, the Florida Gators have been one of the game’s best programs over the past decade.  Since winning back-to-back National Titles in 2006-07, Florida has been remarkably consistent.

2018 is the program’s 9th trip to the big dance since 2006.  During that run, the’ve failed to win a game only once (2010).  They also have made it to the Sweet 16 seven times and the Elite 8 seven times during that span.  The team’s most recent trip to the Final For came just four years ago.

While none of the current Gators have played in a Final Four, they are a battle-tested team that will be a tough out for the Red Raiders.  This season, UF is 21-12, finishing third in the SEC regular season race.

UF has had a solid season in a tough conference highlighted by a season sweep of Kentucky.     Florida’s best non-conference win of the season came against then No. 17 Cincinnati, 66-60.  Other quality wins on the Gators’ resume include Gonzaga (111-105), at Texas A&M (83-66),  versus Auburn (72-66) and at Alabama (72-66).

Familiar Face

One of Florida’s top players should be familiar to Red Raider fans.  Senior forward Egor Koulechov (6-foot-5, 205-pounds) faced Texas Tech last season as a member of the Rice Owls.  In that game, the Russia native had 25 points and six rebounds in a one-point loss.

Koulechov is a dangerous player that is shooting 40% from three-point range.  He makes a bit over two threes per game and is a deadly shooter from anywhere on the court.

On the season Koulechov is averaging 13.1 points, 65. rebounds and 1.2 points per game.  He will be a focus of the Texas Tech defense so look for the Red Raiders to put some the the team’s top defenders on him.  He’ll likely get to know Jarrett Culver, Justin Gray and Niem Stevenson quite well over the course of the game.

The Three is Key

The Gators are a very good three-point shooting team.  Florida ranks No. 55 in the nation in made threes per game with 9.1, which is two more than Texas Tech averages.  On the season, Florida has shot 37% from deep, good for 60th in the nation.

What’s more, the Gators do not rely on just one or two key shooters.  They have five players with at least 37 threes this season, led by Jalen Hudson who has hit 74.  Additionally, three Gators, (Hudson, Egor Koulechov and Keith Stone) are connecting at greater than a 40% clip from deep.

More from Wreck'Em Red

But despite the Gator’s three-point shooting, they are not a significantly better offensive team than Texas Tech.  Florida is scoring 76.1 points per game this year while Texas Tech is scoring 75.1.

Another Defensive Battle

Most expected Texas Tech and SFA to play a defensive battle in round one.  That could be on tap again in round two.  The Gators are No. 95 in the nation is points allowed giving up 69.2 per game. Texas Tech, meanwhile, is ranked No. 15 in the country allowing just 64.6 points per game.

On the season. UF held 18 opponents to under 70 points.  They are 15-3 when holding keeping opponents below the 70-point threshold.

However, they did allow some high scoring games as well.  The Gators allowed 105 points to Gonzaga but 27 of those points came in two overtime periods. They also gave up 87 points in a win over a very bad Stanford team.  Still, expect the Gators to play a tough defense similar to that of SFA in intensity.  However, the Gators do not trap as often in the half-court as SFA.

Small Ball

Another area in which Florida might resemble SFA is in the team’s overall lack of size.  The Gators have eight players averaging over 10 minutes per game.  Of those eight, only two (Kevarrius Hayes and Keith Stone) are over 6-foot-7.

This could be another game in which Texas Tech has to rely on its small lineup, featuring Zach Smith as the team’s only big man.  It will be interesting to see if Norense Odiase and Tommy Hamilton can set a tone in the paint early.

Due to their lack of size, Florida is one of the worst rebounding teams in the country.  They rank No. 276 of 351 in rebounding margin at -2.2 per game.  Tech, meanwhile is very good ranking No. 51 with a +4.4 margin.

Next: The Three Will Be Key Against Florida

One hidden area to watch will be long rebounds off of three-point assists.  Florida will shoot a lot of outside shots leading to more loose balls on long rebounds.  Tech must make sure those type of rebounds don’t lead to second shots for the Gators.

Home/Texas Tech Basketball