Florida basketball coach Todd Golden is well aware of the challenge South Carolina presents on Saturday night at the O’Connell Center (8:30 p.m., SEC Network).
The No. 3 Florida Gators (21-3, 8-3 SEC) fell behind by as many as 14 points in the second half against the Gamecocks in the first meeting between the two schools on Jan. 22, before UF rallied back for a 70-69 win on a driving shot by senior guard Will Richard with 4.8 seconds left.
South Carolina (10-14, 0-11 SEC) is still seeking its first win in SEC, but of its 11 conference losses, six have come by five points or less. The Gamecocks are coming off a 72-68 loss to No. 23 Ole Miss last Wednesday.
“We definitely won’t underappreciate South Carolina,” Golden said. “Obviously their record it has not been good in SEC play, but I think they’ve lost five or six games by one possession. And one of them was against us, and one of them was against Auburn, Mississippi State overtime game, they almost beat Ole Miss the other night. Like, you don’t play those types of opponents to that level without being a good team.”
Here are three storylines to watch for UF’s game against the Gamecocks:
How will C Micah Handlogten’s return impact the Florida basketball frontcourt rotation?
The 7-foot-1, 235-pound Handlogten has been practicing for close to two months but hasn’t appeared in live game action since suffering a compound fracture in his lower leg last March 17 in the SEC Tournament Finals against Auburn.
Florida may need Handlogten for extended time if starters Rueben Chinyelu and Thomas Haugh experience fatigue or foul trouble because UF will be without forward Alex Condon (sprained ankle) and Sam Alexis (undisclosed) on Saturday,
“Obviously, I’m probably not in, like, game shape quite yet,” Handlogten said. “But as much as my cardio can uphold..”
South Carolina’s frontcourt, led by sophomore forward Collin Murray-Boyles (15.6 ppg, 8.7 rpg), had its way with UF’s frontcourt in the first meeting, as the Gamecocks finished with a 32-9 edge in frontcourt points.
“They have a really, really good frontcourt,” Golden said.
Can Florida basketball guard Denzel Aberdeen continue to step up and provide stability in the backcourt?
With starting guard Alijah Martin still questionable with a hip pointer, Aberdeen could be in line for his fourth straight start on Saturday against the Gamecocks. The 6-foot-5, 190-pound Aberdeen has been a Godsend since joining UF’s starting lineup, averaging 14.3 points and 2.3 assists in three games while posting an assist-to-turnover ratio of 7-3.
Aberdeen matched a career-high with 20 points in UF’s 81-68 win over Mississippi State, with no turnovers in 32 minutes.
“Coach Golden was stressing no turnovers a lot,” Aberdeen said. “But it felt great, just being able to take pressure off Walt (Clayton) a little bit, and Will and just being able to be a good ballhandler for our team because that’s what we needed.”
A junior, Aberdeen waited 65 games before making his first career start on Feb. 4 against Vanderbilt and has made the most of his opportunity.
“It felt great just being able to provide for my team, get wins,” Aberdeen said. “Just being a little depth for guys being out, injured, just knowing that I had to step up for my teammates, play hard for them.”
Can Florida basketball generate more points off turnovers against the Gamecocks?
Florida scored 22 points off 16 turnovers in the first meeting between the two schools as the Gators went to a 1-2-2 press in the second half to fuel its comeback.
Starting point guard Jamarii Thomas is back for South Carolina after missing the first meeting against UF with an injury, which gives the Gamecocks a little more stability taking care of the ball this time around.
Florida has shown to be an opportunistic defense at times this season and is coming off a game in which it generated 20 points off 15 turnovers in its 81-68 win at Mississippi State.
Prediction
Florida 75, South Carolina 62: Florida’s string of three straight games scoring 80 or more points will come to a close, but the banged-up Gators will generate enough points off turnovers to extend their win streak to four games.
Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Storylines to watch as No. 3 Florida basketball hosts South Carolina
