Florida and Florida State match up in a key non-conference game this weekend. Who will come out with an important victory?
When: Sunday November 14th, 2021. 12:00 PM CST ESPN
Where: Exactech Arena, Gainesville, Florida
The Gators and Seminoles both won their first games and while both teams looked impressive the Seminoles were the team who caught the eye of nearly everyone. Florida State dismantled Penn in Tallahassee and they looked to be one of the best teams in the country while doing it. Florida State was efficient, they protect the rim and they are an elite rebounding and defensive team.
As always the Seminoles have a ton of height. FSU has four players 7’0” tall and all of them play and contribute to the game. Those players are not going to do the bulk of the scoring as that goes to the trio of Cam’Ron Fletcher, guard Caleb Mills and forward Malik Osborne. Head Coach Leonard Hamilton has turned into an elite recruiter and this year he has two guards in Matthew Cleveland and Jalen Warley who were both highly ranked recruits and looked the part in the game against Penn.
The Gators won their first game against the Elon Phoenix. Florida didn’t look as impressive on offense but they did enough to win the game. Myreon Jones a transfer from Penn State and Collin Castleton lead the Gators offense and both are capable of keeping this game close for a while at least. If Florida has any chance in this game their stars are going to have to play an exceptional game. Even that might not be enough to stop Coach Leonard Hamilton’s team.
On to the game, and this is a big-time rivalry game, given both teams’ proximity to each other. Florida State is ranked in the top 20, and while Florida isn’t ranked they likely will be at some point, and they are going to be a factor in the top of the SEC this season. These teams play every season and every year the game is highly anticipated in the state. The Seminoles have won every matchup since 2013, and the gap between the Seminoles and the Gators continues to grow.
Exactech Arena is going to be rocking and the Gators don’t want to lose their ninth straight game in the rivalry. It is one of the best games in the early season.. These two teams have never played this early in the year, but it is a treat that they have each other on their schedule this early.
Florida doesn’t have enough to beat FSU this year. That isn’t saying the Gators are not a great team because they are likely going to win a lot of games, but FSU is really that good and they have a roster that can make a deep run into March.
Final Score Prediction: FSU 80, Florida: 67