What a whirlwind first month of the season for Mike White and Florida. They easily beat what we thought was a Top 25-level Florida State team, only to find out that FSU might be on its way to a down season. Florida then beat No. 15 Ohio State on a neutral court, a win that will go a long way come March.
Florida was ranked No. 14 in the country just two weeks ago before losing to Oklahoma and Maryland, but the result that will really stick with them is a 15-point home loss to a Texas Southern team that was 0-7 at the time.
That said, this is still an NCAA Tournament quality team led by one of the best players in the conference in center Colin Castleton (15.0 RPG, 9.4 RPG, 2.8 BPG). Arguably Florida’s biggest strength is its experience with its top six players all being seniors and its seventh man being a junior.
The Gators’ 3-point shooting has been its most glaring issue offensively. They shoot 30.9% from deep, ranking No. 254 nationally. They shot 5-24 from three in the loss to Texas Southern and 4-24 in the loss to Oklahoma.
The Gators have good wins and bad losses, a theme that will likely continue into conference play. I do believe that this has a chance to be Mike White’s best team at Florida since the 2016-17 squad that finished 27-9 and made the Elite Eight. Whether or not they reach that potential will undoubtedly play out in a dramatic fashion as the season unfolds.
It is fitting that Florida falls in the dead center of these SEC power rankings as this is a team that can clearly disappoint, but also one that could figure things out and move back into the Top 25.