Ahead of Auburn basketball's meeting with Florida at home Tuesday night, The Plainsman posed questions for Jake Dreilinger, sports editor for The Independent Florida Alligator. Here's how he sees the action playing out inside Auburn Arena.
In last year's Florida win in this game, KeVaughn Allen was nearly unstoppable. Who has been stepping up on offense this season for UF?
Allen and Noah Locke for sure. They are the leading the team in scoring this season with 13 and 11.4 points per game, respectively, which has only gotten better in conference play. Allen has become a lot less reserved this season. Last season's game against Auburn was nothing like how he had been playing all year. He was almost shy with the ball and hesitant to shoot. He's starting to play like he had been his freshman and sophomore year. As for Locke, he's playing really well as a freshman. He's a threat from beyond the arc, which is where his strengths lie. He is starting to develop more of an inside game, but when he is on from deep, it's hard to stop him.
What were expectations like in Gainesville before the season? Are things going as most projected?
Expectations were somewhat high. Guard Jalen Hudson was coming back instead of trying his luck at the next level. The Gators had an exciting recruiting class with guards Noah Locke and Andrew Nembhard and forward Keyontae Johnson. No one was expecting a national title, but people were expecting an NCAA Tournament appearance. Florida may still get in the tourney, but it would be as a last-four in. They don't really has a marquee win. Plenty of quality losses, but not enough good wins. The offense has been stagnant at times and the defense could be better. Florida was projected to do a little better than how it is now.
Who needs to have a breakout game to seal a Gators win?
I'll split this question into offense and defense. Offensively, it has to be Allen and Locke. They are the only two players this season who have scored at a somewhat consistent level. If both of them are playing well, it's hard for other teams to win. They complement each other well, can run the offense alongside Nembhard. Defensively, Kevarrius Hayes. He is coming off one of the best games of his career on defense against Kentucky on Saturday. He's the only healthy big man Florida's got, and he has filled the role well. He's second on the UF all-time blocks list. If Hayes is guarding the paint well, it'll force Auburn to have to keep the scoring to the outside. Or run plays that exploit Hayes' weaknesses because he's not a natural center. He's a forward that had to transition to a center last season.
Game Prediction?
This is a game Florida really needs to win. It is in the middle of a rough stretch of games. TCU for the SEC/Big 12 challenge, Ole Miss, Kentucky, Auburn then Tennessee. That being said, I think the Gators come out strong, like they did against Kentucky but just fall apart at the end like they have been in conference play so far. Not to mention they are seriously lacking in depth with the loss of Keith Stone this season. Auburn will shut down Allen, but Locke will make some threes. Auburn wins 73-65.
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Nathan King, senior in journalism with a minor in business, is The Plainsman's sports editor.
