Gators travel to No. 5 Kansas State in SEC/Big 12 Challenge

GAINESVILLE, Fla. —  The Florida Gators men’s basketball team (12-8, 5-3 SEC) will take on the Kansas State Wildcats (17-3, 6-2 Big 12) in Manhattan, Kansas, on Saturday night.

The Wildcats are coming off just their third loss of the season on Tuesday at No. 12 Iowa State. They return to their home court where they are 11-0 on the year.

As for the Gators, they’ve won two in a row and five of their last six games. Their win over South Carolina on Wednesday was perhaps their best performance of the season.

“We’re in as good a place as we can be at this moment,” UF head coach Todd Golden said Friday. “We are playing really well. We’re playing much better as a team. You can see that in our assist-to-turnover numbers. We’re getting a lot more assisted baskets even in games where we’re not shooting the 3 really, really well, which is impressive because that’s usually where you get most of your assisted baskets, taking care of the ball better. 

“I think you’re seeing a lot more continuity, a lot more comfort, guys knowing where each other are. We’re cutting better, finding those guys better. This has been in the making for the last three to four weeks, we’ve done better that way. But really over the last two weeks we’ve really kind of excelled. Going into this game I feel like we’re playing at a really high level, and I think our guys feel that way as well.”

The two programs haven’t faced off since 2012 when the Wildcats upset the Gators in Kansas City. The all-time series is notched at one, so Saturday night’s matchup will be the tiebreaker.

Kansas State’s players to watch

It should be no surprise to Florida fans that Keyontae Johnson is leading the way for the Wildcats. He leads KSU with 18.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

The former Gator’s presence is still felt all over the court, and he’s only polished his game even more to help lift the Wildcats to a No. 5 ranking.

“We’re just going to have to do a really good job smothering him and not give him driving lanes to the rim, honor is 3-point shot, because he’s proven he can make that,” Golden said of Johnson. “But I think the best thing you have to do is keep him out of the paint, keep him off the line and make him finish over size. He’s one of the best players in the Big 12, so we’re going to have our hands full with him Saturday night.” 

In the backcourt, Florida will have to deal with Markquis Nowell all night. Nowell is second in the nation with 8.2 assists per game while he adds 17.1 points per game and a team-high 2.3 steals per game.

With his passing ability, he makes the rest of his team dangerous as well.

“He has a lot of freedom out there,” Golden said of Nowell. “Sometimes those guys are the hardest to guard because with that freedom comes confidence. He takes shots from 30, 35 feet away from the time. So we got to do a great job limiting him. We want to turn him into a 2-point finisher and fanning out and making him finish in the point.”

How Florida pulls the upset

As the Gators teeter on the bubble, a road win over the No. 5 team in the country would be a big addition to their resume.

Both teams are playing at a high level, but Florida has played some of the best defense in the country as of late and ranks No. 12 when it comes to defensive efficiency.

“One of the biggest keys to the game will be how we can do to get back and load up our defense against them, make them operate in the half court,” Golden said. “They play at a fast pace, and they really try to push, really aggressive in transition. That’s going to be a huge part of the game as far as the push and pull, who can win that battle.” 

Overcoming a slow start on the road would be detrimental for UF’s chances, so the offense is going to have to keep up early on.

Kyle Lofton and Myreon Jones have both done a great job of running the floor and making the right passes in Florida’s recent success. Getting a win in Manhattan starts with them.

With Alex Fudge being a potential game-time decision on Saturday according to Golden, the Gators will have to rely on Colin Castleton and bigger guards like Kowacie Reeves, Will Richard and Riley Kugel to pull their own weight on the glass.

Stay tuned to Gators Online.

WHO: Florida Gators (12-8, 5-3 SEC) at No. 5 Kansas State Wildcats (17-3, 6-2 Big 12)

WHEN: Saturday, January 28, 6 p.m. ET

WHERE: Bramlage Coliseum (12,528)

WATCH: ESPN2 or ESPN app; Play-by-Play: Rich Hollenberg; Color: Chris Spatola

RADIO: Gator Sports Network from LEARFIELD (SiriusXM 380, SXM App 970); Play-by-Play: Sean Kelley; Analyst: Lee Humphrey

BETTING LINES: Kansas State (-4); Over/Under: 140