Tide faces a younger, untested Gator team this time around

TUSCALOOSA | Any resemblance between this University of Florida basketball team and the one that has won back-to-back national championships in the past could of years is, the uniforms aside, purely coincidental.

To be fair, there are a few other similarities in this Gator team, which opens Southeastern Conference play against Alabama at Coleman Coliseum tonight at 8 p.m, and the mighty squads of the past two yeas. Billy Donovan is still on the bench for Florida.

The Gator record is an impressive 13-2 although the non-conference schedule for UF was designed to ease this young team into major college basketball. Tonight will mark only the second time all season that Florida has played a game outside the Sunshine State. (Their only previous foray, a rematch of last year’s NCAA championship game against Ohio State, resulted in a 61-49 Florida loss.

Glaringly, there will be no Joakim Noah in a Gator uniform tonight. There will be no Lee Humphrey or Taurean Green, no Al Horford or Corey Brewer, either.

There are a couple of players who played reserve roles last year — Markeese Speights and Walter Hodge. Both are good players – being a reserve on last year’s Florida team hardly indicates a lack of talent. The 6-foot-10 Speights averages 14.5 points and 7.6 rebounds per game for the Gators.

But Florida has no seniors this year, and five of the nine players who see regular playing time are freshmen.

“With conference play starting, they are about to experience some things they haven’t experienced before,” Donovan said on the SEC coaches’ teleconference on Monday. “When you have to rely on so many freshmen, it’s hard for a coach because they are so up and down, but this team is working hard and I have enjoyed coaching them.”

Probably the best of the Gator freshmen is guard Nick Calathes, who, at 6-5, can play either the point guard or shooting guard position. Calathes leads the SEC in assists (5.7 per game). He also leads Florida in turnovers and has shown a tendency to play too fast at times.

Chandler Parsons, a slim 6-10 freshman, is Florida’s other double figure scorer at 10.1 points per game.

Without Florida leading the way, there is a perception that the SEC is down this season, particularly after some early-season losses against top teams from other conferences. However, Donovan says that the league has teams who will mature and “will be better in late February than they are right now.”

“You lose some games that are uncharacteristic and your league gets labelled. I think by the end of the year, this league will be fine.”

Certainly, Donovan hopes his team will be included in that group.

He also said that Alabama could be in that group.

“I have a lot of respect for them,” Donovan said. “They have one of the best inside players, not just in the conference but in the country, in Richard Hendrix. Then they have a great wing player in Alonzo Gee. All their guys can shoot from the perimeter. They are a deep, athletic team.”

DESPITE FLORIDA’S roster turnover, Alabama coach Mark Gottfried says he still views Florida as the national champions.

“Some of those guys, like Markeese Speights, were on those teams,” Gottfried said. “Dan Werner was in there. So they’ve got some guys you are familiar with. And Billy Donovan has recruited to a very high level.”

Reach Cecil Hurt at cecil.hurt@tuscaloosanews.com or 205-722-0225.