#11 Florida Men's Basketball 2017-2018 Preview

Jacob Young
Mon, 10/30/2017
 
Florida Gators
 
2017-2018 Overall Rank: #11
Conference Rank: #2 SEC
 Florida Logo
 
Mike White got the Gators back to the NCAA Tournament in his second season as Florida head coach. The Gators won 14 SEC games a year ago and enter this season with high expectations. Florida loses four of their top six scorers, so regaining their form from last season could be tough. The Gators will still have plenty of talented upperclassmen and high-impact newcomers to give the Gators another strong roster. The SEC will be more competitive this year, but Florida figures to remain in the upper echelon of the conference.
 
2016-17 Record: 27-9, 14-4
2016-17 Postseason: NCAA Tournament
Coach: Mike White
Coach Record: 48-24 at Florida, 149-64 overall
 
Who’s Out:
The Gators enter this year without four of their top six scorers from last season. Canyon Barry is the top departing scorer after his impressive lone season with Florida. Barry earned SEC Sixth Man of the Year by giving the Gators a scoring presence off the bench, averaging 11.4 points in 21.3 minutes. Barry had four games scoring 20+ points off the bench, and Florida will miss his production and depth. Devin Robinson elected to play professionally after a strong junior season. Robinson has always been filled with potential, and he finally appeared to put it all together last year. Robinson averaged 11.1 points and 6.1 rebounds, both career highs. Lead point guard Kasey Hill has graduated after a four-year career at Florida. Hill finished his career ranked in the top-ten in Florida history in games played, assists and steals. Hill earned second team All-SEC and SEC All-Defensive Team honors as a senior behind 9.7 points, 4.5 assists and 1.7 steals. Justin Leon has also graduated after spending two seasons with the Gators. Leon started all 36 games for Florida last year, averaging 7.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and shooting a team-high 39.8% from behind the arc. Lastly, Eric Hester transferred after averaging just 6.2 minutes in 18 appearances as a freshman.
 
Who’s In:
Mike White adds two transfers and five freshmen to the roster this year. Jalen Hudson is a transfer from Virginia Tech who sat out last season. Hudson averaged 8.4 points for the Hokies as a sophomore, including three 20-point performances. Egor Koulechov is a grad transfer from Rice. Koulechov was a first team All-Conference USA selection last year, ranking fifth in the conference with 18.2 points per game. Hudson and Koulechov each bring experienced scoring production to the Gators. The Gators will add three new four-star recruits this year. DeAundre Ballard is a small forward ranked in the top-100 nationally. Ballard can become a versatile scorer for Florida. Chase Johnson is a stretch-power forward who was also ranked in the top-100 nationally. Isaiah Stokes is the final four-star prospect coming to Florida. Stokes is more of a traditional power forward, similar to his brother Jarnell Stokes, who has played in the NBA. Mike Okauru is a three-star guard who projects as a possible long-term replacement at point guard for the Gators. Dontay Bassett sat out last season due to a foot injury, but could provide some minutes down low as a redshirt freshman.
 
Who to Watch:
Florida will be led by All-SEC guard KeVaughn Allen this season. Allen was named to the first team All-SEC as a sophomore behind 14.0 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.3 steals. Allen had a 35-point outing against Wisconsin in the Sweet 16, displaying his elite scoring ability. John Egbunu was having a strong junior season before tearing his ACL in February. The Gators will be without Egbunu to begin the season, but he should be back before conference play begins. Egbunu averaged 7.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks prior to his injury. Chris Chiozza, the buzzer-beating hero of the Sweet 16, will move to the starting point guard spot as a senior. Chiozza led the SEC in assist-to-turnover ratio last season and will bring a steady hand to the Gators offense. Kevarrius Hayes looks primed for a breakout season, and the Gators will need him to play important minutes while Egbunu continues to heal. Hayes started 19 games last year, averaging 6.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. Keith Stone played in 34 games as a freshman, averaging 3.6 points and 2.2 rebounds. Stone had multiple games with double-digit scoring last year, and the Gators could use more of that production this season. Gorjok Gak is another big man who could provide some useful minutes in Egbunu’s absence. Gak played in just 15 games as a freshman, but he did score six points in the Gators’ second round win over Virginia.
 
Final Projection:
Florida is losing some important production from last year, but they have plenty of returning rotation players to pick up the slack. The play of All-SEC guard KeVaughn Allen, the leadership of senior point guard Chris Chiozza and the health of John Egbunu will all be driving factors for Florida’s success this year. Mike White also has two high scoring potential transfers along with three four-star recruits joining the Gators. There’s a lot of moving pieces at Florida, but if all the players can work together the Gators should remain near the top of the SEC. The SEC should be more competitive this season though, so Florida can’t afford any slip-ups.
 
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA Tournament
 
Projected Starting Five:
Chris Chiozza, Senior, Guard, 7.2 points per game
KeVaughn Allen, Junior, Guard, 14.0 points per game
Egor Koulechov, Senior, Guard, 18.2 points per game
Keith Stone, Sophomore, Forward, 3.6 points per game
Kevarrius Hayes, Junior, Center, 6.2 points per game
 
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 77.9 (68th in nation, 5th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 66.5 (47, 3)
Field-Goal Percentage: 45.0 (134, 5)
Field-Goal Defense: 41.0 (36, 4)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.7 (138, 4)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.8 (133, 4)
Free-Throw Percentage: 72.9 (95, 6)
Rebound Margin: 1.9 (120, 6)
Assists Per Game: 12.5 (241, 11)
Turnovers Per Game: 12.0 (76, 3)
 
Madness 2017 Men’s Basketball Recruit Rankings:
#81 Chase Johnson
#105 DeAundre Ballard
#109 Isaiah Stokes