Florida’s 13th straight victory in the 2024-25 college basketball season was never in doubt against Stetson on Sunday. THE Alligators defeated the Hatters, 85-45, holding a double-digit lead as early as the 13th minute of the first half.
Alijah Martin led all scorers with 18 points despite missing seven three-pointers. Will Richard made 17 on 8-of-11 shooting, but was just 1-of-4 from three. Walter Clayton Jr. only scored 12, but it was an efficient 4-of-5 shooting performance. Clayton played the most minutes among the big three with 28, giving the bench guys some more freedom in the last non-conference game of the regular season.
Sam Alexis was Florida’s most impressive big man, grabbing 12 rebounds. He made some good moves toward the basket but couldn’t finish most of his looks near the rim. Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh both added seven rebounds but combined for just nine points.
Sloppy but effective in the first half
Maybe the holidays are to blame, but Florida didn’t play its cleanest first half against Stetson. The Gators turned the ball over seven times while the Hatters only forced three interceptions. Sloppy passes and rushed possessions led to several unforced errors, but Florida limited Stetson to just four points off turnovers.
Will Richard was the biggest offender, turning the ball over four times in the first 20 minutes. Alex Condon also gave it away twice and Denzel Aberdeen had a turnover.
Richard has greatly improved as a defender, with and without the ball, but he’s not really a good ball handler. He often makes the wrong decision with the ball on the break and should look to score as soon as he receives a pass. Walter Clayton Jr. and Alijah Martin have both become primary ball handlers this season, so there is no reason for Richard to take the ball in the SEC game. He’s a fantastic finisher and he’s getting his three-point shot back.
Florida also forced a few turnovers
There isn’t a key stat in this game that stands out, but Florida’s 12 interceptions are a program high this season. It was a dominant game on the rebounds and in the assist column, but nothing that deviated from Florida’s pattern against these Quadrant 3 and 4 programs.
Forcing double-digit steals is remarkable, though. Only 17 teams in the country average 10 or more steals per game, and while Florida is still chasing that number at 8.5 per game, adding 23 over the last two games proves that this team is working harder on defense .
Todd Golden started the year looking for a top-20 defensive efficiency rating. Florida entered today’s competition ranked 18th overall, and holding the Hatters to just 45 points will help in that category. If the Gators can clean up their own turnovers and continue to steal the ball at a high rate against the SEC, this is a team that is going to do some damage in the NCAA Tournament.
This is a summary of non-conference play
These 40 point wins are getting a little boring, aren’t they?
It’s always fun to see a good team win, but Florida’s season has always been about beating programs in Quadrants 1 and 2, not Quadrants 3 and 4. Golden built a team to compete in March, but stomping on North Florida and Stetson doesn’t really prove much.
No loss over two months is impressive, no doubt, but a positive result against the rest of the SEC will make Florida a team to fear in the tournament. With the non-conference games over, it’s time to see what this team can really do.
Call the SEC!
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This article was originally published on Gators Wire: Three takeaways from Florida’s blowout win over Stetson