Florida coach Billy Donovan challenged senior point guard Erving Walker at halftime
The message?
“Just keep fighting,” Walker said. “He encouraged me. I wanted to go out and play for him.”
Walker broke out of his early-season doldrums, scoring 15 of his 17 points in the second half. Behind Walker and a team-high 20 points from junior guard Kenny Boynton, No. 7 Florida rolled to a 91-55 win over North Florida on Thursday night at the O’Connell Center.
It was a big night for four of Florida’s guards. Junior Mike Rosario had 15 points off the bench, going 4-of-6 from 3-point range. And freshman guard Bradley Beal finished with his first career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
The Gators (2-1) bounced back from an 81-74 loss to No. 3 Ohio State on Tuesday night. Florida didn’t return back to campus on Wednesday because its charter flight was delayed and held a light practice on Wednesday night.
“I was pretty pleased with the way the team came out tonight, the way we competed and battled” Donovan said.
Donovan played Rosario, Beal, Walker and Boynton together on the floor for the first time this season, but it was more out of necessity. Florida played without sophomore forward Will Yeguete, who sat out the game due to concussion symptoms.
Yeguete underwent tests on Thursday and his status for the Wright State game remains questionable. He suffered the injury after taking an elbow to the face from Ohio State center Jared Sullinger.
“I’m hopeful to have him back at practice on Saturday,” Donovan said.
Forward Casey Prather, who had 5 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists off the bench, also played some at the power forward spot with starter Erik Murphy in early foul trouble.
“We needed other guys to fill in there,” Donovan said.
Florida played well on defense throughout the game, holding UNF (1-2) to 34.5 percent shooting and 14.3 percent shooting from 3-point range. For the third straight game, Florida won the rebounding margin, beating UNF 45-37 on the boards.
The 6-foot-3 Beal played a strong role in UF’s advantage by mixing it up inside.
“Coach (Donovan) has been getting on me about that, so I’m just happy I was able to contribute,” Beal said.
Florida moved the ball well early in the game, working it inside and out and around the perimeter. But the Gators couldn’t convert when fouled going to the basket. Florida was a woeful 5-for-13 from the free throw line in the first half.
Still, the Gators maintained a double-digit lead for much of the first half. Boynton was the offensive catalyst, hitting early back-to-back 3-pointers to put Florida up 14-5. Boynton finished the first half with 14 points and 5 assists. The Gators finished the game 16-of-29 (55.2 percent) from the free throw line.
Walker struggled early, perhaps a hangover from his poor performance in the Ohio State, before turning it on the second half. After going 1-for-6 from the field in the first half, Walker went 4-of-6 from the field in the second half. Walker also finished with 6 rebounds and 5 assists.
“As a basketball player, I think playing right away was good so it doesn’t linger with you,” Walker said. “You just want to get right back out there so you can get forget Ohio State.”
