Florida Basketball Hour

Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) and Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) break down Florida's 66-65 victory over Missouri this past Wednesday. How Tyree Appleby and Niels Lane sparked the Florida win, and just what in the world was Cuonzo Martin thinking about defensively down the stretch? Plus, why Florida's increasingly set reliant offense may be a boon to the struggling Myreon Jones.  Neil...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) break down Florida's SEC-Big 12 Challenge comeback win over Oklahoma State. How Mike White's rotational changes and the energy from seldom-used reserve Niels Lane changed the basketball game. Plus, another monster game for Tyree Appleby, the continued development of Tuon Gatkek, and why Florida's offensive scheme was better ag...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) break down Florida's home win over fellow bubble team Mississippi State. How Florida managed to upend one of the SEC's best frontcourts without Colin Castleton, the continued development of Kowacie Reeves, an impressive night from Anthony Duruji, Jason Jitoboh's growth and more. Plus, why Florida's good shooting night might no...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) discuss Florida's 71-63 win at South Carolina on Saturday. Was this Florida's best defensive gameplan of the season? Why Kowacie Reeves has given Florida such a big boost, and why Florida's return to Princeton offense may be a huge deal for this team offensively.  The guys also answer all your listener questions, includin...

Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) and Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) discuss Florida's 64-58 home loss to No. 12 LSU. Did the Gators let one get away against a top 15 team at home?  Jake Winderman (CBS Sports) joins the show. He talks Florida's puzzling lineup rotations, makes the case for more CJ Felder, and addresses Florida's continued woes on offense.  Plus, the guys take a deep d...

Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) and Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) break down Florida's loss at No. 9 Auburn Saturday night, as well as their SEC opening home loss to No. 15 Alabama. Why Florida's 5-out offense has struggled, why a more set reliant offense is working, and why the team's margin for error is so small. Would lineup rotation changes help matters? The continued case for more Kowac...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) break down Florida's SEC opening game Wednesday night against No. 15 Alabama. Why the Tide's offense is so hard to guard-- and how Florida can exploit its advantage inside against the smaller Crimson Tide. Plus, how will Florida elect to defend Alabama's terrific guards?  The guys also discuss: 1) Florida's pre-Christmas...

Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) and Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) discuss Florida's 66-55 victory over South Florida in the Orange Bowl Classic. Why the game provided reasons to be optimistic about Florida's offense, even as the Gators shot poorly. Plus, how a tenacious Gators defense overcame a season-high 17 turnovers. Finally, the guys break down why Florida has struggled with drop pick a...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) break down Florida's tough 70-68 loss to Maryland at the Hall of Fame Invitational in Brooklyn. Why Florida's offense was better, but defense couldn't come up with enough big stops to beat a struggling Maryland team. Is it time to worry about Florida's ability to guard on the perimeter? Eric and Neil make the case that it is....

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) break down Florida's 85-55 rout of North Florida. How Florida used its defense to bounce back from one of the worst losses in school history-- and why defense has to be this team's identity. Plus, was the offense better? Eric and Neil discuss why the final score might be deceiving. Finally, is Florida still a capable shooting...

Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) and Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) break down Florida's two losses in 5 days. How Oklahoma's 5 out offense exploited Florida defensively, why Florida's offense has hit the skids, and what schematic changes could help bring the Gators back to their early season form. Plus, a lengthy breakdown of a brutal loss to Texas Southern at home. Should Florida extend its...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) break down the Gators victories at the Rocket Mortgage Fort Myers Tip-Off Classic. How the Gators erased a 10 point second half deficit to win the tournament, and why the Ohio State win will age well. The guys also break down the final segment of the game, and defend the decision not to call timeout before the Appleby game win...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) break down Florida's 81-45 rout of Milwaukee. Why Florida was so disruptive defensively, how Florida's offensive balance helps the Gators overcome tough shooting nights from some of its guards, and vital improvements from CJ Felder and Phlandrous Fleming Jr. The guys also discuss why it is time to be concerned about Jason Jito...

Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) and Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) break down Florida's 71-55 win over No. 20 Florida State. How the Gators stymied FSU defensively, and why their new 5 out offense was efficient enough to win. Other topics include: Colin Castleton's big game, two program changing plays by Anthony Duruji, and Leonard Hamilton giving full credit to Mike White's game plan. The gu...

Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) and Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) break down Florida's season opening win over the Elon Phoenix. Why the offense was so encouraging, why Colin Castleton's performance was refreshing and why the guys are still worried about Florida's ball screen defense.  Plus-- a big preview of the Gators game on Sunday against No. 20 FSU. Is this the season Mike White an...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) combine to go back and forth with predictions for the upcoming Florida basketball season, which begins Tuesday night against Elon. Topics include: who will be Florida's leading scorer, who will be Florida's best defender, which super freshman on Florida's schedule has the biggest game against the Gators, NCAA Tournament hopes,...

Mark Wise (ESPN/SEC Network), former analyst for the Florida Basketball Radio Network, joins the show this week for a conversation about the 2021-2022 Gators, where he sees the Florida program under Mike White, and why Florida's commitment to being an elite defense may pay dividends this season. Mark Wise also discusses how Florida's transfers will blend and why this should be one of White's most...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) continue their season preview of Florida basketball with a look at the rest of the Gators roster. Players discussed include Philandrous Fleming, CJ Felder, Kowacie Reeves and Jason Jitoboh. Plus, why walk-ons Jack May and Alex Klatsky are special kids, and why Florida's rotation might be longer this year than in season's past....

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) joins Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) to begin their 2 part preview of Florida's 2021-2022 season. In this episode, the guys discuss transfer guards Brandon McKissic and Myreon Jones, who offer experience and leadership to a program that has been so young the past 2 seasons. Plus, what's the ceiling for 1st Team All-SEC center Colin Castleton? And how can he bui...

Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) and Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) discuss the opening weeks of Florida's fall basketball camp. Topics include who has impressed, who is the most improved, and which of Florida's four transfers will make a huge impact. Plus, the guys discuss whether "getting old and staying old" will continue to be a viable recruiting and program building strategy in the age of...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) break down the commitment of Montverde forward Malik Reneau. Why landing a 5 star from the 305 is such a big deal for Mike White and this staff, and how Reneau can be the building block to a monster class. Plus, all your listener questions, including: - Breaking down the addition of JUCO big man Tuongthach Gatkek; - a Dream re...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) break down Florida's two selections in the NBA Draft, including Tre Mann, who became the first Gator selected in the first round since Bradley Beal. How do Mann and Scottie Lewis fit with their respective rosters? And what adjustments will they need to take the next step? Plus, Florida's SEC schedule is finalized. Why this is...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) on the return of Colin Castleton and what it means for Florida next season. Plus, with Florida's roster mostly set: what style of offense should Florida play? Why Florida's lack of an offensive identity has hurt them in the last 3 campaigns and why playing smart, personnel-based offense might redeem the Gators in 2021-22. The...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) discuss Florida's two new assistant basketball coaches: Erik Pastrana from Oklahoma State and Akeem Miskdeen of Florida Atlantic. Among the topics discussed: - Pastrana as an ace recruiter - The Dusty May connection - Issues with no offensive coordinator? - How do they replace Mincy and Nichols? - Why midmajor coaches like Mis...

Eric Fawcett (Gator Country) and Neil W. Blackmon (Saturday Down South) hand out letter grades to every Florida player departing for the NBA or returning to Florida for the 2021-22 season. Plus, what to expect from each player next season. Also, your listener questions are all answered, from 2022 recruiting targets to the impact of losing 2 assistants on the program to how Florida will defend with...