No. 1 Florida gets its first home test Thursday night, and the early read on the Gators is pretty simple: the pieces are there for another championship run if the shooting keeps holding up.
Florida opened the season with a 77-67 win over No. 14 Miami in Tampa, and the biggest takeaway was that the Gators looked far more dangerous from the perimeter than they did a year ago. That matters because long-range shooting was a major problem last season, when Florida shot just 31.2% from 3-point range and eventually fell to Iowa in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Against Miami, the Gators went 11-for-26 from deep and showed the kind of balance they were missing last season. Todd Golden liked what he saw.
"I'm really excited about the 3-point shooting, let's talk about that. We were 42 percent from three," Gators head coach Todd Golden said. "Nobody thinks we can shoot. But I think we can shoot, I think we got a chance."
Thomas Haugh was at the center of it all. He finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds for his ninth career double-double, while also adding four assists and two steals in 38 minutes. Haugh knocked down four of his eight attempts from beyond the arc and helped Florida stretch Miami’s defense.
The Gators also leaned on their defense to close the game. Miami shot just 29% in the second half and managed only three made field goals over the final 12 minutes.
The one area that clearly left room for cleanup was at the line. Florida missed 15 of 35 free throws.
"We're gonna get in the gym, we'll be good," Haugh said.
Jacksonville arrives in Gainesville with a win of its own after rolling past Trinity College of Jacksonville 105-61 on Monday night. The Dolphins had four newcomers in their starting five, including preseason All-Atlantic Sun selection Jamie Phillips Jr., who scored 18 points on 7-for-11 shooting.
"This feels good and it shows what we can do and our potential for this season," Phillips Jr. said. "It just gives me confidence going into these Power Five games."
Jacksonville also piled up 30 assists in the opener, with James Morrow standing out defensively by blocking five shots, the most by a Dolphins player since January 2025. Caleb Williams matched a career high with six assists.
Freshman center Sam Mbingazo also made an impression for Jacksonville with a game-high eight rebounds, but Thursday brings a much tougher assignment against Florida’s front line of Alex Condon and Reuben Chinyelu.
"When you talk about a freshman understanding how much effort and energy he brings," Mincy said. "He's so unselfish. He really understands his role. ... In this climate, it's rare to see someone who doesn't care about scoring and more about doing the little things."
Florida leads the all-time series 33-5 and has won five straight against Jacksonville since the 2010-11 season. The Dolphins also have three road games against power conference opponents in November, with Georgia on Nov. 16 and Indiana on Nov. 24 still ahead.
In Other News...
Florida Takes Another Hit As Oklahoma Game Nears
Floridas injury picture got a little thinner again as the Week 10 SEC availability report came out ahead of the Oklahoma matchup, with seven players listed for the Gators. The biggest change came with wide receiver Vernell Brown III, who was downgraded from questionable to out after being diagnosed with a grade-1 PCL strain, adding another setback to an offense trying to sort through its options.
Defensive lineman Jeramiah McCloud is also unavailable because of a suspension, while Bailey Stockton and Emmanuel Oyebadejo moved in the other direction and were upgraded to probable. Oklahoma enters with its own long list of availability concerns, but Floridas challenge is more immediate: the Gators are still trying to piece together the right lineup as the game approaches, and the final roster picture is far from settled. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Faces A Late-Season SEC Test That Will Say Plenty
Floridas late-season stretch brings a familiar kind of pressure, with the Gators heading into an SEC matchup against Oklahoma in a game that should tell a lot about where this team stands. The preview points to the usual mix of personnel and game-plan questions that matter this time of year, when every snap can shape postseason positioning and the conference picture around it.
Around the league, the broader weekend slate adds even more context, with Florida State facing Boston College and UCF meeting Kansas in games that also carry meaningful stakes. For Florida, the focus is less on the surrounding noise and more on how the Gators handle a test like this one, because matchups at this stage tend to expose whether a team is built for the next step or still searching for answers. [Read more 🡒]
Former Florida Tight End Has Extra Reason To Hurt The Gators
Hayden Hansens move from Gainesville to Norman already gave Florida fans plenty to think about, and now the former Gators tight end has an added layer of motivation heading into an upcoming SEC matchup. Hansen spent three seasons at the University of Florida before transferring to Oklahoma after Billy Napier was fired, and he has settled into a role with the Sooners this fall.
He has appeared in five games for Oklahoma this season, catching seven passes for 84 yards and a touchdown, and the next stop on the schedule brings him face to face with his old program. For Florida, it is one more reminder that roster turnover can linger well beyond a coaching change, especially when a familiar player ends up on the other sideline. [Read more 🡒]