No. 8 Florida heads to Arkansas to face familiar foe John Calipari in new surroundings

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GAINESVILLE — Beating John Calipari on the road last season was a massive step for Florida coach Todd Golden and his program.

A win now against Coach Cal away from Gainesville could signal a natural progression for Golden’s surging Gators.

Calipari’s surprising offseason move from Kentucky to Arkansas makes the SEC’s winningest coach an easier mark than with the Wildcats, who won the 2015 national title and a dozen conference crowns — six each during the regular season and conference tournament — while he was there.

The No. 8 Gators (14-1, 1-1) aim to take advantage Saturday in Fayetteville and build on Tuesday night’s 73-43 rout of top-ranked Tennessee.

“It was an incredible win; obviously a great program-building win that speaks volumes about where we are at,” Golden said Friday. “But if we’re in April and we’re talking about our win against Tennessee in January, we haven’t done what we want to do.”

The Razorbacks (11-4, 0-2) have yet to find their stride but are usually a tough out at Bud Walton Arena, where UF has lost two straight and is winless since 2019.

An 89-87 win Dec. 11 against Michigan in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden was notable. Otherwise, Arkansas is 0-4 against other opponents ranked in Quad 1 of the NCAA’s Net rankings, including a 73-66 loss Wednesday night at home to Ole Miss.

Calipari’s squads, composed primarily of one-and-done freshmen for more than a decade at Kentucky, typically improve as a season progresses.

“They have really talented guards, and they’re long, they’re athletic, they’re really good around the rim — and generally his teams play that way,” Golden said. “As the year goes on, they’ll continue to take on his identity more and more.”

Yet the deck also isn’t stacked in Cal’s favor.

The 5-star prospects that flocked to Lexington to play for Big Blue Nation are going to need convincing to head to the Ozarks.

Forward Adou Theiro, a 6-foot-8, 220-pound junior, followed Calipari to…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/no-8-florida-heads-arkansas-000000478.html

Author : Orlando Sentinel

Publish date : 2025-01-11 00:00:00

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