Florida will look to break a two-game losing streak and get on track in Southeastern Conference play when it hosts Texas A&M on Wednesday.
The Gators (7-6, 0-1 SEC) have lost games against Oklahoma and Auburn, averaging just 55.5 points during the two-game stretch.
The offensive struggles have centered on an inability to hit shots from the perimeter. Florida is just 5 for 41 from 3-point range (12.2 percent) over its last two games.
“We just need to stay the course,” Gators coach Todd Golden said. “The encouraging thing for us is early in the year when we were playing the better opponents on our schedule, we struggled to get good shots. The last two games, against Oklahoma and on the road against Auburn, I don’t think that was the case. We did a really good job of manufacturing good looks, we just didn’t knock them down.”
Florida is coming off a 61-58 loss at Auburn in its SEC opener. The Gators held the Tigers to just 38.2-percent shooting from the floor but were bullied on the boards. Florida was outrebounded 40-28 as Auburn scored 12 second-chance points off 17 offensive rebounds.
The Gators will begin a stretch of three of their next four games at home, which will include a matchup Saturday against Georgia and former head coach Mike White, as well as a Jan. 14 meeting with No. 20 Missouri.
“They are must-win games for our resume,” Florida guard Myreon Jones said. “I just think they are games that we’re supposed to win, that we should win.”
Texas A&M (8-5, 0-0) is coming off an 86-66 win over Prairie View A&M last week. The Aggies will take a two-game win streak into their SEC opener.
Sophomore guard Wade Taylor IV has sparked Texas A&M’s offense this season, averaging a team-high 15.5 points per game while shooting 38.8 percent from 3-point range.
“We need to take everything we’ve learned thus far into the season and execute those things going forward,” Texas A&M coach Buzz Williams said. “We have to have pace and we have to have purpose. It’s important to go fast and know what you’re doing.”
Florida leads the overall series against Texas A&M 9-6 and is 5-0 at home all-time against the Aggies. The last time the two teams met, Texas A&M knocked Florida out of the SEC Tournament quarterfinals with an 83-80 overtime win last March at Tampa, Fla.
–Field Level Media