Some observations following UF’s 85-70 loss to Purdue:
– It’s time for sophomore Chris Chiozza to start at point guard, or at least get the greater balance of minutes compared to junior Kasey Hill. For all his athletic talent, the 6-foot-1 Hill doesn’t have the perimeter touch or same feel for his teammates than Chiozza, who also is a better defender. It’s no coincidence that Purdue’s 12-o run to close out the second half started when Hill checked back into the game. Hill went 1 of 8 from the floor against Purdue, was unable to hit shots from outside and couldn’t finish around the basket against Purdue’s size and length.
– Give sophomore center John Egbunu credit for stepping up against Purdue’s bigs and getting them into foul trouble in the first half. Egbunu finished with a season-high 19 points on 7 of 14 shooting (and 5 of 6 from the free-throw line), while forcing Purdue center Isaac Haas and Purdue forward A.J. Hammons into two first-half fouls. Florida coach Mike White said he felt Egbunu could have done more defensively, but offensively, it was his best game as a Gator. Egbunu didn’t commit his first foul until 5:45 left in the first half, which showed he could get into a groove offensively if he can stay out of foul trouble.
– Freshman guard KeVaughn Allen bounced back with a better game from the perimeter (12 points on 5 of 9 shooting), but for redshirt freshman guard Brandone Francis-Ramirez, it was a weekend to forget. Francis-Ramirez combined to 0-of-10 from the floor and 0-of-7 from 3-point range against St. Joe’s and Purdue. Beating Lee Humphrey in the 3-point shooting contest during Midnight Madness seems like a long time ago for Francis-Ramirez, who is still searching for consistency in his perimeter game.
