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College Hoops Team of the Week: Florida Gators

Kenny Boynton, Ernest Ross

Florida guard Kenny Boynton (1) goes up for shot against Missouri’s Earnest Ross during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Gainesville, Fla., Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

AP

Team of the Week: Florida Gators

After watching Florida steamroll their first four SEC opponents by an average of 26.8 points -- which included Saturday’s 31 point beatdown of Missouri -- and being reminded of the fact that the Gators did the same thing to Wisconsin, Marquette and Florida State earlier in the season, the biggest question mark about this team is: ‘How did they manage to lose two games?’

It’s pretty simple, really. Florida gave away the game at Arizona, losing by one while being outscored 15-0 in the final two minutes of the half and regulation. The loss to Kansas State came when they laid an egg against Kansas State in Kansas City three days before Christmas when Kenny Boynton was shooting awfully and Mike Rosario went 1-9 from the floor.

Because Florida looks like they very well could be the best team in the country right now, and Kenpom agrees. They are second nationally in offensive efficiency. They are first nationally in defensive efficiency. They are balanced offensively, they have size inside, and they can give multiple different looks on the defensive end of the floor. On the nights that Boynton and Rosario do shoot well, the Gators are scary-good.

Five teams deserving a shout out:


  • Butler: The Bulldogs beat Gonzaga on a fluky play with 3.5 seconds left that may or may not have involved multiple push-offs by Roosevelt Jones and may or may not have come after the buzzer. But that’s almost beside the point, because the Bulldogs did it without their best player, Rotnei Clarke. If this win did anything, it drove home a point that has been made too many times about Brad Stevens’ Bulldogs: Butler has always been more than the individuals on the roster. Their success is a testament to their system and their program.

  • Iowa: The Hawkeyes had a tough start to league play, losing road games to Indiana and Michigan State before dropping a home date with Michigan, but have turned things around since. They won at Northwestern last Sunday, and followed that up no Saturday with a win over Wisconsin at home. The Hawkeyes were up 30-10 on Wisconsin early in the first half, and rode out a four-point win on the night they honored the memory of Chris Street.

  • Oregon: Believe it or not, the Ducks are sitting all by themselves at the top of the Pac-12 standings thanks to a win over No. 24 UCLA in Pauley Pavilion on Saturday and a loss by Washington to Utah. And the most impressive part? It doesn’t seem fluky. The Ducks are legit, and may actually be the best team in the Pac-12. Who saw that coming?

  • Syracuse: You go into the Yum! Center and you knock off the No. 1 team in the country on the road, you get nominated for Team of the Week. That’s just how it works.

  • Valparaiso: The Crusaders have moved into sole possession of first place in the Horizon League thanks to a pair of impressive performances this week. On Thursday, Valpo came back from down 22 points in the second half to beat Detroit on the road and followed that up with a 69-63 win over Wright State, who was previously undefeated in league play.

Best of the rest: Belmont, Colorado State, Michigan, Michigan State, Northeastern, Pitt, Rhode Island, Stetson, Wichita State

You can find Rob on twitter @RobDauster.