AJC > Sports > Columnists > Archives > 2007 > February > 28 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USGators still the team to beat
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Terence Moore
The team to beat heading into March Madness hasn’t changed.
So ignore the other stuff.
Those three losses during its last four games. Shaky or no defense. Turnovers, turnovers, turnovers.
Even so, you still have to take Florida to win the national championship in men’s basketball over everybody else. Here are the five reasons why: Joakim Noah, Taurean Green, Corey Brewer, Al Horford and Lee Humphrey. They were the starters when the Gators won it all last season, and they remain the starters today.
Now about the Gators’ last three losses. They all were on the road. They lost at Vanderbilt, which is no disgrace. They shouldn’t have lost to struggling LSU, but those things happen during a season. They just lost to Tennessee, but you had normally no-nonsense women’s coach Pat Summitt whipping the crowd into a frenzy as an impromptu cheerleader. There also was that rousing pre-game speech to the Volunteers from Peyton Manning.
Florida didn’t have a chance.
Well, not in that Tennessee game.
As for the rest of the way, the great Al McGuire used to say that he liked for his teams to struggle before the NCAA tournament so that they could start listening to the coach again.
That will happen to Florida, which previously had a 17-game winning streak before their slide. And remember: The Gators struggled near the end last season, and then they won 11 straight to become national champions.
Permalink | Comments (32) | Post your comment | Categories: Final Four, Quick Hit, Terence Moore
Comments
By Baller
February 28, 2007 10:55 AM | Link to this
Top 1% of 1%
By Auburnfan1
February 28, 2007 10:59 AM | Link to this
What a dumb article! Did you watch the game last night, i don’t care what the circumstances are, they got their butts beat! I don’t think the Gators are still the team to beat in anyones eyes.
By Mean D
February 28, 2007 11:28 AM | Link to this
Barring a miracle the Gators will win it all again. I think they lost 5 in a row about this time last year.
By Jon
February 28, 2007 11:28 AM | Link to this
I don’t know if Terence has been paying attention but the quality of basketball is way up this year. Does anyone think that Final Four teams like George Mason and LSU could have done what they did this season? Teams like Ohio State, Wisconsin, UNC, UCLA, Kansas, & Texas A&M are much better than those teams that Florida beat last year. The competition is much tougher and while Florida is still one of the teams to beat, it is simply not the dominant favorite that Mr. Moore believes it is.
By notaMoorefan
February 28, 2007 11:39 AM | Link to this
Please……Quit making excuses for UF, if a “championship” caliber team loses on the road because of the fan frenzy, or a pregame pep-talk, maybe they aren’t the elite team anymore. They lost because UT played better, not because Ms. Summit dawned pom-poms.
By J
February 28, 2007 11:51 AM | Link to this
I don’t think Florida will get past the sweet 16, they are a team to beat only because they are the defending champion.
By Michael
February 28, 2007 12:06 PM | Link to this
You would be incorrect my friend about this prediction. Although Florida is a good team they are not a great team; they are not playing defense they can’t hit a shot from 3 (which they depend so heavily on). If they ran into a Georgetown, Ohio State, or Louisville who plays good defense and shoots well they would go down. Honestly why couldn’t Texas A & M to win it.
By AtlantaGatorLee
February 28, 2007 12:22 PM | Link to this
We have clearly lost our mojo. If we find it soon, we will be fine. If not, we are in trouble. Funny, usually Payton’s involvement leads to a Gator WIN!
By Chris
February 28, 2007 12:30 PM | Link to this
Its amazing how a Atlanta based columnists can support a Florida team with 3 out of 4 losses. And he can’t not support any team here in the city of Atlanta. This man needs to leave Atlanta now..
By Juan
February 28, 2007 12:39 PM | Link to this
The Gators will always be a contender in the big dance as long as Billy Donovan is their coach. This guy is 100% in control of his team and barely breaks a sweat when he’s down 1 with .08 on the clock. He’s a real champion. If UGA or Tech could find a winner like Donovan, then they’d be on the right path. Why can’t Hewitt keep his players around? He seems to like recruiting the guys that stay one year and then go pro. That is just dumb…Donovan gets the same type of players and they wind up staying 4 years. Thats what a great coach does.
By JoeTorre
February 28, 2007 12:42 PM | Link to this
What do you expect from Terence Moore? This is the same guy who used to say how great Gary Sheffield was for the city of Atlanta..
By Reem
February 28, 2007 12:44 PM | Link to this
Chris,
When a team in Atlanta or this state for that matter has only 5 losses at this point in the season and has already wrap up the regular season conference title and won a national championship, I’m sure Mr. Moore will be more than happy to support them in the same manner.
By The Big Toe
February 28, 2007 12:56 PM | Link to this
I can’t believe that Mr. Moore didn’t criticize Tennessee for not inviting Tee Martin to the game.
By Chewy
February 28, 2007 12:57 PM | Link to this
Maybe Tech can hire Tubby Smith after Kentucky fires him in a few weeks. Seriously, they have to win out just to stay on the bubble. Kentucky fans don’t like going to the NIT so I say Tubby is on the way out. Tubbs is more consistent than Hewitt and a heck of a better coach. With Coach Hewitt at the helm, Tech will be steeped in mediocrity forever (unless they get to play Nevada every year in the tourny)Why does it suddenly seem that there are no more great coaches available?
By Big D
February 28, 2007 1:16 PM | Link to this
Yeah, AtlantaGatorLee, I guess that’s the same involvement that Peyton had against your boy Rex in SB XLI …
By skippy
February 28, 2007 1:19 PM | Link to this
So your conclusion is that they’ll win the championship because all of their starters have returned from last year’s team? Great analysis. You should be given an award for this type of sports-writing. No, really.
By Heard it here first
February 28, 2007 1:33 PM | Link to this
Big D: Thats the only time he’s beaten a Gator. Im sure he was displaying as much envy that he was a failure as he was pride for that win.
Personally.. its amazing to see so much hate towards one school. No other school in the SEC is hated as much as the Gators. Such envy and jealousy is not very becoming is it.
By Carey
February 28, 2007 1:37 PM | Link to this
Couldn’t disagree with you more. Florida’s easier early schedule is coming back to haunt them. I would be surprised to see them win the SEC tournament and probably will end up as a 2 or 3 seed in the NCAAs. There I would think they’ll go to the Sweet 16 and lose first round. Predicting the tournament this year will be tough since there aren’t any dominating teams. If I had to pick the best team in the USA, it would be North Carolina.
By volluv
February 28, 2007 1:52 PM | Link to this
Have you seen Florida’s last four games? They’ve lost three. Go Vols!!
By jc
February 28, 2007 1:54 PM | Link to this
A team from the Big 10 will win it all
By Mr Wrestling #2
February 28, 2007 2:00 PM | Link to this
Terrence, You call yourself a sportswriter. What idiotic logic. If Pat Summit in a cheerleading skirt is the reason Fl that Florida lost last evening then they are in even more trouble than they seem. Dang that was stupid
By Eli
February 28, 2007 2:13 PM | Link to this
“Florida’s easier early schedule is coming back to haunt them”
Does that include the game where they beat Ohio State by 26?
By scooter11
February 28, 2007 2:18 PM | Link to this
But, Terrence, they have a vanilla coach.
By Vol4ever
February 28, 2007 2:50 PM | Link to this
Florida has a very good team and almost came back against us. They will do fine in the tourney. We were just better last night.
By Nina
February 28, 2007 3:37 PM | Link to this
They are the team to beat because they are the defending Nat’l Champs. Thats it. The rest of your reasons are ridiculous.
By Haze Gray
February 28, 2007 3:57 PM | Link to this
I agree 100%. Mr Moore is right. The kids will be pumped and ready for all comeers.
By ATL Gator
February 28, 2007 4:17 PM | Link to this
Great article. 3 away losses and near end of the year. They had the SEC wrapped up weeks ago. They will handle Kentucky on Sunday and clean up in ATL. The Gators love Atlanta. SEC Football championship, SEC tourney champs, and of course the final 4. What a great year…if your a GATOR.
By Darrin "The Vent King"
February 28, 2007 4:53 PM | Link to this
To “Michael” You’ve got to be kidding, no defense? Guess who is #1 in the SEC in defense? Yeah that’s right the Gators. Okay, no excuses for the last four games, especially last night. Tenn played a great game and beat us senseless, can’t take that away from them at all, BUT don’t think the reign of the Gators is over ‘cause it ain’t. Georgetown, yes they are good, but they were good last year and people said we would lose to them come tourney time. Guess what happened. Ohio State? Beat the snot out of them already this year and made them look like a middle school girl’s b-ball team. Can’t hit a three? Guess who leads the NATION in three-point shooting accuracy- Lee Humphries…by a freaking MILE!! So while all you wanna-bees continue to get victimized by false hope, beware the Gators are still the team to beat. Everyone wants to pretend we can’t win just because of FOUR games. Does anyone remember before that streak the Gators hadn’t lost ONE game since LAST year (Dec. 3rd ‘06) during a SEVENTEEN game winning streak? So don’t fool yourselves into thinking we’re done or you might get CHOMPED!!!!
P.S. Hey everyone, keep predicting gloom and doom for us like you did with the football championship so we can shock the world again.
We love that!!!
GO GATORS!!!
By ATL Gator
February 28, 2007 5:08 PM | Link to this
Zero!! The same amount of times Peyton manning beat the Gators.
By Jay
February 28, 2007 7:34 PM | Link to this
One!! The amount of times Peyton Manning beat a Gator qb in the Super Bowl.
By jackson677
March 1, 2007 10:13 AM | Link to this
I surprised they had Payton Manning speak at the UT game. I would have thought, according to your pre Super Bowl article, that they would have had Tee Martin speak. By the way, do you know where I can get a Tee Martin NFL rookie card?
Florida might win the SEC Tourney, but there is a strong possibility for an upset, which will bode well for the other SEC teams getting into the tournament. Florida repeating as the National Champion? Possibly, if they get all the breaks like they did last year. I could even pull for them except they whine at every call that goes against them.
By O. Verit
March 1, 2007 10:32 AM | Link to this
Dudes…once a college player leaves for the pros, his college days are over. Even if he’s a Gator or a Vol (actually, especially if he’s a Gator or a Vol). These guys can afford to buy there alma maters. Get a life.