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Todd Golden named to Naismith Coach of the Year Watch List

On3 imageby:Zach Abolverdi•about 21 hours•

ZachAbolverdi

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Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden gestures toward the crowd against the Tennessee Volunteers during the second half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. (Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida men’s basketball head coach Todd Golden has been named to the Naismith College Coach of the Year Watch List, the Naismith Awards announced on Friday.

Golden has led the Gators to the No. 2 ranking in the nation and a 23-3 record. That includes a pair of wins against No. 1 teams as UF became the fifth team in NCAA history to beat two different top-ranked teams in the same year — and just the third to do so in the regular season. Florida had just two victories over No. 1 teams in program history prior to this season, matching that number.

The Gators have their highest ranking the Associated Press Poll since 2014, when they were No. 1 in the AP Top 25 and reached the Final Four after four consecutive trips to the Elite Eight.

“We were the fourth 1 seed in the West bracket if the tournament started today, but our goal is to be the No. 1 seed overall,” Golden said last week. “The goal is for us to be the best team in America. That’s our goal. I don’t know if we’ll get there, but we’ll continue to work for it.

“Obviously we want to give ourselves the best chance to advance in the NCAA Tournament as possible. If you’re able to lock down a 1 seed, you give yourself a much better chance to do that. So, we’ll continue to talk about it and try to reach that goal.”

Florida posted a perfect 13-0 record in nonconference play, the second-best start in program history, and the current five-game winning streak is its longest in Southeastern Conference play since 2019. UF leads the SEC with 17.1 fastbreak points per game (fourth nationally) and a +17.4 scoring margin (fifth nationally).

The Gators also rank No. 3 nationally in rebounds per game (42.0), No. 10 in scoring offense (83.8), No. 11 in field goal percentage defense (38.9), No. 11 in rebounding margin (8)

In addition to Golden’s recognition, multiple Florida players have earned accolades this season. Walter Clayton Jr. was named to the Naismith Midseason Team, the Wooden Late Midseason Top 20 and the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Midseason Watch List. Alijah Martin made the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Midseason Watch List. Alex Condon is a two-time SEC Player of the Week, and Will Richard has earned Dick Vitale’s National Player of the Week recognition.

UF returns to action on Saturday at LSU. Tip at 6 p.m. on SEC Network.

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