Tag: Noah Locke

Locke heads to Louisville after three productive seasons in Gainesville

Locke has been arguably Florida’s most consistent scorer over the last three years, but he’s now heading elsewhere for his final season.

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Name: Noah Locke

Number: 10

Position: Guard

Class: Junior

Height: 6’3″

Weight: 203 lbs

Hometown: Baltimore

High School: McDonogh School

Twitter: @_NoahLocke

2020 statistics:

GP FG% REB AST PTS
25 42.5 2.4 0.7 10.6

Overview:

Originally a four-star recruit and the No. 15 shooting guard in the class of 2018, Noah Locke joined the Gators over offers from big-time programs like Michigan and Ohio State. As a freshman in 2018-19, he finished second on the team in scoring with 9.4 points per game and averaged 2.3 three-pointers, fifth-best in the SEC. He started 26 of 36 games that season and scored a season-high 27 points against Texas A&M.

He assumed a starting role once again as a sophomore (for 29 of 31 games, albeit), and his numbers only increased. He averaged 10.6 points and 2.5 rebounds, and his 48.1% mark from downtown was the best for any SEC player with 50+ makes since 1996. He also notched his first (and only) career double-double in a win over Long Beach State.

As a junior in 2020-21, Locke almost entirely replicated his stat line from the previous season. He had the same points (10.6), assists (0.7) and steals (0.6) averages, and his rebounding dropped to just 2.4 while his field-goal percentage dropped by just 0.4 percentage points. Despite his consistency as a shooter, he didn’t run the point much and rarely facilitated the offense.

Apparently in search of a bigger role, he entered the transfer portal this offseason. He announced that he would be joining Louisville, where he will hope he’s more productive under coach Chris Mack.

Video:

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This former Florida sharpshooter is headed to Louisville via the transfer portal

Florida’s former three-point specialist left the program for a better opportunity elsewhere, and he’s found his home with the Cardinals.

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The Gators men’s basketball team bid farewell to a number of players following the conclusion of the NCAA tournament, and Saturday night, one of those players has found a new home for next season. Reporting indicates that shooting guard Noah Locke, a three-year starter at Florida, has committed to play for the Louisville Cardinals next season.

Locke, a four-star recruit who found immediate success with the Gators, hit the transfer portal on March 25 and was instantly one of the top targets available. A number of high major clubs reached out to him within the first few days after he opened his recruiting availability.

Unlike many players who transfer, he’s a known quantity who is without question capable of performing at the high major level. The Gators leaned heavily on Locke during their 2020-2021 run, mainly relying on him for designed catch-and-shoot plays and as a pick and roll ball handler. Averaging 10.6 points per game and hitting 40.4% of three-point shots, he will rightly be expected to play at a similar level for the Cardinals next season if they use him in a similar role.

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Because he was not expected to leave the program, naturally, there was speculation as to the reason why Locke entered the portal. Of course, it’d be tough to know for sure unless we heard it from his mouth. However, one hypothesis is that he wanted to be used as a point guard, which is not a role White has been willing to put him in during his career with the Gators.

At the end of the day, Locke is a nice piece to have in the program. He raises the floor of the team considerably, which is part of what helped keep the Gators afloat when the world seemed to be crashing down around their ears. However, he doesn’t do much to raise the ceiling of the team – especially if he’s been promised a leading role in the Cards’ offense.

Locke joins grad transfer Jarrod West in the Louisville backcourt. Pursued by a number of high major teams, West is a defensive terror and was a prolific scorer in the Conference USA East. A much larger guard with a proven offensive billing, Locke is the yin to West’s yang and the pair will be a force to be reckoned with in the ACC.

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These are the players departing the Florida Gators mens’ basketball team

The Gators are losing a number of players after a difficult season, headlined by Tre Mann and including four who filed to transfer.

In light of all they had to face in the 2020-21 season, it’s tough not to think of the Gators as a success after managing a not-too-shabby 15-10 record and getting to the second round of both the SEC and NCAA tournaments. However, despite their accomplishments, the program is witnessing something of a mass exodus of talent, extending to both the players and the coaching staff.

Because of the unusually large number of players departing for other teams, let’s take a look at each. Of course, there could be more bad news for the team coming down the pipe, but so far only these players have declared their intent to find new homes. Additionally, those who have entered the transfer portal could remove their names from the market and return to Gainesville if they have a change of heart.

Florida’s mass exodus continues as guard Noah Locke enters transfer portal

First it was sophomore point guard Ques Glover and now a few hours later, junior guard Noah Locke entered the portal per Jeff Borzello.

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A third member of the Florida Gators basketball program is set to leave following a tough 2020-21 season.

For the second time on Thursday, Florida received news that a player was set to enter the transfer portal. First, it was sophomore point guard Ques Glover and now a few hours later, junior guard Noah Locke entered the portal per Jeff Borzello.

The news of the two transfers comes a few days after talented sophomore guard Tre Mann announced he was entering the 2021 NBA Draft.

The 6-foot-2-inch guard committed to Florida as a four-star prospect and the No. 80 player in the 2018 recruiting class. In three years with Florida, Locke averaged near 10 points a game in each season including 9.4 in is freshman year. He upped that production to 10.6 points per game as a sophomore and then 10.6 points again in his junior season.

Additionally, Florida’s now-former assistant coach Jordan Mincy accepted the head coach position with the Jacksonville Dolphins on Wednesday, presenting an even deeper vacuum of talent left behind in the program that extends into the coaching staff. 

With the departure of Locke, head coach Mike White will now have to fill three spots on the roster going into next season. He can look to the transfer portal to do so as it should be a wild offseason in terms of players leaving schools.

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Florida’s lopsided win over Stetson shows they are who we think they are

It can be tough to parse out is real from what is a by-product of a trouncing, but here are three takeaways from Florida’s game on Sunday.

The Florida Gators rolled into Sunday’s game fresh off a resounding win against Boston College and kept right on dominating, this time against the Stetson Hatters. With a final score of 86-40 and all 15 players on the Gators’ roster getting playing time, this game had all the trappings of a blowout.

By the time the play clock ran out, four of Florida’s players put double-digits on the scoreboard and a cool dozen had contributed to the scoring in some fashion.

Before this game began, we identified playing assertive defense as a key to keeping Stetson in their place, and that’s exactly what Florida did. They ended the game with 30 defensive rebounds (more than double Stetson’s offensive rebounds) and stole the ball eight times. Gators defenders refused to give the opposition an open look and they struggled badly under the pressure. The final tally revealed that the eye test was correct; the Hatters shot an anemic 19.6 percent from the field.

But after a win with an absurd 46-point spread, it can be tough to parse out what was real from what was a by-product of the blowout. Here are three believable takeaways from Florida’s game on Sunday.

Three keys to a Florida Gators victory against Boston College

The Gators can’t afford to phone in their performance on Thursday evening – here are three things that need to happen for a Florida win.

The Gators are squaring off against the Boston College Eagles in their second and final game at the Bubbleville event at Mohegan Sun Area. With their first win under their belt, the Florida squad will be on the hunt for another. Boston College won’t go down without a fight, though, and the Gators could find themselves in a shootout with their offensively gifted opponents.

Like the Army game on Wednesday, Florida is favored by oddsmakers in this matchup, although BetMGM has them ahead by only a slim 5.5 point margin. If the team is going to pull out another victory, they’ll need to be firing on all cylinders.

In light of the competitive nature that this game is likely to take, here are three keys to a successful game for the Florida Gators.

CBS Sports has Gators men’s basketball in top 25 of preseason rankings

Gators men’s basketball team sits at No. 21 on CBS Sports’ preseason rankings released last Thursday in anticipation of the upcoming season.

CBS Sports released its projected best 68 teams for the 2020-21 season last Thursday as the publication works through its college basketball rankings from No. 1 to No. 357 in anticipation of this year’s Division I hoops schedule.

Unlike last season, when the Florida Gators men’s basketball team started off ranked No. 6 by the Associated Press Preseason Poll, expectations are much more tempered this time around after UF failed to meet the high benchmark set and ultimately lost starting sophomore point guard Andrew Nembhard to the transfer portal.

Despite the difficulties encountered last season, as well as the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic since, CBS Sports feels fairly favorable towards Florida approaching the start of the college basketball schedule, placing them at No. 21 in the nation before action begins.

Here is what senior writer Matt Norlander had to say about Mike White’s squad coming into the 2020-21 season.

21. Florida: A couple of SEC coaches told me they’d tab UF’s Keyontae Johnson as the guy to be SEC Player of the Year. If that happens Florida’s a top-four seed to be sure. Mike White benefitted by getting Johnson, Scottie Lewis, Tre Mann and Noah Locke back. That’s a really solid quartet, and I’d expect the Gators to be more of a team, with better chemistry, than last season’s up-and-down group. After ranking 61st in defensive efficiency last season, I also expect this to be a top-30 crew in defending the rock. SEC is brawny at the top.

Who knows what lies in store for the coming months, but if the games do go on, there is a lot to be excited about with the men’s hoops team. Hopefully, they do a better job playing the underdog than they did the favorite last season.

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