Tag: Thomas Haugh

Florida basketball talks Georgia Bulldogs win in postgame scrum

Here’s what three members of the team had to say about the win on Saturday at Georgia.

Florida basketball has really turned things around after a very rough start to the Southeastern Conference schedule and are now cruising along with an 18-7 overall record along with an 8-4 mark in SEC play. A win at the Georgia Bulldogs gave the Gators its third-straight win and seventh in their last eight tries.

It was not all smooth sailing for the Orange and Blue on Saturday afternoon, which saw its opponent explode out of the gates, ultimately taking a six-point lead into the halftime locker room. The visitors stepped up in the second half, however, and pulled off the six-point victory to win the season series against UGA.

Following the game, head coach [autotag]Todd Golden[/autotag] along with [autotag]Walter Clayton Jr[/autotag]. and [autotag]Thomas Haugh[/autotag] spoke with the media. Take a look below at what they had to offer.

Florida basketball welcomes two freshmen to campus

Florida’s basketball team welcomed a pair of freshman to campus on Monday for the summer semester. Welcome to the Swamp, Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh!

The newest additions to the Florida Gators men’s basketball team have arrived on campus. Forwards Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh are the two freshmen listed on the 2023-24 roster, and the team’s social media accounts posted a video of their arrival on Monday.

Condon hails from Perth, Australia, and has the height to play center at 6 feet-11 inches tall. He’s long and lanky like Colin Castleton was as an 18-year-old. Condon’s strength is defense right now, and he could play a significant role in Florida’s frontcourt rotation as a freshman. Think rim protector off the bench.

Haugh is another future frontcourt piece for Florida. He was a three-star recruit ranked No. 187 overall on the 2023 247Sports composite and No. 39 among power forwards.

Things will certainly look different in Gainesville next season. Todd Golden is returning just a handful of players, most of which are guards. Transfers and the additions of Condon and Haugh are supposed to replace the production lost, but nothing is ever guaranteed.

Getting those players on campus for the Summer A semester will give the new-look team a chance to develop together during workouts.

Guard Walter Clayton Jr., forward EJ Jarvics and centers Micah Handlogten and Tyrese Samuel are the new faces to know from the transfer portal.

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Gators add fourth transfer to men’s basketball team

Welcome to the Swamp, Tyrese Samuel! The former Seton Hall big man is headed to the Swamp for fifth and final year of collegiate eligibility.

After adding a pair of transfer players to the roster earlier in the week, the Florida men’s basketball team added former Seton Hall forward to [autotag]Tyrese Samuel[/autotag] on Sunday.

Samuel is a fifth-year player that saw success in 2022-23 after breaking into the starting rotation as a senior. The 6-foot-10-inch, 235-pound big man averaged 11 points and 4.3 rebounds per game last season and should be a key piece of Florida’s frontcourt rotation in 2023-24.

The Gators have also added forward [autotag]EJ Jarvis[/autotag], center [autotag]Micah Handlogten[/autotag] and guard [autotag]Walter Clayton Jr[/autotag]., who should all compete for significant minutes if not starting spots on the team.

Samuel might play a similar role to [autotag]Jason Jitoboh[/autotag], providing some size off the bench.Samuel is a strong rebounder, espescially on the offensive glass and he’s also known to force a turnover or two in each game, be it a block or steal.

The recent departure of [autotag]Alex Fudge[/autotag] ā€” who declared for the 2023 NBA draft on Monday ā€” could also mean that Samuel plays a starting role on the team. Jarvis and returner [autotag]Alek Szymczyk[/autotag] are the only expreienced forward big enough to play a traditional four. Freshmen [autotag]Alex Condon[/autotag] and [autotag]Thomas Haugh[/autotag] might aslo fit the bill.

Samuel chose Florida over Wake Forest after taking an official visit to the Swamp over the weekend. Associate head coach Carlin Hartman was already familiar with Samuel from his time recruiting for the Oklahoma Sooners, and the two rekindled the relationship during an in-home visit a week before the official trip, according to 247Sports.

The coaching connection helped Samuel land on Florida, and now he’s all in on restoring glory to the Gators name.

“I want to show people how I’m able to play pretty versatile and also I want to win games,” Samuel said. “Winning games is the main thing and making the tournament. Not just making the tournament but making a deep run and trying to get as far as possible.”

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Florida basketball adds elite transfer portal C Micah Handlogten

The Florida Gators men’s basketball team have added a second player through the transfer portal, former Marshall center Micah Handlogten.

The second year of the (Todd) Golden Era at Florida will look a lot different from the first with the departures of three of the team’s most prominent big men, Colin Castleton, Jason Jitoboh and CJ Felder.

Replacing the production those three provided is no easy task, especially Castleton’s workload, but the Gators added a major piece of its new-look frontcourt on Monday with the commitment of former Marshall center Micah Handlogten. The 7-foot-1-inch big man chose Florida over Auburn and NC State after entering the portal as one of the top big-man transfers in the country.

His commitment comes fresh off a visit to the Swamp over the weekend. On3’s Joe Tipton spoke with Handlogten about the decision and learned that the visit was among the many reasons the Sun Belt Freshman of the Year chose Florida.

ā€œI chose Florida because of the opportunity that the University holds,ā€ Handlogten said. ā€œThey have an opening for a center to come in and play major minutes. After going on my visit, I mesh really well with the players and I love the coaches. I really think I can thrive under their coaching and become a pro at Florida.ā€

Handlogten is among the nation’s top shot blockers, which is something Florida fans have gotten used to with Castleton down low. Speaking of the now-former Gator, Castleton was a direct participant in Handlogten’s recruitment, according to Jacob Rudner of 247Sports. The two big men caught up during Handlogten’s recent visit, and Castleton sold the University of Florida to him.

Gainesville is certainly a good place for big men to thrive, and Handlogten has the numbers to warrant a starting role right away. He averaged 7.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 1.2 assists in 25.3 minutes per game as a freshman.

His conditioning should only improve, which means his playing time will too. Averaging a double-double seems attainable for him in his first season in the SEC.

Handlogten is the second transfer to join the Gators over the offseason. Former Yale forward EJ Jarvis is also committed to Florida, and the two could spend plenty of time on the court together next season.

Alex Fudge, Riley Kugel and Will Richard all figure to be major pieces for UF next season, and guard Denzel Aberdeen should get a chance to play more as a sophomore.

Alex Szymczyk is the other returning player on the roster, and freshmen Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon will join the team. That leaves four scholarship spots left for Florida to fill through the transfer portal.

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Florida basketball adds Australian center to 2023 recruiting class

The Gators earned a commitment from 6-foot-11 center Alex Condon from Australia this week.

Todd Golden has landed his second commit from the class of 2023, 6-foot-11-inch Australian center [autotag]Alex Condon[/autotag], according to 247Sports.

Condon took an official visit to the University of Florida in January and couldn’t believe the atmosphere in an SEC area. Seeing Gators fans cheer on the Orange and Blue as they beat the Missouri Tigers was enough to convince him that Gainesville was home.

“I chose Florida because I believe that it was the best fit for me,” Condon said. “They are great people and the new coach is young and enthusiastic. Everyone was really welcoming and I got to meet all of the boys. It was an impressive school from the start of the visit to the end.”

Although it may take some time for Condon to find his footing at Florida, he’ll join the team right after it loses [autotag]Colin Castleton[/autotag], who is also 6-foot-11-inches. Replacing the size is good for Golden and Co., but even better is that Condon sees himself stepping into Castleton’s role seamlessly.

“They got Collin Castleton who has done really well at Florida at been super successful,” he said. “They play through him quite a lot, which I saw in the Missouri game, so he said he sees me who can follow in his footsteps and they want to play through me a lot, through passing in the post, making moves off the dribble and things like that. Also, it’s a fast style they play and so for a 6-foot-11 guy, I move pretty well. He (Golden) thinks I can play serious minutes next season, as well.”

Condon joins three-star power forward [autotag]Thomas Haugh [/autotag] in the Gators’ 2023 recruiting class. While 247Sports has yet to give Condon a rating, he’s known as a high-IQ player who screens and rolls to the rim with finishing ability. He’s also a strong rebounder, which should come naturally with his height.

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Gators hoops hosting top-50 PG on official visit in the spring

The Gators are preparing to host one of the top point guards in the class of 2024 on an official visit in the spring.

Four-star Liberty (Henderson, Nevada) point guard [autotag]Dedan Thomas Jr[/autotag]. will take an official visit to the University of Florida on March 4, according to Jacob Rudner of 247Sports.

A top-30 prospect in the class of 2024 by 247Sports’ measure, Thomas is one of the top guards in his class. He said that multiple teams have posited the idea of him reclassifying and enrolling early but appears to be non-committal to the idea at this time. Right now, Florida’s pitch is that it needs a true point guard to join a team still figuring itself out.

“They got a new coaching staff this year and I already knew their staff from other schools so I already had a relationship with them,” Thomas said. “They said they’re having a rebuild year this year and then they will have that same group next year, the same core and they said they need a point guard and someone to run the team so they have a lot of talent and it’s a great position for a point guard to be in.”

The Gators offered Thomas in June after associate head coach Carlin Hartman reached out. Hartman and Thomas are already familiar with each other from the prospect’s days playing with the coach’s son. That relationship has only strengthened with time, which bodes well for Florida. UF’s director of player development, Taurean Green, also has a relationship with Thomas.

Currently, Florida has just [autotag]Thomas Haugh[/autotag] committed from the class of 2023 and no commitments from the class of 2024. Landing Thomas would be a huge win for Todd Golden and Co. regardless of whether he reclassifies or not.

The 247Sports composite ranks Thomas at No. 30 overall in the class of 2024 and No. 3 among point guards. He’s also the top-ranked player out of the state of Nevada.

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Gators power forward commit shows out at youth tournament

This 2023 MBK commit stood out among his peers in competition this week.

Florida pledge Thomas Haugh, a power forward from Pennsylvania, is playing a big part in his team’s efforts at the USA Basketball Finals this week.

Haugh, a three-star recruit in the 2023 class, recently committed to play in Gainesville. He’s ranked as the 199th player in the nation by the 247Sports composite, but his upside as a stretch four is immediately evident. He fits the profile of a modern big, standing at 6-feet-9-inches with a medium build and a weapons-grade shooting stroke. Clearly, the Gators staff values his archetype to pull him from so far north of the Swamplands.

He’s immediately making their decision look like a smart one, impressing national talent evaluators at the UAA Finals. In his game against West Coast Elite, he hit four shots from behind the arc during the first half. He’s also able to get to the rim vertically in-game, putting up both dunks and blocks on Tuesday.

Despite a wide palate of schools making offers on Haugh, the only school that may have threatened Florida was Maryland. In the landscape of Big Ten hoops, the Terps are a roughly equivalent team to the Gators. However, Haugh’s style of play fits Golden’s style better than the grinding toughness and clock management that take precedence for Maryland.

Haugh’s name isn’t one you’ll be seeing on a jersey in Gainesville next season, but he’s worth keeping an eye on this year. His skill set is fun and he’s a good candidate to rise up rankings as 2023 recruiting gains steam.

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Top 50 2023 power forward commits to the Gators

The basketball team added a recruit recently, take a look at who joined Todd Golden’s squad.

Thomas Haugh, the 6-9, 200-pound power forward out of Pennsburg, Pennsylvania, announced his commitment to the University of Florida earlier this week via Twitter.

The 2023 Perkiomen School prospect is ranked 41st among 2023 power forwards according to 247Sports. Haugh is the first prospect to commit to the Gators in the 2023 class.

Haugh’s profile has risen as of late after he played with Under Armour’s We-R1 AAU program. His play in that circuit landed him high-major offers from programs such as Maryland, Georgia Tech, Illinois, and of course, Florida. Before that, his offers included programs such as Boston University, Holy Cross, Quinnipiac, among others.

For Haugh, the decision to commit was a simple one, as he told 247Sports’ Jacob Rudner that UF was considered to be his “dream school” dating back to watching Florida quarterback [autotag]Tim Tebow[/autotag] carve out his legacy in Gainesville. Haugh’s commitment came after wrapping up an official visit to Gainesville earlier this week.

Before Haugh can join head coach [autotag]Todd Golden[/autotag] in Gainesville, the new Gators head coach must tackle the challenge of coaching a team coming off a second-round NIT exit at the hands of Butler. The 2022 Florida men’s basketball season is scheduled to tip off in late November at the Phil Knight Legacy tournament to take place in Portland, Oregon.