# 2022–23 Florida Gators men's basketball team

The 2022–23 Florida Gators men's basketball team represented the University of Florida during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by first-year head coach Todd Golden, and played their home games at the O'Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida as a member of the Southeastern Conference. They finished the season 16–15, 9–9 in SEC Play to finish in eighth place. As the No. 8 seed in the SEC tournament, they lost in the second round to Mississippi State. They received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament where they lost to UCF 67-49 in the first round.

## Previous season

The Gators finished the 2021–22 season 20–14, 9–9 in SEC Play to finish a five-way tie for fifth place. As the No. 9 seed in the SEC tournament, they lost in the second round to Texas A&M. They received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament where they defeated Iona in the first round before losing to Xavier.
On March 13, 2022, head coach Mike White left the school to take the head coaching position at Georgia. On March 18, the school named San Francisco head coach Todd Golden the team's new head coach.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Anthony Duruji | 4 | F | 6'7" | 209 | RS Senior | Germantown, MD | Graduated/went undrafted in 2022 NBA draft |
| Elijah Kennedy | 10 | G | 6'3" | 185 | Freshman | Virginia Beach, VA | Transferred to Texas State |
| Keyontae Johnson | 11 | F | 6'5" | 229 | Senior | Norfolk, VA | Graduate transferred to Kansas State |
| Tyree Appleby | 22 | G | 6'1" | 163 | RS Senior | Jacksonville, AR | Graduate transferred to Wake Forest |
| Brandon McKissic | 23 | G | 6'3" | 185 | GS Senior | Ferguson, MO | Graduated |
| Phlandrous Fleming Jr. | 24 | G | 6'5" | 205 | GS Senior | Athens, GA | Graduated |
| Tuongthach Gatkek | 32 | F | 6'9" | 172 | Sophomore | Portland, ME | Transferred to Texas State |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Trey Bonham | 2 | G | 6'0" | 170 | Junior | Mobile, AL | VMI |
| Alex Fudge | 3 | F | 6'8" | 185 | Sophomore | Jacksonville, FL | LSU |
| Will Richard | 5 | G | 6'5" | 195 | Sophomore | Fairburn, GA | Belmont |
| Kyle Lofton | 11 | G | 6'3" | 185 | GS Senior | Hillside, NJ | St. Bonaventure |

### 2022 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Riley Kugel #19 SF | Orlando, FL | Dr. Phillips High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | May 23, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 84 ||||||
| Denzel Aberdeen #53 SG | Orlando, FL | Dr. Phillips High School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Sep 19, 2021 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Aleks Szymczyk PF | Germany | N/A | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 233 lb (106 kg) | Sep 1, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2022 Florida Basketball Commits". Scout.com. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

### 2023 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2023) :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Thomas Haugh #39 SF | Pennsburg, PA | Perkiomen School | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jun 29, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2023 Florida Basketball Commits". Scout.com. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. |||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 7, 2022* 8:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | | Stony Brook | W 81–45 | 1–0 | 16 – Fudge | 5 – 4 tied | 4 – Bonham | O'Connell Center (7,377) Gainesville, FL |
| November 11, 2022* 7:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | | Kennesaw State | W 88–78 | 2–0 | 33 – Castleton | 9 – Castleton | 3 – Castleton | O'Connell Center (9,072) Gainesville, FL |
| November 14, 2022* 7:00 p.m., SECN | | Florida Atlantic | L 74–76 | 2–1 | 30 – Castleton | 12 – Castleton | 6 – Lofton | O'Connell Center (7,180) Gainesville, FL |
| November 18, 2022* 8:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Florida State Rivalry | W 76–67 | 3–1 | 25 – Castleton | 9 – Castleton | 3 – 2 tied | Donald L. Tucker Civic Center (9,182) Tallahassee, FL |
| November 24, 2022* 5:30 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Xavier Phil Knight Legacy quarterfinals | L 83–90 | 3–2 | 23 – Bonham | 10 – Castleton | 6 – Lofton | Veterans Memorial Coliseum (4,465) Portland, OR |
| November 25, 2022* 6:00 p.m., ESPNU | | vs. Oregon State Phil Knight Legacy consolation second round | W 81–68 | 4–2 | 19 – Bonham | 7 – Lofton | 4 – 2 tied | Moda Center (6,526) Portland, OR |
| November 27, 2022* 8:30 p.m., ESPNU | | vs. West Virginia Phil Knight Legacy fifth place game | L 55–84 | 4–3 | 17 – Lofton | 7 – Fudge | 4 – Lofton | Chiles Center (1,016) Portland, OR |
| November 30, 2022* 8:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | | Florida A&M | W 102–62 | 5–3 | 16 – Bonham | 10 – Fudge | 5 – Castleton | O'Connell Center (6,515) Gainesville, FL |
| December 4, 2022* 2:00 p.m., SECN | | Stetson | W 89–51 | 6–3 | 14 – Richard | 8 – Fudge | 4 – Jones | O'Connell Center (7,087) Gainesville, FL |
| December 7, 2022* 9:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | No. 5 UConn | L 54–75 | 6–4 | 13 – 2 tied | 8 – Castleton | 2 – Castleton | O'Connell Center (9,046) Gainesville, FL |
| December 14, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Ohio | W 82–48 | 7–4 | 20 – Reeves | 10 – Fudge | 7 – Lofton | Amalie Arena (5,023) Tampa, FL |
| December 20, 2022* 9:30 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Oklahoma Jumpman Invitational | L 53–62 | 7–5 | 22 – Castleton | 8 – Castleton | 2 – Lofton | Spectrum Center (8,745) Charlotte, NC |
| December 28, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 20 Auburn | L 58–61 | 7–6 (0–1) | 15 – Reeves | 8 – Castleton | 4 – Castleton | Neville Arena (9,121) Auburn, AL |
| January 4, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | Texas A&M | L 63–66 | 7–7 (0–2) | 21 – Bonham | 5 – 4 tied | 4 – Bonham | O'Connell Center (7,023) Gainesville, FL |
| January 7, 2023 1:00 p.m., SECN | | Georgia | W 82–75 | 8–7 (1–2) | 18 – Lofton | 9 – Richard | 5 – Castleton | O'Connell Center (9,077) Gainesville, FL |
| January 10, 2023 7:00 p.m., SECN | | at LSU | W 67–56 | 9–7 (2–2) | 18 – Castleton | 7 – Castleton | 3 – Jones | Pete Maravich Assembly Center (9,159) Baton Rouge, LA |
| January 14, 2023 3:30 p.m., SECN | | No. 20 Missouri | W 73–64 | 10–7 (3–2) | 18 – Richard | 13 – Castleton | 6 – Castleton | O'Connell Center (9,301) Gainesville, FL |
| January 18, 2023 7:00 p.m., SECN | | at Texas A&M | L 52–54 | 10–8 (3–3) | 14 – Castleton | 13 – Castleton | 3 – Fudge | Reed Arena (12,126) College Station, TX |
| January 21, 2023 8:30 p.m., SECN | | at Mississippi State | W 61–59 | 11–8 (4–3) | 13 – Castleton | 8 – Lofton | 6 – Lofton | Humphrey Coliseum (8,660) Starkville, MS |
| January 25, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | South Carolina | W 81–60 | 12–8 (5–3) | 18 – Castleton | 10 – Jones | 8 – Jones | O'Connell Center (7,831) Gainesville, FL |
| January 28, 2023* 6:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 5 Kansas State Big 12/SEC Challenge | L 50–64 | 12–9 | 13 – Castleton | 8 – Castleton | 6 – Kugel | Bramlage Coliseum (11,000) Manhattan, KS |
| February 1, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | No. 2 Tennessee | W 67–54 | 13–9 (6–3) | 20 – Castleton | 9 – Castleton | 4 – 2 tied | O'Connell Center (10,160) Gainesville, FL |
| February 4, 2023 8:30 p.m., ESPN | | at Kentucky Rivalry | L 67–72 | 13–10 (6–4) | 25 – Castleton | 8 – Castleton | 5 – Castleton | Rupp Arena (20,315) Lexington, KY |
| February 8, 2023 9:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 3 Alabama | L 69–97 | 13–11 (6–5) | 29 – Castleton | 10 – Castleton | 6 – Lofton | Coleman Coliseum (10,599) Tuscaloosa, AL |
| February 11, 2023 3:30 p.m., SECN | | Vanderbilt | L 80–88 | 13–12 (6–6) | 25 – Castleton | 11 – Castleton | 6 – Lofton | O'Connell Center (10,024) Gainesville, FL |
| February 15, 2023 6:30 p.m., SECN | | Ole Miss | W 79–64 | 14–12 (7–6) | 15 – Jones | 8 – Jones | 7 – Lofton | O'Connell Center (7,464) Gainesville, FL |
| February 18, 2023 2:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Arkansas | L 65–84 | 14–13 (7–7) | 24 – Kugel | 6 – Szymczyk | 4 – Lofton | Bud Walton Arena (19,200) Fayetteville, AR |
| February 22, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN | | Kentucky Rivalry | L 74–82 | 14–14 (7–8) | 24 – Kugel | 3 – 3 tied | 11 – Lofton | O'Connell Center (9,540) Gainesville, FL |
| February 25, 2023 6:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Vanderbilt | L 72–88 | 14–15 (7–9) | 20 – Kugel | 7 – Richard | 3 – Fudge | Memorial Gymnasium (10,133) Nashville, TN |
| February 28, 2023 7:00 p.m., SECN | | at Georgia | W 77–67 | 15–15 (8–9) | 24 – Richard | 12 – Jones | 4 – 2 tied | Stegeman Coliseum (7,879) Athens, GA |
| March 4, 2023 6:00 p.m., SECN | | LSU | W 79–67 | 16–15 (9–9) | 21 – Kugel | 6 – 2 tied | 5 – Lofton | O'Connell Center (10,280) Gainesville, FL |
| SEC tournament |||||||||
| March 9, 2023 1:00 p.m., SECN | (8) | vs. (9) Mississippi State Second round | L 68–69 $^{OT}$ | 16–16 | 14 – Kugel | 7 – Jones | 6 – Lofton | Bridgestone Arena (13,165) Nashville, TN |
| NIT tournament |||||||||
| March 15, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (4) | UCF First round – Oregon bracket | L 49–67 | 16–17 | 13 – Kugel | 7 – Richard | 2 – 2 tied | O'Connell Center (3,023) Gainesville, FL |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
Source

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | RV | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not released |
| Coaches | RV | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings.