# 1988–89 Florida Gators men's basketball team

The 1988–89 Florida Gators men's basketball team represented the University of Florida as a member of the Southeastern Conference during the 1988–89 NCAA men's basketball season. They were coached by Norm Sloan, who was in his ninth consecutive (and final) season at the school.
The Gators were ranked in the AP preseason poll for only the second time in program history despite the loss of both starting guards from the previous season, Vernon Maxwell and Ronnie Montgomery. They were expected to be led by steady senior guard Clifford Lett and star center Dwayne Schintzius, but while Lett stepped into his new starting role with aplomb, Schintzius was suspended four games for getting involved in an altercation outside a Gainesville nightclub in which he allegedly wielded a tennis racket.
Schintzius' temporary absence contributed to a disappointing start to the season, and the Gators' record stood at 5-7 after losing their first conference game in early January. However, the team improved markedly from that low point, with the turnaround beginning during a key conference road game at Vanderbilt. Florida committed a turnover with one second remaining while trailing 72-70, seemingly sealing a loss. However, before play resumed, several tennis balls were tossed onto the court from the stands, apparently in taunting reference to Schinztius's earlier altercation. The officials called a technical foul on the home team, and Schintzius hit the resulting two free throws to send the game into overtime. He then scored Florida's first seven points in the extra period to lead the Gators to an 81-78 win. The improbable win was the second victory in what grew into an 11-game conference streak that ran from mid-January until early March.
The Gators ended the season one game ahead of Vanderbilt and Alabama in the conference standings to earn the program's first ever regular season SEC basketball championship. They were the runners-up to Alabama in the SEC tournament and received their third consecutive at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as a #7 seed. However, a poor shooting performance led to an upset loss to Colorado State in the first round, ending the Gators' season.
Florida was again ranked in the AP preseason poll leading up to the following season, but days before the first game in November 1989, Sloan was forced to resign due to an NCAA investigation into the program. Dwayne Schintzius quit the team over conflicts with interim coach Don DeVoe, and the program's streak of consecutive NCAA tournament appearances ended in 1989-90 with their first losing record in six years.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Nov 25, 1988* ESPN | No. 15 | vs. California Great Alaska Shootout | L 58–73 | 0–1 | Sullivan Arena Anchorage, Alaska |
| Nov 26, 1988 ESPN | No. 15 | at Alaska-Anchorage Great Alaska Shootout | W 83–72 | 1–1 | Sullivan Arena Anchorage, Alaska |
| Nov 27, 1988* | No. 15 | vs. Utah Great Alaska Shootout | W 77–68 | 2–1 | Sullivan Arena Anchorage, Alaska |
| Nov 30, 1988* | No. 19 | Siena | W 71–67 | 3–1 | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Dec 3, 1988* | No. 19 | at No. 14 Florida State Rivalry | L 86–114 | 3–2 | Donald L. Tucker Center Tallahassee, Florida |
| Dec 6, 1988* ESPN | | at No. 7 Illinois | L 67–97 | 3–3 | Assembly Hall (15,020) Champaign, Illinois |
| Dec 10, 1988 ESPN | | LSU | L 101–111 | 3–4 (0–1) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Dec 19, 1988* | | Miami (FL) | W 101–81 | 4–4 | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Dec 22, 1988* USA | | Pittsburgh | L 87–90 | 4–5 | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Dec 27, 1988* | | vs. No. 15 Ohio State | L 68–93 | 4–6 | |
| Dec 28, 1988* | | vs. Fordham | W 59–52 | 5–6 | |
| Jan 5, 1989* ESPN | | at Ole Miss | L 71–80 | 5–7 (0–2) | Tad Smith Coliseum Oxford, Mississippi |
| Jan 7, 1989 | | at No. 20 Georgia | W 80–66 | 6–7 (1–2) | Stegeman Coliseum Athens, Georgia |
| Jan 9, 1989* | | at South Florida | W 87–82 | 7–7 | Sun Dome Tampa, Florida |
| Jan 12, 1989 ESPN | | Kentucky | L 56–69 | 7–8 (1–3) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Jan 14, 1989 | | at Auburn | W 75–71 | 8–8 (2–3) | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Auburn, Alabama |
| Jan 18, 1989 | | at No. 18 Tennessee | L 76–83 | 8–9 (2–4) | Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, Tennessee |
| Jan 21, 1989 | | Mississippi State | W 81–57 | 9–9 (3–4) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Jan 25, 1989 | | at Vanderbilt | W 81–78 $^{OT}$ | 10–9 (4–4) | Memorial Gymnasium Nashville, Tennessee |
| Feb 1, 1989 8:00 p.m., JPT | | Alabama | W 85–76 | 11–9 (5–4) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Feb 4, 1989* CBS | | vs. No. 20 Stanford | L 69–84 | 11–10 | Orlando, Florida |
| Feb 5, 1989 | | Ole Miss | W 78–67 | 12–10 (6–4) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Feb 8, 1989 8:00 p.m., JPT | | Georgia | W 65–60 | 13–10 (7–4) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Feb 11, 1989 NBC | | at Kentucky | W 59–53 | 14–10 (8–4) | Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky |
| Feb 15, 1989 | | Auburn | W 90–79 | 15–10 (9–4) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Feb 18, 1989 | | Tennessee | W 99–81 | 16–10 (10–4) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Feb 22, 1989 | | at Mississippi State | W 78–69 | 17–10 (11–4) | Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, Mississippi |
| Feb 25, 1989 JPT | | Vanderbilt | W 83–80 | 18–10 (12–4) | O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida |
| Mar 1, 1989 JPT | | at LSU | W 104–95 | 19–10 (13–4) | Maravich Assembly Center Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
| Mar 4, 1989 | | at Alabama | L 63–83 | 19–11 (13–5) | Coleman Coliseum Tuscaloosa, Alabama |
| SEC tournament ||||||
| Mar 10, 1989* JPT | | vs. Georgia SEC Tournament Quarterfinal | W 62–61 | 20–11 | Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, Tennessee |
| Mar 11, 1989* JPT | | at Tennessee SEC Tournament Semifinal | W 76–71 | 21–11 | Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, Tennessee |
| Mar 12, 1989* ABC | | vs. Alabama SEC tournament Championship | L 60–72 | 21–12 | Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, Tennessee |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| Mar 17, 1989* | (7 MW) | vs. (10 MW) Colorado State First Round | L 46–68 | 21–13 | Reunion Arena Dallas, Texas |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. MW=Midwest. All times are in Eastern Time. ||||||