A place in the sun: Florida basketball looks to reclaim its place as top sport on campus
Kenny Boynton can’t hide his envy. Walking around the University of Florida campus, the freshman guard knows it’s impossible to escape the campus-wide chatter surrounding the Gator football team after winning two of the last three national championships.
As a result of the team’s accolades, Florida basketball has taken a backseat to the football program, despite winning back-to-back national titles in 2006 and 2007.
Florida fans no longer rave about head coach Billy Donovan’s recent achievements on the basketball court, but rather Urban Meyer’s ability to coach perennial contenders on the gridiron.
And it has become an issue for Boynton. Knowing the team is just two years removed from its last national title, the standout freshman is looking to step out of the football program’s shadow, and bring Florida basketball back into the championship discussion.
‘That’s definitely a goal I set out for myself even before the season,’ Boynton said. ‘The football team here’s been doing good, and for the past two years the basketball team has been down, so I’m trying to help get basketball back on track because the team wants to do it for the fans and Coach Donovan.’
But before he accomplishes that task, Boynton needs to lead the Gators back into the NCAA tournament – a feat that his predecessor at point guard, Nick Calathes, couldn’t complete in two seasons before declaring for the 2009 NBA draft.
Boynton will have an early opportunity to bolster the Gators Tournament résumé tonight, when No. 10 Florida (8-0) takes on No. 7 Syracuse (8-0) in an out-of-conference matchup at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa.
It’s a chance that junior forward Chandler Parsons doesn’t plan to squander. For the last two seasons, Parsons and the Gators have experienced a postseason letdown, missing the NCAA tournament and instead qualifying for the National Invitational Tournament during their drought.
‘It’s been frustrating,’ Parsons said. ‘As a veteran on the team, a junior and a leader, I want to continue to get the University of Florida back to where they’ve been before we got here and that’s back in the Tournament playing for a national championship.
‘That’s all I wanted to do ever since I stepped foot on this campus.’
And the Gators have taken the necessary steps so far this season, upsetting then-No. 2 Michigan State in Atlantic City on Nov. 27. The victory catapulted the program into the national rankings for the first time in nearly a year. But despite the recognition, Donovan hasn’t allowed his players to become complacent.
‘Our mentality has been the same since the beginning,’ Boynton said. ‘A ranking is really nothing but a number. We’re the same team from the beginning of the year that wasn’t ranked, so we’re just trying to stay hungry and finish it off to get into the tournament.’
But Parsons knows it won’t be that easy. After surging to 15-2 starts in each of the last two seasons, the Gators collapsed midway through January, dropping critical conference games to eventually crash down into the consolation tournament.
Even in the NIT, Florida couldn’t capitalize against inferior opponents, ultimately losing to Massachusetts, in the 2007-08 semifinals, and to Penn State in last year’s semifinals.
The lackluster performances have taken a toll on the Gators’ veteran players, who were recruited to sustain the program’s success following its consecutive championship runs. But Parsons said the group is channeling that aggravation into this season and is confident that this year’s team will savor the March Madness festivities.
‘I think our upperclassmen that have been through that and have taken all that pain, frustration and learning experiences are putting it into this season to help out our younger guys,’ Parsons said. ‘I think that’s made our team much better in understanding what it takes to win.
‘Now we have a group of guys that are willing to work hard, put in the time to practice, play unselfish and understand that defense is going to win us games.’
One of those players, Parsons said, is Boynton. The freshman, a former McDonald’s All-American and the No. 15 player in the 2009 recruiting class according to Scout.com, has partnered up with Erving Walker in the Gator backcourt and has seamlessly shouldered Calathes’ load at point guard.
Through eight games, Boynton is averaging a team-high 13.9 points and 3.5 assists, developing into an offensive weapon under Donovan’s system.
‘He has all the tangibles needed to be a great offensive player,’ Parsons said. ‘He can get any shot he wants at any time. He’s efficient because he understands what the team needs at a specific moment. He’s going to continue playing with confidence, and we’re going to continue needing him more.’
And Boynton relishes the chance to become the team’s go-to-guy for the long haul. At this point, he’s willing to do whatever it takes to leapfrog the Florida football team and place basketball back at the forefront of Gator fans’ minds.
‘If I get a national championship in college, that’d be great,’ Boynton said. ‘But right now, I just want to get respect on the basketball side of Gainesville. I definitely want to be a part of that.’
