Image Credit: UAA
Unlike last year, when the reigning national champions were smacked back to reality in their season opener, the No. 1 Florida Gators lived up to their top billing with a thorough 77-67 win over the No. 14 Miami Hurricanes to begin the 2026-27 season in Tampa, Florida. While the Gators offense shined in the first half, their defense made all the difference across the latter 20 minutes, squashing their in-state rivals’ comeback hopes with relative ease.
Florida’s retooled backcourt, featuring returning Kentucky transfer guard Denzel Aberdeen, and improved bench made all the difference as the Gators shot 42.3% from 3-point land after ending last season as one of the worst long-range teams in the nation. Still, it was the frontcourt that dominated the proceedings, proving once again to be the team’s strength and one of the country’s most feared units.
Let’s dive into everything that happened Monday night with some Fastbreak Takeaways from Florida’s season-opening victory.
It was over when … junior guard Boogie Fland made two free throws, pushing the Gators ahead by 11 points with 1:21 to go. Miami opened the second half on a 7-0 run, immediately cutting Florida’s lead down to three. When it later reached just two, junior forward Domen Petrović drained a 3-pointer, kicking off an extended 13-4 scoring stretch – including four triples – that moved the Gators back ahead 11 points midway through the half. Both teams suddenly went ice cold from the field with the Hurricanes missing 18 of 19 attempts over 10:12 until there were 90 seconds left in the game. The Gators played incredible defense in the second half, so despite only making two more baskets than the Canes during that stretch, it was more than enough to get the job done.
First half focus: After struggling to defend in the early going, Florida jumped ahead seven midway through the period on a 9-0 run punctuated by a 3-pointer from Fland, whose inconsistency beyond the arc was a problem last season. UF opened 5 of 6 from downtown as its lead grew to 10 points, and it used an 8-2 stretch later in the half – including two more triples — to jump ahead by 14 points with 4:14 until the break. Some odd officiating helped the margin draw closer, but the Gators still led by 10 after 20 minutes with 11 assists on their first 15 baskets despite their long-range shooting falling off from its hot start.
Exceptional efforts: Junior forward Thomas Haugh was clearly the best player on the court Monday night, but he did nearly all of his work in the first half. Haugh scored a team-high 19 points (13 in the opening stanza), hitting 4 of 8 attempts from long range and completing a double-double with 10 rebounds. Senior center Rueben Chinyelu was an absolute monster inside with 14 boards, and junior F Alex Condon played within himself for 11 points on 4 of 7 shooting with seven rebounds. Fland was inefficient overall, including going just 6 of 10 from the free-throw line, but he made 2 of 3 attempts from downtown and matched Haugh with four assists. Petrovic similarly went 2 of 3 from 3-point land in 11 minutes as a reserve.
Odds & ends: Florida improved to 48-23 all-time against Miami with a 4-0 record at neutral sites and four straight wins in the series … the Gators are 4-1 under Golden in season openers … UF opened the season against an AP Top 25 team for just the eighth time in program history; it now holds a 3-5 record in those games … Florida returned nearly 81% of its scoring from last season … the Gators were ranked No. 1 in the Preseason AP Top 25 for the second time in program history (2006)
What it means: There was little doubt at any point that Florida was the better team; the only question was whether it would prevail in dominant fashion. That looked to be the case after the Gators closed the first half strong, but shooting woes bookending the 13-4 stretch in the middle of the second half were concerning. Florida went just 5 of 21 from the field over the final 16:08.
The Gators got the job done on defense, completely smothering the Canes with as impressive an effort as the team has perhaps ever put together. Whereas Florida had 17 assists on 23 baskets (.739), it swarmed passing lanes and only allowed Miami six assists on 21 makes (.286).
The officiating was aggravating with the teams combining for 46 fouls and 65 attempted free throws, creating an extremely slow pace of play. Still, UF led for 33:11 of the 40-minute game, won bench scoring 22-14 and remained aggressive in the fastbreak with 21 points off 11 turnovers. If the Gators shot their free throws at a better rate (.571), they would have effectively ended the game far earlier.
It’s just one game, of course, but head coach Todd Golden looks to have a more complete and competitive team than he did a year ago. It will be up to UF to pile success after success and continue improving because, despite the victory, there are still plenty of areas for improvement.
What’s next? Florida will host Jacksonville on Thursday for an 8 p.m. ET tip-off. The game will air live on SEC Network+.
This one is for the ladies: UF destroyed Bucknell, 83-60, in head coach Tammi Reiss’ debut. Junior transfer G Kyomi Miller (Penn State) dominated with 31 points, six rebounds and five dimes, while sophomore transfer G Vanessa Harris (Rhode Island) posted 26 points and six boards. Combined, they nearly matched the visitors’ total (57-60) and posted 69% of Florida’s points.
