Florida basketball is ranked No. 21 in the AP Top 25 preseason men’s basketball poll, which came out on Monday.
Later Monday afternoon, the Florida Gators were picked to finish sixth out of 18 teams in the SEC in the conference’s preseason media poll.
Senior UF combo guard Walter Clayton Jr. was named to the All-SEC first team in the preseason media poll, while sophomore forward Alex Condon earned All-SEC third team honors.
The 6-foot-3, 195-pound Clayton led UF in 3-pointers made (93) and scoring (17.6 ppg) last season. His 633 points scored in 2023-24 marked the fifth highest in a single season in program history, and his 17.6 ppg scoring average was the highest for a UF player in a season since Anthony Robertson averaged 17.9 ppg in 2003-24.
The 6-11, 230-pound Condon earned SEC All-Freshman honors last season, averaging 7.7 points and 6.4 rebounds off the bench. Condon’s rebounding average and team-high 45 blocked shots led all SEC freshmen in 2023-24.
Florida, under third-year coach Todd Golden, returns three starters and seven players overall from a team that finished 24-12 and reached the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament, falling 102-100 to Colorado. UF’s 24 wins were its most since going 27-9 in 2016-17, a season that ended with the Gators reaching the Elite Eight before falling to South Carolina.
One of UF’s returning starters, 7-1 center Micah Handlogten, will redshirt this season after suffering a compound fracture in his lower leg during last year’s SEC Tournament Final against Auburn. But Florida re-stocked its frontcourt in the transfer portal over the summer, adding Washington State center Rueben Chinyelu (6-10, 255) and Chattanooga forward Sam Alexis (6-8, 240) to join returning sophomore forwards Condon and Thomas Haugh.
In addition, Florida added former FAU standout guard Alijah Martin in the transfer portal to join returning backcourt starters Clayton and Will Richard.
Preseason SEC Men’s Basketball Media Poll
First Team All-SEC
Mark Sears – Alabama
Johni Broome – Auburn
Walter Clayton Jr. – Florida
Zakai Zeigler – Tennessee
Wade Taylor IV – Texas A&M
Second Team All-SEC
Grant Nelson – Alabama
Jonas Aidoo – Arkansas
Johnell Davis – Arkansas
Matthew Murrell – Ole Miss
Josh Hubbard – Mississippi State
Third Team All-SEC
Chad Baker-Mazara – Auburn
Alex Condon – Florida
Jaxson Robinson – Kentucky
Collin Murray-Boyles – South Carolina
Tramon Mark – Texas
SEC Player of the Year
Mark Sears – Alabama
Predicted Order Of Finish
1. Alabama
2. Auburn
3. Tennessee
4. Arkansas
5. Texas A&M
6. Florida
7. Texas
8. Kentucky
9. Ole Miss
10. Mississippi State
11. South Carolina
12. Georgia
13. Missouri
14. LSU
15. Oklahoma
16. Vanderbilt
Florida basketball ranked No. 28 KenPom
Florida basketball also was ranked No. 28 in the initial Ken Pomeroy preseason advanced metrics college basketball rankings on Monday.
UF enters the season ranked 20th nationally in Adjusted Offensive Efficiency, per KenPom, and ranked 38th nationally in Adjusted Defensive Efficiency.
Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida basketball ranked in preseason AP Top 25, picked sixth in SEC
