Florida-Duke Showdown Sparks Madness: Can UConn and UNC Upset the Powerhouses Too?

So, here’s the kicker: Why do most folks wait until after New Year’s to tune into college basketball? It’s not like the hoops scene goes into hibernation before then — no sir. November and December are jam-packed with knockout matchups, but with college football and the NFL hogging airtime, basketball often gets the cold shoulder. Now imagine missing a December 2 lineup so juicy it could make even the diehards sit up and take notice. We’re talkin’ clashes featuring teams and players swimming in potential, nail-biters with stories of redemption and rising stars. Sure, the Florida Gators have stumbled, but don’t count them out against Duke’s Cameron Boozer—the kid’s a scoring machine with eyes on Player of the Year. Meanwhile, UConn and Kansas stage a battle of experience vs. youth, and the classic Kentucky-North Carolina rivalry heats up with freshmen ready to take center stage amid injury drama. If you think basketball is a snooze until January, think again—these games will have you front-row, popcorn in hand, wondering why you ever looked the other way. Want the full scoop? LEARN MORE.

Many sports fans don’t start paying attention to college basketball until after New Year’s Day. It’s hard to blame them. There are so many great sporting events on the November and December calendar that people have to prioritize. College football and the NFL generally dominate the conversation this time of year.

But if you’re one of those fans, you might miss out on an incredible slate on December 2. Let’s take a look at three massive matchups.

Unfortunately, the Gators have struggled early this season, otherwise this could have been a Top 5 showdown at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Florida is 5-2 with an understandable loss to No. 2 Arizona to open the season and an inexplicable loss to TCU, as double-digit favorites, last week. The Gators don’t have a signature win and fell from No. 3 in the AP Top 25 Preseason Poll down to No. 15 in the latest rankings. They also dropped in KenPom’s rankings from 2nd (preseason) to 16th.

Florida has a huge opportunity to right the ship if they can manage to upset Duke on the road. The Blue Devils entered the season at No. 6 in the AP poll and 7th in KenPom’s rankings. They moved up to No. 4 and 3rd, respectively.

Duke freshman Cameron Boozer, son of former Duke great Carlos Boozer, is the current favorite to win Player of the Year in college hoops. Boozer is fifth in the nation in points per game (22.9 PPG), and 28th in rebounding (9.8 RPG). He’s coming off his second 35-point performance of the season in a win over Arkansas on Thanksgiving.

The Gators present a more balanced attack with five players averaging 10+ points per game, led by forwards Thomas Haugh (17.9 PPG) and Alex Condon (15.7 PPG). But this represents the toughest test, by far, for the talented Florida frontcourt.

Florida likes to play fast (26th in the nation with 77.9 possessions per game, according to TeamRankings), while Duke tries to control the pace (179th, 72.5). These contrasting styles make for an interesting matchup and I think Florida can at least keep this one close.

PICK: GATORS +8.5

ACC opponents have given the Jayhawks fits this season, with the team’s two losses coming against North Carolina and Duke. But they’re coming off a huge win over Tennessee on November 26. Kansas opened at No. 19 in the AP poll and 21st in KenPom. The team is currently No. 21 and 20th.

UConn entered the season as one of the best teams in college basketball (AP 4, KP 5) and not much has changed (AP 5, KP 7). The Huskies are 6-1 with two wins over ranked opponents (No. 9 BYU and No. 14 Illinois) and a loss against the juggernaut that is the 7-0 Arizona Wildcats.

Despite the ranking advantage, oddsmakers see this matchup as fairly even (partially aided by Kansas’ home-court advantage) with UConn as slight favorites (-1.5) on the road. The Huskies have size and experience up front, led by senior center Tarris Reed Jr. (15.5 PPG, 8.3 RPG) and senior forward Alex Karaban (14.0 PPG, 5.7 RPG). Karaban is a matchup nightmare who is shooting 50% from three-point range.

Reed is a game-time decision as he continues to recover from an ankle injury, but he played in a limited capacity in the team’s last game against Syracuse.

Don’t sleep on the Huskies’ backcourt, either. Juniors Solo Ball and Silas Demary Jr. provide experience and playmaking on the back end. UConn has seven players averaging 20 minutes per game and all of them are upperclassmen. However, five-star recruit Braylon Mullins has been recovering from a preseason injury and got his first game action against Illinois last week. He’s expected to play against Kansas and should get more minutes as the season goes on.

Kansas relies a little more on youth, particularly with Player of the Year candidate freshman Darryn Peterson. Peterson scored 21 points against Green Bay and 22 against UNC, but has missed the last six games with a hamstring injury. The Jayhawks ruled Peterson OUT against UConn, leaving their offense in a tough spot.

Flory Bidunga, a sophomore, is the team’s leading scorer (not counting Peterson), averaging 15.8 PPG. Ultimately, UConn’s experience gives them a huge advantage and with Peterson out, it’s hard to see Kansas winning this game.

PICK: UCONN -2

These two blueblood programs renew their annual rivalry as part of the ACC/SEC challenge on Tuesday night at Rupp Arena. These teams have met 16 times in the past 20 years, and both squads have won eight. The Wildcats have gotten the better of the Tar Heels recently, winning the last two matchups and seven of the past 10. UNC also hasn’t won in Lexington since 2007.

North Carolina barely squeaked into the NCAA Tournament last year, and returned just one starter from last season, Seth Trimble. But Trimble suffered an injury in the team’s second game and hasn’t played since. He won’t play against Kentucky.

That has left the team relying heavily on freshman Caleb Wilson and transfers Henri Veesaar (Arizona), Kyan Evans (Colorado State), Jarin Stevenson (Alabama) and Luka Bogavac (SC Derby). Wilson has lived up to the hype so far, averaging 19.9 PPG and 9.9 RPG. He does a ton of damage from the free-throw line, averaging eight attempts per game (76.8% FT).

That could be an issue against Kentucky, which ranks 19th in the nation in fouls committed per game (14.6).

The Wildcats feature a very balanced attack, with its leading scorer (senior Denzel Aberdeen, a Florida transfer) averaging just 14.0 PPG. However, Kentucky has five players averaging double-digit points. UK deploys a guard-heavy offense with its top three scorers (Aberdeen, Otega Oweh and Collin Chandler) all residing in the backcourt.

UK is dealing with its own injury woes, as forward Mouhamed Dioubate (11.6 PPG) and guard Jaland Lowe (7.5 PPG) are not expected to play against UNC.

This is North Carolina’s first true road game of the season, meaning Wilson is likely to play in the toughest environment he has ever faced. But with Dioubate out, UK doesn’t have the players to match up with the freshman phenom, so I like Carolina on the road.

PICK: NORTH CAROLINA +6.5