Florida

Five key takeaways from Florida’s 1-point loss to Duke

Published

3 months ago

December 3, 2025

Five key takeaways from Florida’s 1-point loss to Duke

No. 15 Florida lost a tight game against No. 4 Duke, 67-66, on Tuesday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

The Gators were the better team for all but eight minutes of the game, but a 19-5 run from the Blue Devils to close the second half proved to be the difference. Once again, poor shooting doomed the Orange and Blue. Florida shot just 37.3% from the field and 25% from 3-point range.

Thomas Haugh did all he could to win, with 24 points, six rebounds, an assist, a block and a steal. It wasn’t enough. Cameron Boozer, who looked every bit the best player in the country, matched Haugh and then some. Boozer finished with 29 points, six rebounds, two assists and a steal.

A strong second half made things close. Boogie Fland and Alex Condon got going, offensive rebounds led to second-chance opportunities for Florida and strong defense forced more misses from Duke. The Gators took a two-point lead with 32 seconds left, but Duke returned the favor on a broken play. Urban Klavzar hadn’t left Isaiah Evans for most of the second half, but the last-minute scramble led to an open look.

Still, Florida proved that it’s still worthy of a top 10 ranking and that it can hang with the best teams in the country. It’s a work in progress, even if 5-3 looks ugly in the standings.

Someone has to help Haugh

Florida couldn’t buy a bucket in the first half, unless Thomas Haugh was shooting. Haugh played all 20 minutes before the break and scored or assisted on 19 of Florida’s 24 points. Boogie Fland and Xaivian Lee went a combined 1-of-11 from the field, and the only make was a lucky roll off the back of the rim. In fact, if you take away Haugh’s shooting, the team went 4-of-26 from the field in the first half. Ugly.

Haugh can only do it by himself for so long. Eventually, Duke figured out that he was the only threat and all of Florida’s plays were designed to get Haugh driving to his right. Considering the poor shooting, it’s a miracle that Florida kept the game knotted at 19 through the first 12 minutes. The next eight minutes were all Duke. The Blue Devils went on a 19-5 run, leading by 12 at the break.

Florida should have won this game

Several little things buried Florida. Besides the forced 3-pointers, Condon was called on a lane violation to nullify a missed free throw from Cameron Boozer, and a blatant no-call on Duke goaltending was the difference on the scoreboard.

Coaches and players who point to referee errors are often labeled whiners, but sometimes it’s warranted. The ball hit the backboard and was then blocked. A year ago, a timeout gets called and the play is reviewed. The exact butterfly effect isn’t worth going into, but in a one-point loss, that moment looms large.

Of course, a better end to the first half from Florida makes all of this a non-issue.

Too little, too late from Boogie Fland

Fland was Florida’s leading scorer in the second half. Part of that is Duke adjusting at halftime to slow down Haugh, but he also seemed to find an offensive rhythm that hasn’t been present all season. He finished the day just under 50% shooting and had three steals. Four turnovers ot one assist isn’t great, but he had just one and one in the second half.

The change came once Fland stopped forcing 3-pointers. He came around screens quickly and found plenty of buckets inside the arc. For Florida to be successful, Fland must play that brand of basketball.

It’s an encouraging sign to see Fland figure it out, but it came way too late. Again, this could have been a multi-possession victory for Florida had the first half gone even a bit better.

Xaivian Lee does his Jekyll and Hyde routine

All the confidence Xaivian Lee built up in the second half against Providence might be gone. A 1-for-10 night with just one assist is not what starting point guards in the SEC do. Lee said he “was in a dark place” before that breakout game. He mustn’t return to the shadow realm.

The saying goes: play with emotion, not emotion. Lee can’t lose his “joy” every time the shots don’t fall. He was nearly a non-factor in this game, and there’s a reason Golden played Klavzar 15 minutes to Lee’s 10 in the second half. A bench role still feels right for Lee, at least until he gets his head on straight.

No shade. Adjusting to this pace is hard. But it’s what he came here to do.

Florida can win a national championship

Gator Nation is going to leave this one with a bad taste in their mouths, and rightfully so. But so-called moral victories will turn into real victories if this team continues to get better, as it has through the first month of the season.

Losing in November and December doesn’t matter if you don’t lose in March. Forget about TCU for a moment. Arizona and Duke are potential Final Four teams with elite freshman big men. The first thing Boozer said after the game was how good Florida’s frontcourt is.

It’s the backcourt that needs work, and they are improving. Back-to-back breakout games from transfers show what the Gators are capable of. If Fland plays like that for the whole game, or Lee doesn’t fall back into a slump, it’s a Florida win.

Todd Golden’s job is to get these guys firing on all cylinders before the NCAA Tournament. Seeding doesn’t matter. UConn is Florida’s last chance on the non-conference schedule to add a meaningful win. That complete team performance has to come next Tuesday.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

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Florida

Gov. DeSantis: Florida ranks No. 1 in nation for vocational education

Published

2 hours ago

February 17, 2026

Press Room

Gov. DeSantis: Florida ranks No. 1 in nation for vocational education

Florida has been named the top state in the nation for workforce education, according to state officials.
Gov. Ron DeSantis highlighted that vocational training offers students a path to enter the workforce without accumulating debt.
State officials also addressed recent student walkouts, with the education commissioner condemning them as disruptive.

For students at Titusville High, the Space Mechatronics Lab gives them the chance to develop workforce skills before they even receive their diploma.

“You are seeing more than a lab,” said Titusville High’s Principal Jennifer Gonzalez, flanked by Gov. Ron DeSantis during a Feb.17 press conference at the school.

“You are seeing Florida’s workforce in the making.”

Speaking from a podium at the school’s lab, one with a sign on the front that read “THE WORKFORCE EDUCATION STATE,” DeSantis and other state officials announced that Florida has become the No. 1 state in the country for workforce education.

“When I became governor, I made the point very strongly that there’s more than one way you can succeed as a young person,” DeSantis said.

Vocational work education, he said, can be both an opportunity for young people to fill a niche in Brevard with the space industry and to enter the workforce without debt.

“I know there have been people from Brevard Public Schools who have been hired by Elon Musk at SpaceX right when they graduate,” DeSantis said. “That’s a pretty good opportunity to have.”

Factors that made Florida No. 1 in workforce education included the state’s top ranking in talent attraction for three years, a No. 1 ranking for college graduation rates for two years and No. 1 spot for education freedom for four years, DeSantis said.

In addition to Gonzalez, DeSantis was joined at the podium by Florida’s Commissioner of Education Anastasios Kamoutsas and Congressman Mike Haridopolis. Also in attendance were Brevard Public Schools Superintendent Mark Rendell; School Board Chair Matt Susin; School Board Vice Chair Megan Wright; school board members Gene Trent and Katye Campbell; and Sheriff Wayne Ivey.

Vocational education makes school ‘relevant, engaging’

Over the course of the 40-minute meeting, officials praised the opportunities workforce education can provide students, highlighting Brevard Public Schools’ offerings.

“For our students, the (career and technical education) pathway has made education relevant, engaging and purposeful,” Gonzalez said, adding that Brevard has everything from training in the way of cyber security to culinary arts in the way of vocational education. “They graduate with not only a high school diploma, but with credentials, confidence and direction.”

Kamoutsas praised DeSantis for building up vocational education, crediting him for the increase in career and technical education participation.

“We heard the governor say we have more than 818,000 K12 CTE students who are not participating in our state, and almost 512 (thousand) CTE post-secondary students,” Kamoutsas said. “That’s an increase of 30% in post-secondary CTE enrollment since the beginning of this administration.”

Florida, he said, has “the most aligned, impactful and industry-driven workforce education system in the nation.”

“Thanks to Gov. DeSantis, we will continue to strengthen these pathways so that every student has access to programs that prepare them for in-demand careers with wages to support their families because of our governor’s leadership,” Kamoutsas said.

Commissioner condemns walkouts, union

Student walkouts were also briefly addressed during the meeting, with Kamoutsas thanking Rendell, Susin, Wright and Trent for taking a “strong stance” on the walkouts students organized on Feb. 6 protesting recent Immigration and Customs Enforcements actions.

“I am seeing across the nation, these walkouts that are being huge disruptions related to student safety concerns,” Kamoutsas said.

He also called out the Florida Education Association for calling the walkouts “reasonable.”

“There was no condemnation from the union,” he said. “There was no calling out the statement. In fact, they stayed silent, and it wasn’t until this weekend, where they received national backlash that now they’re having to change the narrative.”

On the Space Coast, Brevard Federation of Teachers has not made any statements related to the walkouts. Brevard students held a second protest against ICE actions on Presidents Day, a holiday.

Finch Walker is the education reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Walker at fwalker@floridatoday.com. X: @_finchwalker. Instagram: @finchwalker_.

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Florida

Bill Donovan, father of Billy Donovan and Florida basketball fixture, dies at 85

Published

15 hours ago

February 17, 2026

Press Room

Bill Donovan, father of Billy Donovan and Florida basketball fixture, dies at 85

Bill Donovan, the father of Hall of Fame former Florida basketball coach Billy Donovan who remained connected to UF’s program even after his son left, died Saturday, Feb. 14, at 85.

Donovan’s death was confirmed in an obituary posted by Williams-Thomas Funeral Home on Monday, Feb. 16.

A former Boston College Hall of Fame guard who left as the school’s third-time leading scorer in school history, Donovan remained close to the game of basketball through his son, who heled lead Providence to a Final Four in 1987 before going on to coaching success with the Florida Gators. Billy Donovan led Florida to four Final Fours and two national titles from 1996-2015 and his father was often on the bench courtside with him and traveled to road games.

Stetson coach Donnie Jones, a former Florida basketball assistant coach under Donovan from 1996-2007, said the elder Donovan had a way of picking the spirits of players and coaches up, even after tough losses.

“He had such great awareness of the moment,” Jones said. “It was always an encouragement, or he gave a perspective that was always encouraging, or two or three good things if he did make a comment in passing. But it was always a happy spirit it was always an encouraging spirit.”

Condolences poured in around the country as news of the elder Donovan’s passing surfaced.

Donovan lived part-time in Gainesville after his son began his NBA coaching career with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2015 and often attended UF games coached by Mike White and Todd Golden. During the Final Four in San Antonio last April, Donovan rode the team bus with Golden’s father, Scott Golden, to practices and games.

Florida plans to honor Bill Donovan with a moment of silence before its game on Tuesday, Feb. 17, at the O’Connell Center against South Carolina (7 p.m., SEC Network).

Donovan is survived by his wife of 63 years, Joan, his sister Maureen, three children Billy, Susan, Karen and 11 grandchildren.

Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1. Read his coverage of the Gators’ national championship basketball season in “CHOMP-IONS!” — a hardcover coffee-table collector’s book from The Sun. Details at Florida.ChampsBook.com

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Florida

Luther Campbell, aka rapper Uncle Luke, running for Florida politics

Published

1 day ago

February 16, 2026

Press Room

Luther Campbell, aka rapper Uncle Luke, running for Florida politics

The rapper is running in the August primary for the 20th Congressional District that includes portions of Palm Beach and Broward counties.

Miami-based rapper Luther Campbell, known best as Uncle Luke during his days with the iconic hip-hop group 2 Live Crew, is running for political office.

Campbell made the announcement Feb. 15 on WPLG’s show “This Week in South Florida.” He plans to run in the August primary for Florida 20^th Congressional seat, which includes parts of Palm Beach and Broward counties and is currently held by Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick.

“It is a very underserved community,” Campbell said while making his announcement. “The representation of the community is not there. People want to engage with their congressperson.”

The Democrat said he has good relationships with politicians on both sides of the aisle and claimed to have Secretary of State Marco Rubio on speed dial.

“Who’s going to be able to talk to Marco Rubio? Who’s going to be able to talk toDonald Trump? Me. I’m the only one who can do that,” Campbell said.

Luther Campbell stepped down from coaching high school football

Campbell, a South Florida fixture, has been a successful high school football coach at Miami Edison Senior High since 2018 but announced last month he was stepping down to explore a political career.

“I can’t coach and run at the same time because I’m going to be in a race with a whole bunch of people and I need to be able to get my ass up to Belle Glades, Lauderhill, Lauderdale Lakes,” Campbell, also known as Uncle Luke, announced on social media. “I need to be able to get my ass up to Tamarac, I need to go to damn Riviera Beach and I need to be able to be amongst these people and ask these people what the issues are in their community before I make a decision of yes or no.”

In 2024, Campbell told The Miami Herald he was considering a run to unseat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick in Florida’s 20th Congressional District, which includes parts of Broward and Palm Beach counties.

The Democratic congresswoman is currently accused of stealing $5 million in FEMA funds and making illegal campaign contributions. She was indicted in November of last year and her arraignment is set for next month.

Campbell previously ran for political office in Florida

This is not Cambell’s first run for political office.

Back in 2011 he ran in a special election for Miami-Dade County mayor. He came in fourth with nearly 11% of the votes.

This time, Campbell said his campaign will have the support and financial backing from all artists he has worked with over the years.

“I’m going to have a lot of money,” he said. “Every artist, every artist that I produce, and every artist by creating Southern hip-hop will be donating to this campaign.”

Campbell’s group 2 Live Crew gained national attention in the 1990s when they became a First Amendment activists after their music was deemed obscene by a federal judge. An appeals court eventually overturned the ruling.He, along with fellow band members, also were arrested on obscenity charges for performing at a South Florida club. A jury found them not guilty.

Michelle Spitzer is a journalist for The USA TODAY NETWORK-FLORIDA. As the network’s Rapid Response reporter, she covers Florida’s breaking news. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at https://floridatoday.com/newsletters.

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