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SEC EAST PREVIEW FLORIDA BY MATT ROTHENBERG THE GAMECOCK Last season, the Florida Gators contin ued their successful run under coach Billy Donovan. The team finished with an over all record of 24-7 while going 12-4 in the Southeastern Conference and ending with a top 10 ranking. Among the losses was a 99-83 defeat at the hands of Michigan State in a rematch of the 2000 NCAA championship game, as well as a 69-68 loss in Columbia, where for mer Gamecock Travis Kraft hit a three pointer at the buzzer. i The Gators shared the regular season SEC championship with Kentucky but only advanced to the second rounds of the SEC and NCAA tournaments. Udonis Haslem led the way with 16.6 points per game, while four others averaged double figures in scoring and Matt Bonner grabbed 7.7 rebounds per game. freshmen James White, David Lee and Adrian Moss. Lee and White were both McDonald’s All-Americans this past year and were the champion and runner-up, re spectively, in the All-American Slam Dunk Contest. Backcourt The loss of Teddy Dupay won’t faze the solid backcourt of Florida. Sharpshooter Brett Nelson, selected All-SEC by the Associated Press, returns with his 15.3 points-per-game average and should be one of several offensive catalysts on this team as well as a defensive presence. Fellow juniors Justin Hamilton and LaDarius Halton look to see more minutes this season at guard and provide sound play as well. Both averaged fewer than ten points this past year, but that figure should rise. Orien Greene, Ronnie King and Max Booker are also on the bench for the Gators. Frontcourt The Gator’s frontcourt will be missing a few familiar faces in Brent Wright and Major Parker, but Florida still has Haslem (6-foot-9,246 pounds), its leading scorer, in the middle and Matt Bonner (6-foot-10, 237), its top rebounder, next to him. UdonisHaslem still has the ability to pound it inside and should be an impos ing force in the SEC. On the outside, Bonner becomes a long-range threat, with a .381 three-point percentage last season. Bonell Colas will provide some experi ence off the bench, seeing action in 25 games as a true freshman in 2000-01. Adding depth will be highly regarded Outlook Going into his sixth season at Florida, Billy Donovan has all the tools in place to give the Gators another shot at the SEC championship. All they seemingly have to do is stay healthy and beat Kentucky, then it should be close to a walk in the park. Despite early challenges by Temple and either Maryland or Arizona, they could easily be undefeated going into conference play in January. The Gators will likely be a high seed in the NCAA tournament and will have a great chance to make it to the Final Four in Atlanta. GEORGIA BY MATT ROTHENBERG THE GAMECOCK Last year, coach Jim Harrick and the Georgia Bulldogs had some mild success. Though finishing unranked, the Bulldogs ended with an overall record of 16-15 and a conference record of 9-7, putting them at third place in the SEC East. Their stay at the NCAA tournament was brief, losing to Missouri 70-68 in the first round. D.A. Layne was the leading scorer with 16.8 points and led the team in assists with 108 and steals with 43. He also was tops in three-point percentage and among the leaders in free-throw percent age. Anthony Evans grabbed the most boards with 7.5 per game. Frontcourt The Bulldogs’ forwards this season will be nothing short of... well, short. Georgia doesn’t have a player taller than 6-foot-8, which is sure to be a disadvantage for the team. Sophomore Steve Thomas is the tallest on the team and figures to see the bulk of minutes at center. He only aver aged 2.1 points and 2.9 rebounds in 30 games last season, mostly in spot duty. Joining Thomas will be fellow sopho more Chris Daniels. In limited action last year, he had 3.5 points per game and 2.6 boards. Twins Jarvis and Jonas Hayes, transfers from Western Carolina, will play huge roles at forward, and both could also see time at guard as well. Two years ago, Jarvis was the Southern Conference Freshman of the Year, averaging 17.1 points. Ryan Pevey and Richard Wehunt round out the Bulldog’s frontcourt. Backcourt Nearly all of Georgia’s experience lies among its guards. Junior Ezra Williams returns after scoring 12.0 points per game last season. A top shooting guard, Williams will be heavily relied upon to put points on the board and be a leader for the squad. Lining up next to Williams will be Rashad Wright, who finished his freshman season as the starting point guard. He placed second on the team with 103 assists. Junior college transfer Tony Cole will contend with Wright for the starting spot at point guard, having averaged 16.7 points last season with Wabash Valley Community College. Mike Patrick and Mike Britton provide depth in the back court. Outlook Jim Harrick and his gentlemen have their work cut out for them this season. They have lost four of their top five scor ers, including D.A. Layne, who left a year early for the NBA but was not drafted. The Bulldogs will be forced to rely on relative ly untested players to win. A lack of size and strength will prove difficult to compete with, especially in the SEC. Additionally, all of Harrick’s recruits failed to qualify or enroll, and with a shal low bench, that doesn’t bode well. Look for the Hayes twins to perform well, though when conference play calls, they might need all the help they can get. Unless they can pull off a sizable miracle, we won’t see the Bulldogs play in the Georgia Dome af ter the SEC Tournament. VITAL STATISTICS KEY PLAYER NELSON Junior forward HEAD COACH Billy Donovan LASTYEAR’S RECORD 24-7,12-4 SEC AGAINST USC LAST YEAR at USC: L 69-68; at Florida, W 69-57 TOP PLAYERS F Brett Nelson, G Matt Bonner, C Udonis Haslem PROJECTED FINISH BY SPORTS STAFF Second, SEC East VITAL STATISTICS KEY PLAYER WILLIAMS Junior guard HEAD COACH Jim Harrick LAST YEAR'S RECORD 16-15,9-7 SEC AGAINST USC LAST YEAR at USC, L 75-77; at UGA.L 56-54 TOP PLAYERS G Ezra Williams, C Steve Thomas, G Rashad Wright PROJECTED FINISH BY SPORTS STAFF Fifth, SEC East