Georgia basketball hires Florida's Mike White as men's coach
Georgia hired Florida's Mike White on Sunday to be its next head basketball coach.
White is heading to Athens, Georgia, to coach Florida's rival in the Southeastern Conference. CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein was the first to report that White would be departing Gainesville.
In his seven years at Florida after succeeding Billy Donovan, White ranked inside the top-20 in all-time SEC winning percentage, but his final two seasons at the helm were marked by adversity.
Coming into the 2021-22 season, White had led the Gators to four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, the only conference program to accomplish such a feat, but the Gators hadn't made it past the second round since the 2016-17 season's Elite Eight run.
The Gators will miss the NCAA Tournament this season for the first time since White’s first season at Florida. It's uncertain whether Florida will accept an NIT bid.
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White received a two-year extension after last season, keeping him under contract through the 2026-27 season.
Georgia fired men’s basketball coach Tom Crean on Thursday after four seasons in which the program floundered in the SEC and never came close to cracking the NCAA tournament field.
The Bulldogs finished a program-worst 6-26 this season and in last place in the SEC with a 1-17 record. They lost 20 of their last 21 games, leaving little doubt that the school would make a change as the team stumbled to the most losses ever by an SEC team.
Florida had ups and downs all season
With senior forward Keyontae Johnson sidelined yet still on scholarship, the Gators entered the 2021-22 season short-handed with 12 available scholarship players, though early impressions were promising.
For the first time since the 2012-13 season, the Gators opened the season with a 6-0 record, including wins at home against Florida State and at a neutral site against Ohio State, and Florida soon found itself ranked at No. 12 in the Ferris Mowers men’s basketball coaches poll.
Double-digit losses to Oklahoma and Texas Southern soon followed. At the time, TSU was winless in nine contests, though the Tigers did make the NCAA Tournament on Sunday after defeating Alcorn State in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament.
The Gators would experience injury and illness — like many programs, health and safety protocols led to a postponement in late December — before dropping a trio of conference contests to begin SEC play.
Despite losing All-SEC second-team forward Colin Castleton for three weeks to a left shoulder injury, Florida rebounded and keep its hopes of making the NCAA Tournament alive, winning seven of its next nine contests, but Florida’s regular season concluded with four losses over the final seven games.
Needing a win — or two — in the SEC Tournament, the Gators fought back from a 16-point deficit in the second round Thursday to Texas A&M but fell to the Aggies in overtime.