Florida basketball's players and coaches vowed a bounce-back after the Gators' disappointing loss to Arizona to start the season. It took them exactly one game to do so, as UF routed North Florida 104-64 in its home opener in Gainesville Thursday night.

The evening was filled with fireworks from before tipoff and through the final whistle, with history being made throughout. The defending champion, Florida unveiled its National Championship banner in pre-game festivities, adding a bit of pomp to an otherwise unexciting matchup against an out-manned UNF team.

After struggling against Arizona to start the week, UF's frontcourt turned in a dominant performance against the Ospreys. Florida out-scored UNF 66-22 in the paint as the Gators accounted for nearly two-thirds of their points under the basket. The Gators also out-rebounded the Ospreys 44-24.

Junior forward Alex Condon - among those who expressed disappointment in his play against Arizona - controlled the paint during his 26 minutes of play Thursday night. Condon totaled 25 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists in less than half an hour on the court.

The biggest moment of the night, literally, also came in the frontcourt. Thursday marked the debut of 7-foot-9 walk-on freshman Olivier Rioux, who became the tallest player ever to appear in a Division-I college basketball game. Rioux was on the court for the game's final two minutes and did not record any statistics.

For all the success in the frontcourt, the Gators struggled for the second consecutive game from the three-point line. After shooting 3-of-13 from beyond the arc against Arizona, UF finished 6-of-32 against UNF. Head coach Todd Golden will be happy with the win, but those deep shooting struggles will be problematic if they continue.

Alex Condon on his bounce-back from Arizona struggles, when he fouled out in 29 minutes:
"I definitely had a mindset that I just wanted to prove myself a little bit, get back to what I do. The reason I was recruited was for my physicality and my rebounding, so just get back to that and keep it simple."

UF coach Todd Golden on Condon's performance:
"He wasn't feeling sorry for himself and making excuses. He was, 'Just let me get back to it. Get back to what I know.' I thought he did a great job of letting the game come to him, being aggressive when he needed to, and obviously had a very efficient night.
"I mean, this is an insane All-America level type of night. We were all disappointed with how Monday went, but I thought he answered the bell."

Points: Alex Condon 25

Rebounds: Micah Handlogten 13

Assists: Condon, Thomas Haugh, Xaivian Lee, 4

Box score

All times Eastern

ARIZONA 93, GATORS 87
Record: 0-1

FLORIDA 104, NORTH FLORIDA 64
Record: 1-1

FLORIDA STATE
Nov. 11 (Tue) Time: 7 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: SEC/ESPN

MIAMI
Nov. 16 (Sun) Time: 8:30 p.m.
@ Jacksonville
TV: ESPN

MERRIMACK
Nov. 21 (Fri) Time: 7 p.m.
@ Gainesville
TV: SEC/ESPN+

TCU
Nov. 27 (Thur) Time: 3 p.m.
@ San Diego, Calif.
TV: FS1

PROVIDENCE or WISCONSIN
Nov. 28 (Fri) Time: 3 or 5:30 p.m.
@ San Diego, Calif.
TV: FOX

DUKEDec. 2 (Tue) Time: 7:30 p.m.@ Durham, N.C.TV: ESPN

UCONNDec. 9 (Tue) Time: 9 p.m.@ New YorkTV: ESPN

GEORGE WASHINGTON
Dec. 13 (Sat) Time: 2:30 p.m.
@ Sunrise, Fla.
TV: ESPN2

ST. FRANCIS
Dec. 17 (Wed) Time: 6:30 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: SEC/ESPN

COLGATE
Dec. 21 (Sun) Time: Noon
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: SEC/ESPN+

DARTMOUTH
Dec. 29 (Mon) Time: 6 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: SEC/ESPN

MISSOURI
Jan. 3 (Sat) Time: 8:30 p.m.
@ Columbia, Mo.
TV: SEC/ESPN

GEORGIA
Jan. 6 (Tue) Time: 7 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: SEC/ESPN

TENNESSEE
Jan. 10 (Sat) Time: noon
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: ESPN or ESPN2

OKLAHOMA
Jan. 13 (Tue) Time: 9 p.m.
@ Norman, Okla.
TV: ESPN or ESPNU

VANDERBILT
Jan. 17 (Sat) Time: 2 p.m.
@ Nashville, Tenn.
TV: ESPN or ESPN2 or ESPNU

LSU
Jan. 20 (Tue) Time: 7 p.m.
@ Gainesville
TV: ESPN2

AUBURN
Jan. 24 (Sat) Time: 4 or 4:30 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: ESPN or ESPN2

SOUTH CAROLINA
Jan. 28 (Wed) Time: 9 p.m.
@ Columbia, S.C.
TV: SEC/ESPN

ALABAMA
Feb. 1 (Sun) Time: 1 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: ABC

TEXAS A&M
Feb. 7 (Sat) Time: 8:30 p.m.
@ College Station, Texas
TV: SEC/ESPN

GEORGIA
Feb. 11 (Wed) Time: 7 p.m.
@ Athens, Ga.
TV: ESPN2 or ESPNU

KENTUCKY
Feb. 14 (Sat) Time: 3 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: ABC

SOUTH CAROLINA
Feb. 17 (Tue) Time: 7 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: SEC/ESPN

OLE MISS
Feb. 21 (Sat) Time: noon
@ Oxford, Miss.
TV: ESPN or ESPN2

TEXAS
Feb. 25 (Wed) Time: 7 p.m.
@ Austin, Texas
TV: ESPN2 or ESPNU

ARKANSAS
Feb. 28 (Sat) Time: 8:30 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: ESPN or ESPN2

MISSISSIPPI STATE
March 3 (Tue) Time: 8 p.m.
@ Gainesville, Fla.
TV: SEC/ESPN

KENTUCKY
March 7 (Sat) Time: 4 p.m.
@ Lexington, Ky.
TV: ESPN or ESPN2

SEC TOURNAMENT
March 11-15
Nashville, Tenn.