INDIANAPOLIS “”mdash; Florida sophomore Joakim Noah generally
says what he thinks.
And generally, it’s pretty entertaining.
Sunday, he was talking about his father, Yannick Noah, a former
tennis star. Yannick Noah won the French Open in 1983, and was the
last Frenchman to do so.
Yannick Noah has been watching his son play in the NCAA
Tournament and will be in attendance again on Monday.
“It’s the first time in his life when he can’t
control what’s going on on the court,” Noah said of his
father. “It’s like, “˜Dude, chill out, just drink
a couple beers, watch the game.’ Sometimes he stresses me
out.”
Because his father is of French and Cameroonian descent, the
6-foot-11, 227-pound forward also expressed his admiration for
UCLA’s Cameroonian sensation, freshman forward Luc Richard
Mbah a Moute.
“He’s a really tough player and I have a lot of love
for people from Cameroon, especially people that are playing
basketball and doing well,” Noah said. “After the game
we’ll probably talk, but right now he’s the enemy.
I’m not really worried about showing him any love.”
Noah has been tremendous in his team’s five tournament
games, scoring 81 points, grabbing 48 rebounds, and recording 23
blocks.
“He an emotional guy,” Gator point guard Taurean
Green said of Noah. “He’s such a great competitor. He
always wants to win.”
(RECRUITING) TARGET PRACTICE: Though the
Florida Gators and UCLA Bruins have never met, there are certainly
links between the two programs.
Mbah a Moute played high school basketball in Florida, watched
the Gators throughout his high school career, and was recruited by
Florida coach Billy Donovan.
Senior Cedric Bozeman, a McDonald’s All-American at Mater
Dei, chose UCLA over Florida when he made his college decision.
And the most fiercely contested prize, sophomore Jordan Farmar,
was heavily recruited by both Howland and Donovan.
“He really made a poor choice, didn’t he?”
Donovan joked Sunday.
Howland, who secured Farmar as his second recruit just weeks
after he was hired by UCLA nearly three years ago, seemed more
relieved than anything.
“I was sick to my gut from that whole thing,”
Howland said.
The Bruin coach said that after he had begun recruiting Farmar,
the Bruin point guard took an official visit to Florida that
worried Howland very much.
“When he came back, he was really leaning that way, I
think,” Howland said.
But in the end, Farmar knew that at UCLA he would be able to
take over at point guard in his freshman season, have the
opportunity to turn the program around while playing close to home,
and above all, play defense.
“All he did was talk about defense,” Farmar said of
Howland. “That’s what he did, that’s what he
coaches, that’s what he teaches.
“I’m glad he’s honest. So that’s one of
the biggest, if not the biggest and one of the most intriguing
reasons for me coming to UCLA.”
Instead of Farmar, Donovan secured a commitment from sophomore
point guard Green, who is from Fort Lauderdale. Green is averaging
13.6 points per game and is shooting 39.6 percent from 3-point
range.
“I think Jordan liked the University of Florida a
lot,” Donovan said. “But at the same point, maybe with
what Ben was able to talk to him about after he got the job, maybe
made him feel a little bit more comfortable, staying close to home
to play.”
DRIBBLERS: Florida guard Lee Humphrey scored a
game-high 19 points on 6-for-12 shooting in the Gators’
semifinal victory over George Mason. Eighteen of Humphrey’s
points came on six 3-pointers, and the other came on a free throw.
The junior guard is shooting 45.8 percent from 3-point range this
season. … Florida brings a 10-game winning streak into
tonight’s game. They are holding opponents to 59.6 points per
game during that streak.