After completing his remarkably quick transition from bench warmer to big shot, Colin Castleton opted to enter his name into the NBA Draft and absorb the feedback of scouts this offseason. His back-to-the-basket style of play didn’t feature the versatility expected of a professional star, and the 6-foot-11 center spent the summer developing his perimeter game, ball handling, and even — as seen against Embry-Riddle — a three-point shot.

Gator fans’ first glance at the new-look big man should grant them tremendous optimism and leave NBA scouts salivating. Castleton filled up the stat sheet, posting 18 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 6 blocks and incorporated a healthy mixture of his tried and true post moves along with flashes of his ever-expanding game.

During the first four minutes of the game, for example, Castleton scored on a pair of nifty post moves, but also brought his defender out to the perimeter and beat him off the dribble. He also led a fast break, ending in a dish to a trailing Tyree Appleby, and displayed his IQ with a number of excellent passes. Even on the defensive end, Castleton continued to be one of the best shot blockers in the nation, rejecting six and altering numerous others, while showing tremendous improvement in his perimeter and pick-and-roll defense.

“One-hundred percent; I took pride in it,” Castleton said about his improving perimeter defense. “This summer I’ve just been working on it, showing my ability to guard multiple positions. I love defense, so anything I can do to get better at it, I will.”

Castleton’s sentiments above speak to a larger attitude shift in this year’s team: for the first time possibly since 2017, this is a Florida team that’s enthusiastic about defending. Castleton made his love for defense known, but the Gators welcomed two players that had one Defensive Player of the Year awards in their respective conferences in Phlandrous Fleming and Brandon McKissic, and that perspective shines through on the court.

Every steal and every turnover was celebrated like a slam dunk, the Gators were willing to extend their press and create havoc, and the defensive rotations looked much sharper purposeful this season.

“I think that’s a staple, celebrating winning plays,” Mike White said about his team's enthusiasm on the defensive end. “It’s a staple of good teams and good defenses and we certainly want to do that. I’m excited when our guys embrace that.”

The Gators were also effective in translating these turnovers into points, as the Gators translated their 14 forced turnovers into 19 points off of turnovers. Florida thrived in transition after turnovers — this was best exemplified by Fleming’s steal and finish through contact late in the first half — finding excellent opportunities around the rim and beyond the arc.

While Castleton has earned the lion's share of the minutes at the five this season, unless the training staff has developed a giant pair of bionic legs he won’t be able to play 40 minutes every night. The departure of Omar Payne leaves the remaining minutes up to Jason Jitoboh or Tuongthach Gatkek, both limited deputy’s with different but noticeable drawbacks Tuesday.

Jitoboh was the first to replace Castleton, and the third-year Gator struggled to keep his 280-pound frame grounded, both figuratively and literally. Jitoboh was caught out of position a couple of times and the Nigerian struggled to stay out of foul trouble, racking up all five fouls in just eight minutes of action.

Gatkek looked better adjusted to the speed of the game, showing an ability to move laterally and offering a couple good contests. However, the sophomore is already undersized for the center position standing at 6-foot-9, so factor in that he weighs a hair heavier than Jose Altuve and his frame becomes a glaring concern. Gatkek had trouble establishing position in the post, and his screens were often ineffectual. Still, Gatkek showed his athleticism with an alley-oop finish late in the second half and showed some promising glimpses during his second game in orange and blue.

As impressive as Florida’s first-half performance was, its second-half performance raised some questions about focus and consistency.

The Gators performance was affected by a number of end-of-bench players and usual rotations being thrown onto the court, but the entirety of the second half was a source of frustration for players and coaches following the game.

“Just overall, how we played for 20,” White said when asked what he liked about the team’s performance. “And what I didn’t like is that we didn’t play for 40, pretty simple. I thought we left our foot off the gas pedal.”

UF lost the second half by ten as Elon cut the deficit all the way to 13 with a couple minutes remaining in the ball game, and aside from Myreon Jones’ 15 second-half points the rest of the team had 12. Trademarks and a lack of focus at inopportune moments have been a trademark for Mike White team for years now, but this year’s team is likely mature enough that Tuesday’s let down will likely revert to a blip.