Colleges

UF's Humphrey shows off his range

The senior's 3-point shooting touch is no secret around the conference

By ANTONYA ENGLISH
Published January 27, 2007

GAINESVILLE - Don't let the aw-shucks demeanor, the soft-spoken Tennessee accent and the country-boy smile fool you.

If given a chance, Florida guard Lee Humphrey will take you out on the basketball court.

Usually with a 3-point dagger to the heart.

The lone senior in the Gators' starting lineup, Humphrey has established himself as one of the league's premier 3-point shooting guards. He leads the SEC in 3-point field-goal percentage 46.4 percent and is second in 3-point field goals made per game (2.60).

"I feel good shooting the ball lately," said Humphrey, 21, who four years into his career remains reluctant to accept much credit or attention. "I've hit a good streak. I've felt good the past few weeks."

That has translated into good things for Florida. In a victory over South Carolina Jan. 13, Humphrey scored a career-high 27, including hitting 7-of-8 3-pointers. Over the past four games Humphrey is 15-of-19 from 3-point range and has moved to fourth all-time on the Gators' career 3-point shooting list. He needs 47 to become the school's all-time leading 3-point shooter.

Humphrey said he can't explain the streak he's on, he's just taking things as they come.

"You just shoot the ball," he said. "You can tell, you get a feeling where some days you feel hot and you want to get up a lot of shots. You just shoot it and your confidence is good. You just start shooting, and if you're feeling good, you try to get them off as quick as you can."

While his shooting is what he's best known for, Humphrey is proud of the fact that he has expanded his game - he drives to the basket much more often. Coach Billy Donovan said the evolution of the rest of his game, particularly Humphrey's defense, is what has been most impressive this season.

"If you want to go back and look at every game we've played up to this point and time, whether it's been Patrick Beverley (Arkansas), Levi Stukes (Georgia), Toney Douglas from Florida State, whoever it's been, we've put him on great offensive players and we've got confidence that he can do those type of things defensively to help us," Donovan said. "So he's evolved and emerged as a really good player.

"It just goes to show you, if you have other intangibles, it can impact winning," Donovan added. "His shooting impacts winning, but if he's not shooting there are other things he can do to impact the game."

There have been times in practice when he has hit 27 or 28 consecutive 3-pointers, so Humphrey's teammates say there's never a time when he puts the ball up that they don't expect it to go down. If Humphrey is hot, it's tough for opponents to defend the Gators.

"When Lee is on like he can be on, like he was at South Carolina, teams are forced to play us one-on-one because if they double that will still leave him open in the perimeter," senior center Chris Richard said. "And if we can't hit him, we can hit Taurean (Green) or somebody else who can knock down the 3. So it's almost like they have to go to a 3-2 zone because they have to keep somebody on Lee and they have to double the post, so it's a win-win situation for us."

It was one year ago this month that Humphrey earned himself a little notoriety (and a scrawl across ESPN) when he fell off his bicycle and separated his shoulder, causing him to miss six games.

Donovan said Humphrey didn't take nearly as much grief from opposing fans as he had anticipated. But from teammates?

"Oh, those guys killed him," Donovan said. "Actually, so did I. But Lee's such a good kid, he just kind of laughs and chuckles it off. He's like Gomer Pyle. He gets embarrassed when it gets brought up and just gives you that country smile."

And keeps on shooting.

Antonya English can be reached at english@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3389.

Fast facts: No. 1 Florida at Auburn

When/where: 5 today; Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum, Auburn, Ala.

TV/radio: Sun Sports; 620-AM

Record: UF 18-2, 5-0 SEC; Auburn 13-8, 3-3.

Notable: This is Billy Donovan's 400th career game as a head coach (345 with the Gators). ... The Gators are on an 11-game winning streak and have won seven in a row against Auburn, but the Tigers are fresh off one of their biggest wins of the season, 81-57 over No. 12 Alabama. ... After losing 15 straight against ranked teams, Auburn has back-to-back wins over ranked teams and is 3-0 at home in the SEC.

[Last modified January 27, 2007, 01:49:15]