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PG Aaron Craft (B1G 6th MOY '11, Def POY '12, Acad AA, Dolomiti En. TR - Italy)

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http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/38917/buckeyes-guards-prove-their-value

"Their guards are just tremendous," Boynton said of Ohio State.

For the second straight year, Florida was bedeviled by point guard Aaron Craft, a sixth man who played starter's minutes last year. Craft dissected the Gators' full-court pressure defense in Gainesville last season in just his second college game. Billy Donovan decided not to press him nearly as much this time around, but Craft found different ways to control the action.

Ask Walker. One of Florida's top scorers, the senior suffered through a 1-for-6 shooting night with Craft guarding him. Craft had three steals and seemed like he had his hands in the middle of every play, diving for loose balls and causing deflections with nonstop hustle.

"I thought clearly he dominated the game from start to finish," Donovan said. "He was the whole key, to me, in the game. More importantly, he really did it defensively. I mean he physically beat up our guards. And I'm not saying our guards got fouled. Wholly within the context of the rules of the game, he physically manhandled our guards."
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Props from Donovan & Matta

A year ago, Aaron Craft as a freshman made the difference in the Buckeyes' win at Florida by continually breaking the Gators' full-court press, which led to open baskets for teammates, especially Jared Sullinger, in the second half of their come-from-behind win.

Last night, he was the difference in the rematch at the other end of the court, Florida coach Billy Donovan said.

"I thought, clearly, he dominated the game from start to finish. He was the whole key to me in the game," Donovan said.

"And more importantly, he really did it defensively. I mean, he physically beat up our guards. And I?m not saying our guards got fouled. Totally within the rules of the game, he physically manhandled our guards. And he did it against everybody. Steals, strips, loose balls, drives. . . .

"He's as good as any guard there is out there. I?ve got a lot of respect and admiration for him, because he?s just a tough, hard-nosed kid who probably doesn?t get the proper respect that he deserves. But he?s as good as anybody out there."

Craft had 13 points and seven assists and had a hand in more of Florida's 16 turnovers than the three steals for which he was credited. He played 37 minutes, sitting the last three of the first half after picking up two fouls in eight seconds.

Ohio State coach Thad Matta talked about Craft's play on offense. His penetration got the Buckeyes going on offense in the first half after they had fallen behind early.

"I thought Aaron was terrific," Matta said. "We told him going in that if they were going to force his hand with the pressure, he was going to have to . . . make plays. I thought he did a really, really good job with that . . . made great reads."
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http://www.buckeyextra.com/content/blogs/hoops-and-scoops/2011/11/postgame-florida.html
 
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jwinslow;2037917; said:
such a force for this team. as for the running joke about combo guards, he doesn't really have the consistency as a shooter to be confused for one.
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I think he's a lot better shooter than he's shown so far. He's going to shoot close to 50% from the field, 38-40% from 3, and 80+% from the FT line.

This kid works hard at his game. He's got a good looking shot. It will start falling at a higher rate soon.
 
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