By MARK LONG
AP Sports Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- Several hours after Florida's latest loss, Chandler Parsons returned to the practice facility to shoot free throws.
He stayed late into the night.
His teammates probably should have joined him.
The Gators rank 11th in the Southeastern Conference and 267th in the country in free-throw shooting, hitting a meager 65 percent from the stripe. They're on pace to become the worst free-throw shooting team in coach Billy Donovan's 15-year tenure.
The woes already cost Florida (13-4, 2-1 SEC) three games this season, including Saturday's 72-69 home loss to South Carolina. The Gators missed 10 free throws, including their final five.
They hope to get it turned around beginning with Thursday night's game at Auburn (7-10, 0-3). If not, a season that began with a top-10 ranking and lofty expectations could end up looking more like an air ball.
"It takes work," Parsons said. "Guys have been getting in the gym and getting more up and taking it more seriously. Free throws can definitely win or lose a game. It's a big part of the game. Our guys are taking it seriously and trying to get better at it."
Players are taking 100 free throws apiece in practice, and Donovan is trying to create game-like situations for them. The coach randomly chooses someone to shoot free throws, and if that player misses, everyone has to complete full-court sprints.
As dreadful as those runs are for the Gators, the pressure still doesn't compare to what it's like to step to the line late in close games.
"We've got to go in the game and knock them down and stop thinking about it," said center Vernon Macklin, who's shooting 41 percent from the line. "It's all in our heads. We've got to knock them down. We don't want to put in a situation where free throws will cost us a game."
Or another game.
The Gators missed eight free throws in a three-point loss to Central Florida in December, then missed 11 more in a stunning overtime loss to Jacksonville at home about three weeks later.
It's not one player, either.
Macklin is shooting about 20 percent worse than last season. Parsons, a 63-percent free-throw shooter his first three years, is at 53 percent. Erving Walker and Kenny Boynton, starting guards who probably should be in the 80s, are at 75 and 77 percent, respectively.
"It's almost like confusing," Parsons said. "It's disappointing and confusing. I'm a good shooter. I'm shooting the ball well from (3-point range), I'm shooting the ball well in games. I just can't make a free throw. It's just something I've got to fix and I've got to take ownership myself. It's obviously in my head because I can shoot the ball great."
Parsons hasn't reached the point where he's talking with a sports psychologist, but if his struggles continue, that might be the next step.
In the meantime, Donovan is doing all he can to address the issue.
"So much of it is an understanding and a maturity that you know if you're shooting a free throw in the gym in practice or you're shooting a free throw in the game, it's the same exact shot," Donovan said. "But, mentally, young guys create a bunch of drama in their head, 'Oh my God, I've got to make it or we may not win.' They're never thinking that way when they're practicing free throws."
Donovan believes finding the right mindset is as important as developing a consistent routine at the line.
"A free throw in the first five minutes of the game, which people would say has no bearing on the outcome of the game, is the same exact shot at the end of the game except you're creating this element around you," he said. "Trying to help guys see that, identify that, understand that is important, and I think how you talk to yourself is important.
"I don't know what Chandler or Erving or Vernon Macklin or any of these players are saying to themselves. I tell them what they should be saying and how they should be thinking. But what's going through their mind, I don't know."
Received 01/19/11 03:53 am ET
