Florida tweaks schedule again, now opening with UMass Lowell
- Nov. 12, 2020 04:16 PM EST
FILE - In this March 4, 2020, file photo, Florida coach Mike White gestures during an NCAA college basketball game against Georgia in Athens, Ga. Unlike a year ago, Florida begins the season unranked and won’t have nearly as much hype. (Joshua L. Jones/Athens Banner-Herald via AP, File)
FILE - In this March 4, 2020, file photo, Florida coach Mike White gestures during an NCAA college basketball game against Georgia in Athens, Ga. Unlike a year ago, Florida begins the season unranked and won’t have nearly as much hype. (Joshua L. Jones/Athens Banner-Herald via AP, File)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida is shuffling its basketball schedule again.

Having already been forced to replace their home-opening opponent, the Gators will now face a different team to start the season.

Florida said Thursday it will open against UMass Lowell instead of Maine on Nov. 25 at a resort casino on tribal land in Connecticut. Event organizers swapped opening-round matchups between Florida and No. 4 Virginia.

Virginia will now face Maine on Nov. 25. The Cavaliers and Gators will meet two days later.

It’s the latest scheduling shuffle for Florida, which initially had UConn coming to Gainesville for its Dec. 6 home opener. But the Huskies pulled out to play North Carolina State a day earlier in Connecticut. Teams across the country have moved games to make schedules more regional in hopes of minimizing travel and the potential spread of COVID-19.

Florida scrambled to fill the void with Stetson.

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