The Florida Gators will take on the Alabama Crimson Tide Wednesday at Coleman Coliseum. Tip-off from Tuscaloosa, AL, is at 9:00 p.m. ET. The home squad is a 9.5-point spread favorite and the game total is 147.5 points.
Florida, 13-10 SU and 12-11 ATS, lost 72-67 at Kentucky on Saturday. The Gators are 3-2 in their past five and 6-4 in Southeastern Conference play.
Alabama, 20-3 SU and 13-9-1 ATS, beat LSU 79-69 on Saturday. The Crimson Tide are 4-1 in their past five and 10-0 in SEC play.
Alabama beat Florida 83-70 in the lone meeting between the teams last season. The Gators lead the series 66-61 since the 1949-50 season.
Florida is 13-10 overall, but don't let its record deceive you —the Gators are for real. Florida defeated second-ranked Tennessee and was narrowly beaten by Kentucky in its past two games, signaling a potential resurgence over the final weeks of the regular season.
In the close loss at Kentucky, the Gators trailed by 11 at halftime but didn't surrender. After scoring just 22 first-half points, Florida exploded for 45 after the break. Still, Florida never led in the game, as Colin Castleton's 25 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and three blocks weren't enough to lift the Gators. The victory spoke more of Kentucky's solid play, as Florida came into the matchup winners of six of its last seven. UF shot 41.8 percent from the field, including 6-for-19 from three, while UK shot 45.2 percent and 5-for-11 from long range.
Thread the needle ??@Castleton_ ?? @RileyKugel
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— Florida Gators Men's Basketball (@GatorsMBK) February 5, 2023
Florida scores 71.3 points per game (183rd) and shoots 43.4 percent from the floor (253rd), including 32.4 percent from three (273rd). It converts 74.5 percent of its free-throw attempts (65th) and averages 33.0 rebounds (129th) with a -0.8 rebounding margin. UF is ranked 134th in schedule-adjusted offensive efficiency and 238th in effective field goal percentage (49.4%).
The senior forward Castleton leads the Gators in scoring. He averages 15.6 points on 50 percent shooting, along with 7.7 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game. Other players to watch are sophomore guard Will Richard (10.3 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 41.1 3PT%), senior guard Kyle Lofton (9.0 PPG), and sophomore guard Kowacie Reeves (8.4 PPG).
Florida surrenders 64.8 points per game (52nd) on 39.4 percent shooting (14th), including 30.8 percent from behind the arc (47th). It's 10th in adjusted defensive efficiency, 87th in adjusted tempo, and 116th in assist-per-turnov er ratio.
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