No. 14 Alabama will go for a regular-season sweep against No. 24 Florida when the teams tip off Tuesday evening in a Southeastern Conference contest in Gainesville, Fla.
The Crimson Tide (20-9, 12-4) are looking to bounce back from an 81-74 loss at home against No. 4 Tennessee on Saturday. They now sit one game behind the Volunteers in the SEC standings with two games to play.
Meanwhile, Florida (20-9, 10-6) hopes to rebound from an 82-76 loss on the road against No. 18 South Carolina on Saturday. The Gators sit in sixth place in the SEC, but only one game separates them from No. 11 Auburn and No. 16 Kentucky.
Alabama coach Nate Oats acknowledged that his team’s loss against Tennessee made a conference title more of an uphill climb. But he said his players needed to focus on the game at hand rather than worrying about March math.
“We’re not in full control, whether we win or not anymore,” Oats said. “We were going into (Saturday). We had full control of whether we won a championship.
“Now we need some help. So we’ll see how mature our guys are. We talk to them all the time: Control the things you can control. What we can control now is our effort on Tuesday.”
The message is similar for the Gators after their loss to the Gamecocks. Florida won its previous two games — against Vanderbilt and Missouri — and coach Todd Golden said he was not concerned that losing to South Carolina would carry over into the next game.
Golden said his players have a knack for focusing on the next task, win or lose.
“Our team’s been really good that way all year,” Golden said. “I feel like we have a really mature, resilient group. That doesn’t mean we’re winning on Tuesday, but I think our team is going to prepare really well. They understand the challenge at hand.”
Gators guard Zyon Pullin agreed. The fifth-year senior is averaging 15.4 points this season after spending the previous four seasons at UC-Riverside.
“Keep that next-game mentality,” Pullin said after Saturday’s loss. “This was one (game). They got us. We’ve got to find a way to learn from it.
“We’ve got another big one Tuesday. If we come out slow, it’s another game we could lose. Just focus on the next game and find a way to win that one.”
Alabama held on for a 98-93 overtime win against Florida in the teams’ first matchup of the season Feb. 21 in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The teams were tied at 85-85 at the end of regulation before the Crimson Tide outscored the Gators 13-8 in the extra session.
Grant Nelson led Alabama with 22 points and eight rebounds in the first game against Florida. Aaron Estrada contributed 20 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in the win.
Walter Clayton Jr. led the Gators with 27 points and eight rebounds in the first game against the Crimson Tide. Will Richard finished with 17 points on 6-for-13 shooting and Tyrese Samuel finished with 14 points to go along with eight boards.
Florida is 13-1 at home this season. Alabama is 5-4 on the road.
–Field Level Media
