TUSCALOOSA, AL (352today.com) – UPDATE, 2/22/2024: The 24th ranked Gators didn’t make the plays in overtime and lost to the Alabama Crimson Tide in overtime 98-93 at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
The Gators had a 10-point lead with eight minutes remaining when the Tide went on a run. It’s the second loss in the last nine games for the head coach Todd Golden’s squad.
UP NEXT: The Gators are back home for its next two games. Florida takes on Vanderbilt Saturday afternoon followed by Missouri on Wednesday.
ORIGINAL, 2/21/2024: The Florida Gators have made their way into the Top 25 and are in Tuscaloosa to face Alabama who holds the 13th spot in the Associated Press (AP) rankings.
After winning the last seven of their eight games, Florida snuck their way into the AP rankings claiming the 24th spot. According to Florida’s program, it’s the first time the team has been ranked since Dec. 6, 2021.
Fans are in for an exciting matchup Wednesday night with Florida’s AP Poll appearance plus their fifth-place ranking in the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Alabama currently leads the league.
The Gators brought home a huge rival win over the Georgia Bulldogs, defeating them 88-82 Saturday. However, the Crimson Tide’s energy is also high with their big 100-75 win over the Texas A & M Aggies at home.
Alabama leads the all-time series between the two 78-70. Florida hasn’t defeated the Tide since 2020 when the two faced off in Gainesville. The Gators were able to secure a win in double overtime defeating Alabama 104-98.
During their last matchup on Feb. 8, 2023, in Tuscaloosa, the Tide beat the Gators 97-69, marking Florida’s worst loss in conference play in 26 years, according to the program.
Despite the numbers, the Gators are currently on a three-game winning streak and have won three of their last four road games after their victory in Athens. They’ll be looking to build on that momentum Wednesday night, and Gators head coach Todd Golden is no stranger to the challenge the Tide brings.
“They’re number one offensively in the nation for a reason, and a big part of that is because they’re super talented on the offensive side of the ball,” shared Golden in a press conference Tuesday.
Golden added that his squad needs to work on their defense and Alabama will be a tough team to test that against.
“Alabama is probably not the team you want to see if you’re really trying to get better defensively the next week, but it’ll definitely give us an opportunity to go out there a try a few different new things and just really take on that challenge of seeing if we can disrupt them on their home floor which is going to be a challenge to do,” added Golden.
He also commented on the team making their way into the Top 25 and described it as a “really nice accomplishment,” but doesn’t want his guys to settle there.
“If we’re looking back at the end of March and we’re saying, ‘Hey, when we got ranked 24th that was the highlight of our season,’ we’re going to be disappointed. We’re trying to keep things in perspective,” said Golden. “We got six games left, conference tournament, hopefully NCAAs, and we’ve been playing really well and we’re going to see if we can continue to sustain that success.”
Wednesday night will be a great test of their consistency and commitment against the Tide who is 10-2 in conference play. The game will tip off at 7:00 p.m. in Coleman Coliseum. You can watch it on ESPN2.
Click here to view the current SEC rankings. You can also view the full list of AP Top 25 rankings here.