The Gators entered their 11th conference game as one of the “first four out” in the NCAA Tournament, according to Joe Lunardi.
Todd Golden’s squad had a chance for another much needed quad one win to boost them into postseason contention, but the No.3 Alabama Crimson Tide was too much for the Gators to handle on Wednesday night.
Florida dropped to 13-11 (6-5 SEC) after falling 97-69 to No.3 Alabama (21-3, 11-0 SEC) inside the Coleman Coliseum.
The first half was the same old story for the Gators offensively. Florida shot just 23.3% from the field and found almost all of their production from Colin Castleton in the first 20 minutes.
Castleton’s 13 first half points accounted for 57% of the Gators’ total points heading into the locker room.
Florida’s defensive efficiency ranked inside the top 15 entering tonight’s matchup, but the Gators’ struggled to slow down Alabama’s fast-paced offense.
The Crimson Tide scored 52 first-half points on 56.3% from the field and 52.9% from three-point range (9-17).
Florida found themselves trailing Alabama 52-23 at halftime.
The Gators’ shooting improved drastically in the 2nd half, much like it has all season. Florida scored 46 points after halftime, outscoring the Crimson Tide on 45.5% from the field and 44.4% from three.
Florida’s defense allowed 97 points (season high) on 49.3% shooting and 44.1% from three. Alabama’s 15 three pointers was the difference maker in this contest.
Bench production has been a major problem for Florida this season and that was the case again tonight. The Gators mustered just 12 bench points against Alabama, and that’s with starter Myreon Jones leaving the game early with a head injury. Alabama had 29 bench points.
Although there wasn’t much pretty in tonight’s game, Colin Castleton notched a double-double, finishing with 29 points and 10 rebounds. It was clear from early on that Castleton was going to get decent looks around the basket. Alabama sent Castleton to the free throw line often, but the 6-11 forward capitalized, sinking 11-14 from the charity stripe.
The Florida Gators are set to clash with the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday at 3:30 pm inside the O’Connell Center, the first of a huge two game home stand.