The final weekend of the regular season has arrived, and just because the top seeds are set in next week’s Southeastern Conference tournament, that doesn’t mean Saturday and Sunday won’t bring some enjoyable games.
In addition to league champ Florida (23-6, 12-3 in the SEC) visiting one of three teams tied for second place in the East, Vanderbilt (21-9, 9-6), there is a battle between two bubble teams when Georgia (20-9, 9-6) travels to West champ Alabama (19-10, 11-4). And Sunday afternoon’s finale between Kentucky (21-8, 9-6) and host Tennessee (18-12, 8-7) could go a long way in getting the Volunteers into the Big Dance, where they could be a scary team no one wants to see. And don’t forget, the 23rd-ranked Wildcats are a brutal 1-6 on the road in conference play.
Here is just one person’s opinion on how the weekend will shake down: Florida 73, Vanderbilt 70; Alabama 67, Georgia 66; Mississippi State 71, South Carolina 65; Arkansas 74, Mississippi 72; Auburn 59, LSU 56; Tennessee 81, Kentucky 75.
FIVE QUESTIONS FOR/ANSWERS FROM
Alabama
1. The Gator crowd was a huge factor in UF’s recent home victories against Tennessee and Kentucky. This is Senior Night for Vernon Macklin, Alex Tyus and Chandler Parsons (injured redshirt junior Adam Allen will be honored, too). Will the orange and blue faithful again play a big role in what should be an emotional contest?
Answer: No offense meant to the 12,225 who were in attendance. You yelled your hearts out. That said, this game got lopsided pretty quickly in the second half, allowing the Gator faithful to sit back and watch what truly was a tremendous 20 minutes of basketball by the home team.
2. With a frontline that goes 6-foot-6, 6-8 and 6-8 with no one heavier than 228 pounds, Alabama is a bit on the small side. Florida often likes to go to Macklin early in games, and he often sets the tone for how UF starts on offense. That said, he hasn’t shot well lately (making just 13 of his last 28 shots). Will he turn in around in his final game in the O’Connell Center?
Answer: Big Vern was at his effective best, making 9-of-12 shots en route to scoring 19 points.
3. Believe it or not, Chandler Parsons is the only usual Gator starter to not have a 20-point game this year. Will this, his final home game, be the night he reaches 20?
Answer: He got so close, finishing with a season-high 19 points. Parsons had time to get 20 – he got to 19 with 5:07 left – but, as always he was unselfish. After that layup, the 6-foot-10 senior did not take another shot and dished off two of his game-high seven assists.
4. Alabama’s JaMychal Green and Tony Mitchell are one of the SEC’s best duos, combining to average 31.8 points, 14.7 rebounds, 3.45 blocked shots and 3.19 steals. Will the Gators be able to slow Green and Mitchell down, or will the Tide pair rise?
Answer: The Gators did a pretty good job, aside from a few moments where Mitchell broke free for some thunderous dunks. In all, Mitchell and Green combined to shoot 11-of-32 (.344) from the floor and only went 2-for-2 (both by Mitchell) at the foul line. They finished with a combined 24 points, 17 rebounds (which was above their average), one assist, one blocked shot, one steal and four turnovers.
5. Alex Tyus had a strong outing in UF’s 66-65 victory against the Crimson Tide last year in Tuscaloosa. He made 8-of-10 shots for a team-high 19 points. He also grabbed seven rebounds and blocked a shot. Can the Gators get a similar performance out of Tyus in his final home game in orange and blue?
Answer: Tyus scored 12 points, grabbed nine rebounds, and had one assist, one block and one turnover in 27 minutes. He also played nice defense on Green, playing a big role in the junior’s uncharacteristic 5-for-19 shooting performance.
FIVE QUESTIONS FOR
Vanderbilt
1. In sophomore guard John Jenkins (19.4 ppg), the Commodores have the SEC’s leading scorer. In the first meeting between the two teams (a 65-61 overtime victory by the host Gators), Jenkins led all scorers with 22, which also was more than one-third his team’s total. He made 8-of-14 shots and all four free throw attempts. Will he have another big game?
2. Vanderbilt point guard Brad Tinsley leads the SEC with an average of 4.5. His assist/turnover ratio is a strong 2.22, also. However, he had two assists and two turnovers the last time he played UF. That said, he did have 15 points and four rebounds. How will he fare this time?
3. It has been a tough stretch for UF’s junior point guard, Erving Walker. The last five games have seen him make just 18 of 47 shots (.383), and only once during that span (a 5-for-10 performance at Louisiana State) did he make half of his shots in a game. And the first time the Gators played Vanderbilt, Walker made just 6 of 17 shots (which wasn’t a part of this current run). Will he bounce out of his slump just in time for the SEC Tournament?
4. Florida freshman forward Will Yeguete hasn’t played a lot since conference play began. However, he was very effective in the first game against Vanderbilt, grabbing six rebounds in 10 minutes. Will he get that much time in the rematch, and if so, will he put up a similar performance?
5. When these two teams first met, three Commodores – starting center Festus Ezeli, starting small forward Jeffery Taylor and reserve power forward Steve Tchiengang – fouled out. Will Vandy fare better with the whistles at home?
GAME 30 PREVIEW
No. 14 FLORIDA GATORS (23-6, 12-3)
Position: Players, Height/Weight, Year, 2010-11 statistics
G: Erving Walker, 5-8/171, JR, 14.4 points per game, 3.3 assists per game
G: Kenny Boynton, 6-2/183, SO, 13.6 points per game, 2.5 assists per game
F: Chandler Parsons, 6-10/218, SR, 11.4 points per game, 7.8 rebounds per game
F: Alex Tyus, 6-8/220, SR, 8.8 points per game, 5.4 rebounds per game
C: Vernon Macklin, 6-10/240, SR, 11.5 points per game, 6.0 rebounds per game
Head coach: Billy Donovan (354-145 in 15th season at Florida; 389-165 in 17th season as a head coach)
No. 21/20 VANDERBILT COMMODORES (21-8, 9-6)
Position: Players, Height/Weight, Year, 2010-11 statistics
G: Brad Tinsley, 6-3/210, JR, 10.8 points per game, 4.5 assists per game
G: John Jenkins, 6-4/215, SO, 19.4 points per game, 3.1 rebounds per game
G/F: Jeffery Taylor 6-7/225, JR, 14.5 points per game, 5.5 rebounds per game
F: Lance Goulbourne, 6-8/225, JR, 6.9 points per game, 7.2 rebounds per game
C: Festus Ezeli, 6-11/255, JR, 12.8 points per game, 6.3 rebounds per game
Head coach: Kevin Stallings (234-145 in 12th season at Vanderbilt and 357-208 in 18 seasons overall)
When: Saturday, March 5 at 6 p.m.
Where: Memorial Gymnasium (Nashville, Tenn.)
TV/Radio: ESPN/Gator Radio Network/Sirius 122/XM 143
Tickets: The game is sold out, according to the Vanderbilt University athletic website.
Notable: With a win Florida will capture the outright SEC championship for the third time in school history. The first two happened in 1989 and 2007. … Vanderbilt leads the all-time series between the two teams, 63-56, and is 40-17 against the Gators all-time in Nashville. However, Florida has won 16 of the last 21 meetings, including a 65-61 overtime thriller on Feb. 1 in Gainesville. Billy Donovan is 19-11 all-time against Vanderbilt, including 6-8 in Nashville. Commodores’ coach Kevin Stallings is 7-17 all-time against UF, but that mark is just 5-6 in Memorial Gymnasium. … If the Gators win, they will tie the program record for SEC wins in a 16-game season with 13. The 2006-07 national championship team finished 13-3 in conference play. … How’s this for steady? Vanderbilt has an overall 637-631 record against teams that currently make up the SEC. … If Florida wins, this will be the fourth team in school history to win 24 regular-season games, joining the 2006-07 (26 wins), as well as the 2002-03 and 2005-06 (24 wins) teams in the record books. … Tuesday’s victory against West champion Alabama gave the Gators their fifth SEC title in school history. Four of those (2000, 2001, 2007, 2011) came with Donovan at the helm. … Chandler Parsons has scored 57 percent of his points in SEC play since the halfway point. Parsons also has a team-high seven double-doubles this year, five of which have come in SEC action. He has 14 double-doubles for his career. Parsons has averaged 16.7 points, 8.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists since he returned from a deep left thigh bruise three games ago and is making a serious late push for the league’s player of the year award. Florida has had no SEC players of the year in its 92-year history. … Vanderbilt enters the game second in the conference to Kentucky in three-point shooting. The Commodores shoot .386, while the Wildcats are at .399. Florida ranks fifth in the league at .345. … Vanderbilt is 6-2 since losing 65-61 in overtime to Florida in Gainesville on Feb. 1. … This will be Billy Donovan’s 500th game as Gator coach. … Vanderbilt is 13-2 when outrebounding its opponent this year. … When UF clinched at least a tie of the SEC championship with a 78-51 victory against visiting Alabama on Tuesday night, Parsons, Erving Walker and Kenny Boynton combined to dish out 16 assists and had just four turnovers. … The Commodores lead the SEC in free-throw-attempts-per-game (25.2) and in conference games only (24.3). Vanderbilt is shooting 74.4 percent from the foul line and has made more free throws in SEC play (276) than three teams have attempted. … The Commodores have not fared well with Saturday’s ESPN announcing team, together and apart. With Jimmy Dykes doing color commentary, Vandy is 0-3. With Brad Nessler on the lead call, the Commodores are 1-4. Nessler called the first meeting this year between the two teams but Dykes did not. … UF is 20-1 when holding opponents to 70 points or fewer in 2010-11. The mark is 9-0 in SEC play. … This will be Senior Day for Vanderbilt players Chris Meriwether and Joe Duffy. They, along with three team managers, are scheduled to be honored following the game. Stallings is 5-6 all-time on Senior Day at Vandy. … Like Florida, Vanderbilt has a consistent double-double producer. Center Festus Ezeli, arguably the SEC’s most improved player, has recorded five this year. … Playing a career-high 36 minutes, Ezeli’s three blocked shots on Tuesday night at Kentucky gave him 76 for the season, breaking the previous single-season school record of 74 set in the 1987-88 season by Will Perdue. … Commodores power forward Lance Goulbourne has pulled down 26 rebounds in his last two games combined. … UF has dished out 37 assists to just 19 turnovers its last two games. … Florida is 5-0 in SEC play when center Vernon Macklin scores at least 15 points. He had 19 in UF’s victory against Alabama on Tuesday. … The Gators are 26-2 all-time when Walker dishes out at least five assists. … Florida is 9-3 away from Gainesville this year, including a 7-2 record in true road games. The Gators were just 8-9 away from Gainesville in 2009-10. … Opponents are shooting just .291 on three-pointers against the Commodores. … Florida is allowing only 61.8 points-a-game, while Vanderbilt is averaging 76.7 ppg – a huge discrepancy. … Patric Young has been UF’s first substitute a team-best 15 times. Scottie Wilbekin is second (11). … Florida has won 15-of-18, including 7-of-the-last-8. … Senior center Vernon Macklin has scored Florida’s first points in a game a team-high 11 times this season. Senior power forward Alex Tyus is second at eight. … Florida’s bench has been outscored 375-367 this season. … Parsons, Tyus and Macklin – UF’s three seniors – have combined to score exactly 900 points this season. That is 43.71-percent of the Gators’ 2,059 total points. … Florida has forced 10 shot clock violations this year and has been called for six. … Florida has made a three-pointer in 641 consecutive games. Vanderbilt’s current run is at 791 games. … Saturday’s game will be the 100th consecutive for Walker, a current team high. … Boynton needs seven points to reach 400 for the year. He’s 131 points away from 1,000 for his career. … Boynton had six blocked shots as a freshman and has six as a sophomore. He set a career high with two blocks against Rhode Island earlier this season. … Macklin needs two assists to reach 50 for his two-year Gator career. He also needs eight points to get to 700. … Parsons needs two rebounds to reach 800 for his career. He’s also 36 points shy of 1,400. … Tyus is 45 points away from 1,300 for his career. He also needs two assists to reach 75, two blocks to get to 110 and one steal to have 50. He grabbed his 700th rebound on Senior Night against Alabama. Tyus has 701 boards entering the Vanderbilt game. If Tyus goes 4-for-4 from the foul line on Saturday, he will be exactly 200-for-300 for his career. … Macklin is one defensive rebound away from 100 for the year, while Tyus is four away. Parsons leads the team with 153 defensive rebounds. Macklin’s 74 offensive rebounds are nine more than Parsons has grabbed and 18 more than Tyus. … With 10 points, Walker will have 428 for the season – one more than he scored last year. He also needs one assist to get to 350 for his career. Three assists will get him 100 this season. … Freshman point guard Scottie Wilbekin is averaging one turnover every 22.82 minutes. He also needs three rebounds to get to 50 for the season. The Gainesville native passed out his 50th assist last weekend at Kentucky. … Young needs two rebounds and nine points to reach 100 in each category for the season. He’s also one blocked shot away from 25, one assist from 10 and two steals from 20. Young’s 519 minutes leads all Gators who are primarily reserves. Wilbekin is second with 502. … Gator freshman forward Will Yeguete is averaging a rebound every 2.69 minutes he plays. … Young (24) leads Macklin (23) and Tyus (22) in a close battle for the Gators’ shot-block title. … Boynton and Walker have combined for 119 of Florida’s 174 made three-pointers this year. That’s 68.4 percent. … Vanderbilt is 0-3 this year in overtime games (0-2 in league play). One of those losses was to Florida, which is 3-1 in overtime games this season. The Gators are 3-0 in conference games that go beyond regulation.
PAST EXAMS AND GATOR(GR)ADES
Game 1: Florida 77, UNC Wilmington 60. Gator Player of the Game: Scottie Wilbekin (3 points, 5 assists, 4 steals); Opposing Player of the Game: Chad Tomko (15 points, 3 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: B– . Record: 1-0.
Game 2: Ohio State 93, Florida 75. Gator Player of the Game: Vernon Macklin (12 points, 5 rebounds, 1 block); Opposing Players of the Game: David Lighty (26 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal) and Jared Sullinger (26 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: C. Record: 1-1.
Game 3: Florida 105, North Carolina A&T 55. Gator Player of the Game: Will Yeguete (7 points, 15 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals); Opposing Player of the Game: Thomas Coleman (8 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, 1 steal). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A– . Record: 2-1.
Game 4: Florida 61, Morehead State 55. Gator Player of the Game: Chandler Parsons (13 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals); Opposing Player of the Game: Kenneth Faried (20 points, 18 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocked shots. Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: C– . Record: 3-1.
Game 5: Florida 79, Florida Atlantic 63. Gator Players of the Game: Alex Tyus (19 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist) and Kenny Boynton (21 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound); Opposing Player of the Game: Greg Gantt (17 points, 2 assists, 1 steal). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: B-. Record: 4-1.
Game 6: Florida 55, Florida State 51. Gator Player of the Game: Erik Murphy (10 points, 6 rebounds, 1 blocked shot); Opposing Player of the Game: Michael Snaer (15 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A-. Record: 5-1.
Game 7: Central Florida 57, Florida 54. Gator Player of the Game: Vernon Macklin (20 points on 10-of-11 shooting, 8 rebounds); Opposing Player of the Game: Marcus Jordan (18 points, 3 assists, 3 rebounds). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: C-. Record: 5-2.
Game 8: Florida 67, American 48. Gator Player of the Game: Chandler Parsons (13 points on 5-of-7 shooting, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals); Opposing Player of the Game: Troy Brewer (17 points, 2 rebounds). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A-. Record: 6-2.
Game 9: Florida 65, Kent State 52. Gator Players of the Game: Alex Tyus (20 points on 10-of-15 shooting, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist) and Vernon Macklin (19 points on 9-of-12 shooting, 8 rebounds, 3 blocked shots, 1 steal, 1 assist); Opposing Player of the Game: Carlton Guyton (14 points, 4-of-6 on three-pointers, 3 rebounds, 3 assists). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A-. Record: 7-2.
Game 10: Florida 57, Kansas State 44. Gator Players of the Game: Kenny Boynton (15 points on 6-of-12 shooting, 1 assist, helped limit Pullen to 6-of-17 shooting); Opposing Player of the Game: Jacob Pullen (19 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A-. Record: 8-2.
Game 11: Jacksonville 71, Florida 68 (OT). Gator Player of the Game: Erving Walker (game-high 21 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound); Opposing Player of the Game: Keith McDougald (team-high 18 points – 15 in the second half/overtime, 2 steals, 1 rebound). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: D+. Record: 8-3.
Game 12: Florida 66, Radford 55. Gator Player of the Game: Erving Walker (game-high 20 points, including 5-of-7 on 3s, 3 assists, 2 steals); Opposing Player of the Game: Johnathan Edwards (team-high 15 points, 9 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 assist). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: C-. Record: 9-3.
Game 13: Florida 71, Xavier 67. Gator Player of the Game: Kenny Boynton (16 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds, 1 steal); Opposing Player of the Game: Tu Holloway (game-high 26 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A. Record: 10-3.
Game 14: Florida 84, Rhode Island 59. Gator Player of the Game: Chandler Parsons (18 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 1 blocked shot); Opposing Player of the Game: Delroy James (game-high 23 points, 6 rebounds). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A. Record: 11-3.
Game 15: Florida 77, Mississippi 71. Gator Player of the Game: Erving Walker (20 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 turnovers, becomes 47th Gator to record 1,000 career points); Opposing Player of the Game: Chris Warren (20 points, 3 assists, 3 turnovers, 2 rebounds, 1 blocked shot). Buddy’s Gator(Gr)ade: B+. Record: 12-3 (1-0 in the SEC).
Game 16: Florida 81, Tennessee 75 (OT). Gator Player of the Game: Alex Tyus (18 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocked shots, 1 steal); Opposing Players of the Game: Cameron Tatum (game-high 21 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 blocked shot, 1 steal) and Tobias Harris (18 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocked shots). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A-. Record: 13-3 (2-0).
Game 17: South Carolina 72, Florida 69 Gator Player of the Game: Patric Young (career-high 12 points, 5 rebounds, 1 blocked shot, 1 steal, 2-for-2 FTs in 19 minutes); Opposing Player of the Game: Bruce Ellington (game-high 23 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 4-for-4 on FTs, 1 turnover in 30 minutes). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: D+. Record: 13-4 (2-1).
Game 18: Florida 45, Auburn 40 Gator Player of the Game: No award given; Opposing Player of the Game: Earnest Ross (11 points, 3-of-4 three-pointers, 3 rebounds, game-high 3 steals). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: D. Record: 14-4 (3-1).
Game 19: Florida 75, Arkansas 43 Gator Players of the Game: Kenny Boynton (20 points, 4-of-7 three-pointers, 4 assists, 1 steal, 0 turnovers, held Razorbacks’ leading scorer, Rotnei Clark, shotless) and Chandler Parsons (career-high 15 rebounds, 5 points, game-high 5 assists); Opposing Player of the Game: Delvon Johnson (12 points, team-high 7 rebounds, 1 blocked shot). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A. Record: 15-4 (4-1).
Game 20: Florida 104, Georgia 91 (2 OT) Gator Players of the Game: Vernon Macklin (career-high 23 points, 10-of-15 from floor, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal), Kenny Boynton (game-high 24 points, 12-of-12 FTs, 2 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals) and Erving Walker (game-high 24 points, game-tying 3 at end of first OT, 5 assists, 4 rebounds); Opposing Player of the Game: Trey Thompkins (20 points, game-high 13 rebounds, game-high 3 blocked shots). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A-. Record: 16-4 (5-1).
Game 21: Mississippi State 71, Florida 64 Gator Player of the Game: Erving Walker (team-high 18 points, 5 rebounds, team-high 4 assists, 2 turnovers); Opposing Player of the Game: Dee Bost (game-high 24 points, game-high 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 1 turnover). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: C. Record: 16-5 (5-2).
Game 22: Florida 65, Vanderbilt 61 (OT) Gator Player of the Game: Chandler Parsons (team-high 18 points, game-high 11 rebounds with 4 offensive, 3 steals, 2 assists, 1 turnover in 39 minutes); Opposing Player of the Game: John Jenkins (game-high 22 points, 6 rebounds 1 steal, 1 turnover in 42 minutes). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: B. Record: 17-5 (6-2).
Game 23: Florida 70, Kentucky 68 Gator Player of the Game: Chandler Parsons (team-high 17 points, game-high 12 rebounds with 3 offensive, 5 assists, 1 blocked shot, no turnovers in 37 minutes); Opposing Player of the Game: Brandon Knight (game-high 24 points, 4-of-5 three-pointers, 6-for-6 FTs, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 blocked shot, 4 turnovers in 36 minutes). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A. Record: 18-5 (7-2).
Game 24: Florida 79, South Carolina 60 Gator Players of the Game: Chandler Parsons (14 points, game-high 12 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal) and Erving Walker (season- and game-high 25 points on just 9 shots – making seven, including 4-of-5 three-pointers, 3 assists, 2 steals, just 1 turnover in 36 minutes) ; Opposing Player of the Game: Bruce Ellington (team-high 14 points, 5 rebounds, co-team-high 3 assists, co-team-high 2 steals). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A-. Record: 19-5 (8-2).
Game 25: Florida 61, Tennessee 60 Gator Players of the Game: Erving Walker (team-high 16 points – including 9-for-9 from the foul line, 3 assists, 1 rebound) and Alex Tyus (10 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals) ; Opposing Player of the Game: Scotty Hopson (game-high 22 points, 3-of-3 on three-pointers, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: B. Record: 20-5 (9-2).
Game 26: Florida 68, LSU 61 Gator Player of the Game: Erving Walker (co-team-high 17 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal); Opposing Player of the Game: Ralston Turner (game-high 18 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 rebound). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: C+. Record: 21-5 (10-2).
Game 27: Florida 71, Georgia 62 Gator Player of the Game: Chandler Parsons (16 points on 7-of-12 shooting, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 blocked shot, 0 turnovers); Opposing Player of the Game: Travis Leslie (game-high 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting and 4-of-4 foul shooting, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: B. Record: 22-5 (11-2).
Game 28: Kentucky 76, Florida 68 Gator Players of the Game: Chandler Parsons (15 points, team-high 8 rebounds, game-high 1 turnover in 37 minutes) and Kenny Boynton (team-high 21 points, 4 assists, 2 rebounds, 1 turnover in 29 minutes); Opposing Player of the Game: Darius Miller (game-high 24 points on 9-of-15 shooting and 4-of-5 foul shooting, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocked shots, 1 turnover in 35 minutes). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: B-. Record: 22-6 (11-3).
Game 29: Florida 78, Alabama 51 Gator Players of the Game: Chandler Parsons (season-high 19 points, game-high 11 rebounds, 3 assists), Vernon Macklin (19 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists) and Alex Tyus (12 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 blocked shot); Opposing Player of the Game: Trevor Releford (team-high 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting, 3 rebounds, 4 assists). Patton’s Gator(Gr)ade: A. Record: 23-6 (12-3).