Ad Disclosure
Florida outlasts Alabama in Tuscaloosa to make program history
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Florida made program history by defeating Alabama in a thrilling top-10 showdown. The No. 5 Gators took control in the 2nd half to lead by as many as 14 points, but the No. 7 Crimson Tide fought until the end as UF leaves Tuscaloosa with a 99-94 victory.
For Florida, it’s the first time in program history defeating 2 AP top-10 teams on the road in a single season. The other win was at No. 1 Auburn.
Alabama star Mark Sears was the game’s high scorer with 30 points. Sears led the Tide attack shooting 10-of-24 from the field, but just 2-of-10 from 3-point range. He was 8-of-9 at the free-throw line, adding 6 rebounds over 38 minutes.
Florida’s Alex Condon was the MVP of the game. The Gator big scored a season-high 27 points, shooting 9-of-16 from the field, including 2-of-4 from 3-point land, adding 7 free throws. Condon grabbed 10 rebounds during his 30 minutes to make it a double-double.
Todd Golden’s team won the rebounding battle 50-35. Florida also got to play the style of game it likes, scoring 22 fast break points to Alabama’s 10. The rebounds helped UF get 19 second-chance points to UA’s 10. The Gator bench was also slightly more productive with 23 points to Bama’s 18.
It was a tight 1st half, with Florida leading 41-40 at the break. The scoring picked up in the 2nd half. Alabama last led 55-52 with 15:14 to go in the 2nd half. UF led for 26:42 of game time.
With the win, Florida improves to 26-4 overall and 13-4 in SEC play, locking up the No. 2 seed in the SEC Tournament for a double bye in Nashville. Alabama is now 23-7 and 12-5 in conference play, with its conference seeding uncertain at the moment.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
